Directors Joe Dante, Sean Cunningham, Monte Hellman, Ken Russell, and John Gaeta team up for the wonderfully deranged Trapped Ashes. Deaf Crocodile gives us their first 4K UHD edition stacked with special features.
The Film
I’m not a huge fan of the anthology film. So, it is a wonderful surprise when I find one that works as well as Trapped Ashes.
Six strangers on a studio tour are led into the old set of an infamous “House of Horrors” by their off-kilter Tour Guide Desmond (Henry Gibson). Trapped in what seems like some sort of alternate dimension, Desmond suggests they tell their frightening stories to see if maybe the house will release them. One by one each tells their story of fright in the hopes of escaping this cursed set.
Anthology films are only as good as their weakest segment. Luckily, for all those involved all are of equal quality and execution. Each director is well suited for their segment. Dante unfortunately does not film a segment but rather the wraparounds for the films. It is a little disappointing he did not film a segment, but his work is so cleverly witty with Gibson being a highlight of his wraparounds that one forgives the film for not giving him a segment.
Sean Cunningham’s Jibaku segment is appropriately and surprisingly deft as its a sexual thriller Japanese haunted ghost story mash-up. Ken Russell’s The Girl with Golden Breasts is so Russell all it would need is to be filmed in the 1970s and get an X-rating to be a proper Russell joint. Monte Hellman’s Stanley’s Girlfriend is a great Roman à clef by way of a haunted sexual thriller in the best way possible. The biggest surprise though, not surprisingly considering his work with the Wachowski’s, is John Gaeta’s My Twin, the Worm which is just wild and inappropriate in its perverse story that it’s the highlight of the film.
All in all, Trapped Ashes and its clever play and ode to the anthology films of yesteryear – think less Creep Show and more Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors. This is one that will surprise and delight those who love their horror with an added mix of sexuality and perversion.
The Transfer
The all-new 4K restoration from 35mm OCN/IP by Craig Rogers of Deaf Crocodile with a new HDR Dolby Vision color grading by Tyler Fagerstrom is an excellent debut entry into the world of 4K UHD for the boutique label. Was there ever any doubt? DC has continually provided us with exemplary Blu-ray transfers on all their releases. This 4K UHD is exactly what we have come expect from DC. The jump to 4K UHD has the same considerate and thoughtful transfers with the addition of HDR encoding and resolution. Trapped Ashes looks luminous in 4K but retains all of what makes later-era 35mm productions so wonderful. The grain structure alone is worth commending with a beautiful subtle patina running throughout. The color reproduction is wonderful keeping the muted tones with sudden pops of color throughout consistent. Though it’s the contrast and black levels that are the showstopper here, with a refinement because of the HDR/Dolby Vision that allows for absolutely none of the dreaded “crush blacks” we can sometimes see in darker shot films. Add in the fact there is literally no scratches, dirt, artifacts, or any defects throughout makes this one of the best 4K’s of the year.
The Extras
They include the following;
- New commentary track by comics artist (Swamp Thing), film historian, and author Stephen R. Bissette.
- Director’s Cut of Monte Hellman’s “Stanley’s Girlfriend” episode
- Original full-length cut of Ken Russell’s “The Girl with Golden Breasts” episode
- Original 5-part Making Of video with cast and crew interviews
- “Hollywood Parasite: Hysteria in Trapped Ashes” – New visual essay by journalist and physical media expert Ryan Verrill (The Disc Connected) and film professor Dr. Will Dodson.
- Three new video interviews with:
- Director John Gaeta, cast members Jayce Bartok, Scott Lowell, and Lisi Tribble, producers Yuko Yoshikawa & Yoshifumi Hosoya, and cinematographer Zoran Popovic
- Cast members Tahmoh Penikett & Tygh Runyan and production designer Robb Wilson King, producers Yuko Yoshikawa & Yoshifumi Hosoya
- Producer Mike Frislev of Nomadic Pictures
NOTE: All special features, but the Commentary Track, solely reside on the Blu-ray disc.
The all-new commentary track by comics artist (Swamp Thing), film historian, and author Stephen R. Bissette begins with a very cheeky opening before diving into his track. Some of the details include his history with anthologies – which was specifically in the comic book world; the various types of anthology films there are – and where Trapped Ashes falls into; a discussion of one of the first composite films Dr. Terror House of Horrors – and its connection to Dennis Bartok, Trapped Ashes’ writer/producer; the production schedule – which included 5 directors in 3 different countries in a very short time; a discussion of the wrap-around director Joe Dante – and Bissette’s personal ties; a larger discussion of the first section directed by Ken Russell – various discussion points of Russell’s career, discussion points about the from the segment, the history of makeup effects for breasts and organs in horror, the reception of the film, the director’s own cameo appearance, etc.; a larger discussion of the second section directed by Sean Cunningham – discussion points about the from the segment, a discussion of the animation house (EGG) that handled the animation, a discussion of Bartok’s script which he pulled from his own experience, a discussion of Sean Cunningham’s career including his first films in erotic movies before moving into horror, why they did not get a Japanese director for this section and why they chose Cunningham, etc.; a larger discussion of the third section directed by Monte Hellman – a discussion of Hellman’s filmography/career, the inspiration from real life stories, the reason why Hellman chose this film, why they never really called out Stanley Kubrick by full name, the extended version of the segment, etc.; a larger discussion of the fourth and final section directed by John Gaeta – the inspiration from real life story that it was pulled from, how Bartok and Gaeta were working on a big budget version The Fantastic Planet before doing this film, the career and filmography of Gaeta, the original director of the segment, etc.; a discussion of the filmography and career of screenwriter and producer Dennis Bartok; a larger discussion of the various VFX work from Robert Skotak; a larger discussion about other anthology films and how they relate to Trapped Ashes; a larger discussion of the various actors that appear in the film; a larger discussion about the editing of each of the segments – and the displeasure of the directors of the segments; and much more. Bissette provided an entertaining and informative commentary track.
Three new video interviews with cast and crew – all of which can be access from a submenu within the special features.
- Cast members Tahmoh Penikett & Tygh Runyan and production designer Robb Wilson King, producers Yuko Yoshikawa & Yoshifumi Hosoya (88:43) – this all-new chat done via Zoom moderated by producer/writer Dennis Bartok for Deaf Crocodile dives into their experiences in making “Stanley’s Girlfriend”. After the introductions the group talks with great affection about the experience of making the film with director Monte Hellman. Some of the details include how Penikett and Runyan got their start in acting and eventually becoming working actors – including a discussion of being Canadian actors; Wilson’s wild Hollywood childhood and eventual transition to a sortied career as a production designer; a discussion of memories and what it was like to work with Monte Hellman, and much more. This is an all-around great look back at not just making the film but a look back at the various participants’ careers before and after the project.
- Director John Gaeta, cast members Jayce Bartok, Scott Lowell, and Lisi Tribble, producers Yuko Yoshikawa & Yoshifumi Hosoya, and cinematographer Zoran Popovic (78:12) – this all-new chat done via Zoom moderated by producer/writer Dennis Bartok for Deaf Crocodile dives into their experiences in making Trapped Ashes and their various segments they participated in. Some of the details include how the Trapped Ashes began because of Yuko’s film Home Sweet Hoboken; the amazing story of how Lisi Tribble/Russell met director Ken Russell and how they ended up married; working with Henry Gibson; working with John Saxon; how it was to work with all five directors from cinematographer Popovic – a discussion between Gaeta and Popovic about their collaboration; Popovic discussion of working with Ken Russell and hilariously what made him great; Gaeta’s discussion of how wonderful it was to work in this realm after being in the highest of budgets during the Matrix trilogy; a great discussion about the various directors from Jayce Bartok’s perspective; and much more. Another all-around fun and lively conversation about the making of the film, the people who made them (some of whom are no longer with us), and much more.
- Producer Mike Frislev of Nomadic Pictures (40:06) – this all-new chat with Frizlev was moderated via Zoom by producer/writer Dennis Bartok for Deaf Crocodile. The opening begins with a great story with producer Yuko Yoshikawa and $30,000. This sets the tone for a wonderful conversation. Some of the details include how Frizlev got involved with the project – including a great side discussion about director Allan Moyle; the troubles with getting Universal Studios to allow them to film – and the solutions they came up with; the older camera system they used to film the entire production; a discussion of the various segments and working with the directors, cast, and crew; and much more. The third and final conversation is much like the other two a fun and informative discussion about the production.
Director’s Cut of Monte Hellman’s “Stanley’s Girlfriend” episode (28:20) – Hellman’s short is presented here in its full cut and is actually a lovely addition to the set. The extended cut does offer more in the way of character and relationships. There are some great film discussions as well. One can definitely see why this was presented in full here as it’s quite a lovely piece of dramatic horror and an ode to Stanley Kubrick. Presented in SD.
Original full-length cut of Ken Russell’s “The Girl with Golden Breasts” episode (26:03) – Ken Russell was said to have not been happy with the edited section of his film. Here is his first cut presented whole. The one thing that does stand out is the lack of a great or even good sound mix. The film feels more robust with more character work here but the sound mix is so “rough” it’s hard to truly appreciate it. Presented in SD.
“A Look Inside” 5-part Making Of – This archival documentary can be accessed in a submenu. Each of the five parts covers the making of the five sections of the anthology film. The making of’s have some wonderful b-roll footage. Unfortunately, they cannot be played all at once. Presented in SD.
- The Making of Trapped Ashes (5:54) – producer/writer Dennis Bartok discusses the conception of the film, the themes, the influence of the anthology film and Roger Corman, how the film came together, and more. Additional comments by actor Henry Gibson and VFX Supervisor Robert Skotak.
- The Girl with the Golden Breasts (7:14) – director Ken Russell discusses the film’s plot, the themes, and the making of his segment. Additional comments by Rachel Veltri and Jayce Bartok.
- Jibaku (5:54) – Director Sean Cunningham discusses the film’s plot, the themes, and much more on this making of. Additional comments by Scott Lowell and Lara Harris.
- Stanley’s Girlfriend (6:42) – Director Monet Hellman discusses the film’s plot, meeting Kubrick in the area that he’s telling the film during, the themes and the making of his segment. Additional comments by Tygh Runyan and Tahmoh Penikett.
- My Twin, the Worm (6:10) – Director John Gaeta discusses the film’s plot, the themes, his transition from VFX to directing, and the making of his segment. Additional comments by Michelle-Barbara Pelletier and Matreya Fedor.
“Hollywood Parasite: Hysteria in Trapped Ashes” – (15:01) an all-new visual essay by journalist and physical media expert Ryan Verrill (The Disc Connected) and film professor Dr. Will Dodson. The essay dissects the coded reference to Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, and how the word “hysteria” is used here and throughout history, and how this was all used to control women and essentially abuse them mentally, physically, and sexually. This ties beautifully into the various stories of Trapped Ashes and the duo does a wonderful job of illustrating this throughout the all-too-brief visual essay. As with all Deaf Crocodile special features this one is excellently written and directed by Dodson and edited by Verrill.
The Final Thought
Deaf Crocodile has come out of the 4K UHD Gate with a grand slam in Trapped Ashes from picture/sound restoration, new special features and archival ones DC has overstuffed this with a wealth of amazing. Highest possible recommendations!!!