“The appeal of
horror is beyond politics. It’s accessible to political criticism, but the
appeal is very direct – right into the viscera, before it gets to the brain.
And you don’t have politics in the viscera.”
-Cronenberg on Cronenberg, first published in 1992 by
Faber and Faber Limited
Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the release of David
Cronenberg’s much lauded horror classic Rabid (1977) which will be available on dual format Blu-ray
& DVD both as an Amaray and Steelbook from 16th February 2015. This
new edition will mark the Blu-ray world premiere for Rabid, which served as the follow up picture to Cronenberg’s debut
1975 feature Shivers, continuing
to explore the themes of viral diseases, yet upping the ante, the scale, the
gore levels and the threat by unleashing the venereal terror on the whole of
downtown Montreal.
This fresh release will include a host of exciting extra
features including audio commentaries with both director David Cronenberg and William
Beard, author of The Artist as
Monster: The Cinema of David Cronenberg. This disc will also feature brand
new interviews, most notably with famed director (and Rabid executive producer) Ivan Reitman (Ghost Busters, Twins) and
his co-producer Don Carmody.
Other extras include the featurette Make-up Memories in which make-up
artist Joe Blasco recalls how the film’s various gruesome effects were achieved
and Raw, Rough and Rabid: The
Lacerating Legacy of Cinépix – a featurette which looks back at the early
years of the celebrated Canadian production company.
Alongside this, the disc will also include the David
Cronenberg episode of The Directors,
a 1999 documentary on the filmmaker, containing interviews with Cronenberg,
Marilyn Chambers, Deborah Harry, Michael Ironside, Peter Weller and others.
The reversible sleeve will feature both original artwork
and a newly commissioned cover art by Nat Marsh. The collector’s booklet
features new writing on the film by Kier-La Janisse, reprinted excerpts of Cronenberg on Cronenberg and more,
illustrated with original archive stills and posters
Synopsis
First come the Shivers… then, you turn RABID! Celebrated
Canadian cult auteur David Cronenberg (The
Fly, Videodrome) followed up his
startling debut feature length proper Shivers
with this tense and gory thriller which expands upon the venereal disease theme
of that film, this time unleashing it on the whole of downtown Montreal – with
terrifying consequences.
When beautiful Rose (adult film star Marilyn Chambers) is
badly injured in a motorcycle crash, Dr. Keloid, who is in the process of
developing a revolutionary new type of skin-graft, seizes the opportunity to
test out his as yet unproven methods. The surgery appears successful and Rose
seems restored to full health. But all is not as it should be – Rose has been
transformed into a contagious blood-sucker, endowed with a bizarre, needle-like
protrusion in her armpit with which she drains the blood from those unfortunate
enough to be in her vicinity.
An important landmark in the early career of Cronenberg, Rabid sees the director returning to the
viral theme of his earlier work but on a much larger (and more assured) scale –
where the infection has shifted from the confines of a single apartment block
to the expansive shopping centres and motorways of Canada’s second largest
city.
Special Features
- New High Definition Digital Transfer
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of the feature
- Original mono audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio Commentary with writer-director David Cronenberg
- Audio Commentary with William Beard, author of The Artist as Monster: The Cinema of David Cronenberg
- Archive interview with David Cronenberg
- Brand new interview with executive producer Ivan Reitman
- Brand new interview with co-producer Don Carmody
- Make-up Memories: Joe Blasco Remembers Rabid – A short featurette in which Blasco recalls how the film’s various gruesome effects were achieved
- Raw, Rough and Rabid: The Lacerating Legacy of Cinépix – Featurette looking back at the early years of the celebrated Canadian production company, including interviews with author Kier-La Janisse and special makeup artist Joe Blasco
- The Directors: David Cronenberg – A 1999 documentary on the filmmaker, containing interviews with Cronenberg, Marilyn Chambers, Deborah Harry, Michael Ironside, Peter Weller and others
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Nat Marsh
- Collector’s Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Kier-La Janisse, reprinted excerpts of Cronenberg on Cronenberg and more, illustrated with original archive stills and posters.
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