One of the cleverest slashers of the 1980s – April Fool’s Day – comes to 4K UHD thanks to Kino Lorber.
The Film
What begins as your typical Slasher setup turns inside out by its closing. April Fool’s Day has much more going on than most of the era horror films. Part pop confection. Part commentary on the Slasher film itself. The film is a whole lot of fun that shouldn’t be ruined.
A group of recent college graduates gathers together on their rich friend, Muffy’s (Deborah Foreman), and yes, we said Muffy, family’s estate on a remote lake island. Muffy’s friends are your stereotypical group of horny, stupid, cast of young men and women. Most of you know with this kind of setup, it’s only a matter of time until a killer shows up and begins to murder, and murder said killer, does in grand elaborate fashion. As the killer nears the final girl/gal it seems like things are going to wrap up nicely with a bow… or are they???
Screenwriter Danilo Bach and director Fred Walton both are keenly aware of the genre and troupes they are working within. Thankfully, they playthings without a wink-and-nudge to give away anything. Though that’s not to say that the film does not play tongue-firmly-in-cheek, which it does.
Audiences should be warned, that the film is spectacularly UN-PC. One can cheer and gleefully watch as these Regan-Era Yuppies-In-Training are killed one by one for their sins against humanity. In fact, the biggest critique the film directs is at these shitty human beings and everything they stand for. There’s a cruelty at play here. Something that doesn’t occur until the final few minutes of the film. That is where April Fool’s Day critiques are most savage.
One can take the film at face value, just another Slasher from the 80s, or one can look at it as a clever meta-commentary on the genre, the 80s, and the white privileged kids that populated these films. April Fool’s Day may have convinced audiences for thirty years it’s another stupid slasher but not this reviewer. Not one bit.
The Transfer
The all-new HDR/Dolby Vision Master – From a 4K Scan of the 35mm Original Camera Negative is a revelatory upgrade. The initial Blu-ray release from Scream Factory was solid but Kino’s new 4K UHD is a spectacular showcase for the beautiful widescreen photography by Charles Minsky. The image is sharp, colorful, and filmic in the best way possible. There isn’t a single scratch or blemish through the run time. The transfer can handle both the dark night scenes and the bright daylight scenes without any issue when it comes to the contrast details. The grain structure is the centerpiece here. Kino has managed to imbue the film with a beautiful patina of subtle active grain to give the transfer that 35mm liquid quality that the best films of the era have.
The Extras
They include the following;
DISC 1 – THE MOVIE (4KUHD):
- NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historians Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson
DISC 2 – BONUS FEATURES (ALL-REGION BLU-RAY):
- Horror with a Twist – Part 1: Interview with Director Fred Walton
- Horror with a Twist – Part 2: Interview with Director Fred Walton
- Well of Lies: Interview with Actress Deborah Goodrich Royce
- Looking Forward to Dessert: Interview with Actor Clayton Rohner
- Bloody Unforgettable: Interview with Composer Charles Bernstein
- The Eye of Deception: Interview with Cinematographer Charles Minsky
- TV Spots
- Theatrical Trailer
Note: This 4K UHD set does NOT include a BLU-RAY version of the film. The BLU-RAY disc contacts the Extra features.
DISC 1 – THE MOVIE (4KUHD):
The all-new Audio Commentary by Film Historians Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell, and Nathaniel Thompson begins with introductions/bonafides before diving into this very interesting slasher. Some of the details include the “holiday themed” slashers – many done by Paramount which distributed this; each of their personal thoughts and if they saw this during its initial release; how the stalled Chinatown sequel began producer Frank Mancuso Jr. to develop the script for April Fool’s Day; how the film uses the already stale tropes cleverly on their head or leans into them; a discussion of the use of the widescreen anamorphic photography, a rarity in the slasher film; a larger discussion of the various slasher films this film at the time and specifically the “Canadian tax shelter movies”; a similarity to Agatha Christie’s Ten Little Indians; a larger discussion of the visuals, color use, and mis en sense throughout the film that creates a more stylish film that most slasher films; the lost third act – and a discussion of what happened to it, the movie novelization that does include it; a larger discussion throughout about the work of director Fred Walton both here and in other films – including his truly masterful work on TV on shows like Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Miami Vice, and TV Movies like When a Stranger Calls Back, Trap, The Stepford Husbands, and others; a larger discussion of the various cast that appear in the film; and much more. Berger, Mitchell, and Thompson deliver an informative, entertaining commentary track for one of the smartest slasher films of the 1980s.
DISC 2 – BONUS FEATURES (ALL-REGION BLU-RAY):
Horror with a Twist – Part 1: Interview with Director Fred Walton (23:59) – is an archival interview with the director Fred Walton. In the first part, the director discusses his beginnings in Washington DC, Moving to California, making the short film that would eventually become When a Stranger Calls, making the feature of When a Stranger Calls, his work on Alfred Hitchcock Presents…, how he met Frank Mancuso Jr (producer of April Fool’ Day), took on the project. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
Horror with a Twist – Part 2: Interview with Director Fred Walton (23:03) – is an archival interview with the director Fred Walton. In the second part, Walton discusses his wrestling movie Hadley’s Rebellion and casting Griffin O’Neal and how that relates to April Fool’s Day, the casting of April Fool’s Day and the covers the entire production. Walton discusses various details like the location scout of the house, the snake for the snake scene, and more. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
Well of Lies: Interview with Actress Deborah Goodrich Royce (16:33) – is an archival interview with actress Deborah Goodrich Royce. Royce who plays Nikki, discusses her origins as a dancer and how she turned to acting in her small liberal arts college in the Northeast. Royce discusses her casting in the film and the work with Walton. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
Looking Forward to Dessert: Interview with Actor Clayton Rohner (17:16) – is an archival interview with actor Clayton Rohner. His father’s work with infamous celebrity lawyer Bert Fields, and his growing up a Hollywood kid. Rohner who plays Chaz discusses his college life that turned him on to acting, trying to make it in New York City, his relationship with Walton, buying a ‘55 Desoto (it’s a car), renting a yacht, and more. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
Bloody Unforgettable: Interview with Composer Charles Bernstein (26:01) – is an archival interview with composer Charles Bernstein. Bernstein begins with a great story about his mother and her conducting silent films and her being an actual film Composer as an influence. Bernstein’s interview ranges from his love of musical theater, his early work composing films like White Lighting, Gator, Stoney, The Man form O.R.G.Y. (Yes, that’s the title), His work with Wes Craven (he of course composed Nightmare on Elm St which is is most known for, Deadly Friend), his work on April Fool’s Day, working with Walton as a director, and much more. Note, that Bernstein does discuss his technical approach to composing which is pretty great. Especially for those who are interested in composing. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
The Eye of Deception: Interview with Cinematographer Charles Minsky (17:24) – is an archival interview with cinematographer Charles Minsky. Minsky discusses his life before his beginnings which was not from the arts but rather a UCLA graduate and social worker that eventually led him to the industry. He details how he began to self-teach himself, lighting, and photography, and did it all himself at his home. The discussion is very nuts and bolts/grit and grind of rising through the ranks eventually making his bones as a cinematographer. He does discuss April Fool’s Day in good detail and his work on the film. The interview has title card prompts for the questions being asked.
TV Spots (1:36) – three 30-second TV ads
Rounding out the special features are trailers for April Fool’s Day (1:43); Happy Birthday to Me (1:17); New Year’s Evil (1:48);
The Final Thought
Kino Lorber provides a beautiful 4K UHD for April Fool’s Day. Highest Recommendations!