The Curse
Official Synopsis:
“Life on the farm is difficult for young Zach Hayes (Wil Wheaton, Stand By Me): hard work, long hours and the normal family squabbles. But after an ice-blue meteor plunges through the midnight sky and lands on their property, it gets worse. Zach and the local doctor discover that something in the meteor is infecting every living thing on the farm. Fruits, which look perfect on the outside are teeming with worms… and Zach’s family is beginning to change… hideously! This shocker is director by actor David Keith (Firestarter, White of the Eye) and co-stars Claude Akins (Tentacles), Malcolm Danare (Christine), Cooper Huckabee (The Funhouse) and John Schneider (Smallville).”
Those familiar with Wil Wheaton probably know him best from Star Trek: The Next Generation, in which he played Wesley Crusher, a little know-it-all whose childish escapades were hated by most. To those fans I tell you that everything you secretly wanted to happen to Acting Ensign Wesley Crusher will happen in this movie. Wanted him to be slapped around? Sure! Punched in the face? You got it! Pushed into a pile of manure? Of course! After awhile, you may begin to feel sorry for poor Wil Wheaton and his real life sister who also plays his on screen sister, but that just means you are a human being, so now you can feel better.
The Curse, based on the H.P. Lovecraft short story The Colour Out of Space, stays very close to the source material. The theme of transformation is what is most interesting about this story. The characters refuse to accept that anything is happening to them, as obvious as it may be. The stubbornness as the physical transformations hideously take place right before their eyes is very frustrating, but it makes the comeuppance of these deplorable characters all the more enjoyable.
For such an obscure film I was surprised how well the make-up effects were done. Now, this isn’t going to win any awards or anything, but there were some truly disturbing transformations that raised the bar for this one. The final transformation of the mother, for one, stands out as one of the best in the film.
The first half of The Curse drags on a bit, taking quite a long time for anything interesting to happen. There are a few smaller story-lines in the film which they spend a good deal of time on, which brings more depth to the overall story, but these story-lines aren’t important to moving the main story forward.
All hell breaks loose at the end as their house is ripped apart. So much is going on here, but it is that rollercoaster of excitement and the jumbled mess of surprises that made the ending the most enjoyable part for me.
Despite a slow moving plot at the beginning, The Curse holds its own as a cult classic that will cause you to have second thoughts about drinking the water.
Video
The Curse is presented in 1080p 2.35:1. The transfer looks really good for a film of this age. Very few and minor defects noticed. During some of the darker scenes, there seems to be a bit of a balance issue, but this was only briefly noticeable.
Audio
The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio Stereo. The sound is good here, with no noticeable problems or defects.
Special Features
On this set you’re only going to get the Theatrical Trailer. I was very disappointed to see there were no special features beyond that. Wil Wheaton will do anything, and I would have loved to hear his thoughts on this film, even if they were scathing.
The Curse II: The Bite
Official Synopsis:
“Two young lovers, Clark (J. Eddie Peck, Kyle XY) and Lisa (Jill Schoelen, The Stepfather), traveling through the desert unwittingly pass through an abandoned nuclear test site which has become a breeding ground for deadly mutant killer snakes. When Clark is bitten, he undergoes a grotesque transformation into a hideous snake monster! This chiller filled with slithering horror also stars Jamie Farr (M*A*S*H), Shiri Appleby (Roswell) and Bo Svenson (Walking Tall Part II).”
The first thing you must know while watching The Curse II is that it has absolutely nothing to do with the first. I mean NOTHING. Instead of a strange meteor crashing to Earth polluting the water, a radioactive snake-bite is the cause for the transformation.
Despite the glaring differences story-wise, the transformation of Clark is what we’ve all come to see, and what we get is glorious.
After Clark is bitten, his hand slowly transforms into a hideous mutant-snake with super strength that attacks everyone he comes into contact with. Oh, and he also has the ability to vomit an unlimited supply of snakes too. Again, I was very surprised with the quality of the make-up effects on this film. We don’t get to see much until the third act, but when we do, dare I say it approaches Cronenberg level of grotesque.
Unlike the first film, The Curse II has an interesting B-Story in which Jamie Farr from M*A*S*H tries to track down Clark and Jill in order to give him an antidote. As interesting as it may be though, the two stories don’t seem connected at all, and have a very different feel, largely due to the difference in caliber of acting. Jamie Farr seems oddly out of place in this film, but brings a certain levity that can be quite funny at times.
The Curse II definitely has an outlandish premise, but the ending is so over the top it is hard not to enjoy it.
Video
The video is presented in 1080p 2.35:1, and the following message from Scream Factory is present before the film:
“For this new HD transfer, we had to use the only remaining film element in the MGM vault – a film print. It’s not our preferred film element to use for a new HD transfer but it was all that was available to us.”
Despite the only available source, the film print looks to be in decent shape, with only a few scratches noticed. For such an obscure film it is great to see a company that cares so much about the product.
Audio
The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio Stereo. The track sounds good, with no defects or problems noticed.
Special Features
There are no special features listed on this disc, another disappointment coming from a company that usually excels in this category.
This double feature is a lot of fun. Although the two films have little in common save for the title, they both stand up well on their own and are definitely worth checking out. Although it lacks the typical plethora of special features we’re used to seeing from Scream Factory, these films are still given a good treatment for the price of one.
