Yes I know we are only in October, well almost November, but with 2021 well on its way those awesome folk at Arrow Video have let us know about some new releases including a found-footage shocker, two from Chan-wook and an audacious black comedy.

Arrow Video starts 2021 with a bang, with a truly terrifying Spanish horror, a pair of films from a visionary auteur including a bona-fide contemporary masterpiece, Gamera box sets packed to the gills with extras, and a timely and darkly comic epic.

This New Year-brightening lineup includes beautiful steelbook limited editions, including a Zavvi exclusive, HD debuts, brand new audio commentaries, indispensable documentaries and featurettes, as well as exquisite new sleeve artwork, and collectable booklets.

In January, Arrow Video presents [REC], the original 2007 “found footage” phenomenon that spawned a hit franchise and US remake. It’s 28 Days Later meets The Blair Witch Project as a mysterious virus turns the inhabitants of an apartment building into a horde of frenzied, bloodthirsty ghouls. Fusing the zombie genre with the “found footage” format to throw the audience right into the midst of the action, [REC] is a terrifying, relentless rollercoaster ride which builds to one of the horror genres’ all-time bone-chilling climaxes. The Blu-ray comes with a new commentary track and a host of behind-the-scenes extras.

Also in January comes  JSA – Joint Security Area, visionary filmmaker Park Chan-wook’s gripping tale of deceit, misunderstanding and the senselessness of war, helmed before Oldboy and The Handmaiden. The recipient of multiple accolades, including Best Film at South Korea’s 2001 Grand Bell Awards, JSA – Joint Security Area showcases Park’s iconic style in an embryonic form, and demonstrates that humanity and common purpose can be found in the most unlikely places. This hi-def presentation includes an illustrated booklet on the film with the first pressing.

Next up, a double-hit for fans of the original hero in a halfshell, Gamera, with lavish Blu-ray sets of Gamera – The Showa Era, and Gamera – The Heisei Era. The Showa Era highlights the introduction of Gamera to the screen in the 1960s – a character that would be embraced for generations: the giant, flying, fire-breathing turtle, and friend of all children, collected here with eight films on four discs!  In The Heisei Era, after lying dormant for fifteen years, Gamera was rebooted for the big screen in a smash hit trilogy masterminded by director Shusuke Kaneko (Necronomicon), writer Kazunori Ito (Ghost in the Shell) and SFX director Shinji Higuchi (who went on to co-direct Shin Godzilla). The four-disc set includes an extensive three-part documentary and a bonus Gamera film. Also released is The Heisei Trilogy, the three films in a fantastically designed Limited Edition Steelbook.

Towards the end of January comes a limited edition two-disc Blu-ray of Richard Kelly’s Southland Tales, his follow-up to the cult 2001 hit Donnie Darko. This ambitious and even more beguiling sophomore effort, in which forces of totalitarianism and anarchism collide against the backdrop of a post-apocalyptic, near-future world, is beguiling and baffling – a darkly comic futuristic epic that speaks as presciently to our turbulent times as it did to the American socio-political climate in 2006. Southland Tales receives a fresh – and timely – lease of life with this new, director-approved restoration, including a new feature-length retrospective documentary on the film, and a limited edition collector’s booklet.

Finally, there is Oldboy, on Limited Edition Steelbook 4K UHD, and 4K UHD Blu-ray. Often cited as one of the best films of the 2000s and possibly the definitive example of extreme Asian cinema, this is a brutal, lyrical modern classic of the revenge genre. Directed with immense flair by Park Chan-wook (JSA, The Handmaiden) as the second instalment of his Vengeance Trilogy, Oldboy blazed a trail at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival where it was lauded by the President of the Jury, director Quentin Tarantino. The film went on to become a huge international smash, blowing audiences’ minds with its concoction of filmmaking virtuosity, ingenious plotting, violence and pathos. Now, this masterpiece has been restored in 4K and is presented here with the feature-length documentary Old Days, and a massive array of extras.

Karen Woodham

Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.

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