The Frighteners follows Frank Bannister (Michael J. Fox), a ghostbuster who really is in touch with the spirit world: three apparitions haunt at his command; he rids people's houses of these pesky poltergeists for cash. Trouble is, Death is in town--or, at least, an unfriendly ghost with a scythe. One by one, "the grim reaper" does away with those who come in contact with Frank, making the con man the town's number one murder suspect. An occult-obsessed federal agent (Re-Animator's Jeffrey Combs, in a wholly unique performance) is determined to put Frank away, while the recently widowed Dr. Lucy Lynskey (Trini Alvarado, whose character is probably named after Melanie Lynskey of Jackson's Heavenly Creatures) has no doubts about his innocence--she and Frank team up to get to the bottom of the killing spree.

The first time I saw The Frighteners, I wasn't sure what to make of the mayhem: this is one seriously chaotic (and blessedly unpredictable) movie. Jackson refuses to slow down the tempo--new characters are thrown at us every two seconds, and virtually every scene features an act of violence. I now realize how good Alvarado's performance is: as a tender woman who accepts the paranormal, she is not the typical whiny heroine who can't believe her eyes--here is an actress duking it out with excellent special effects for attention, and she triumphs. That's not to put any of the other cast members down; in fact, Fox hasn't been this at home in a film character's skin since Back to the Future's Marty McFly. (Is it any wonder that Back to the Future director Robert Zemeckis produced the film? He recognized Fox's crack timing and gift for physical comedy from the beginning.)

What is ultimately most impressive about The Frighteners is Jackson's ability to keep his stream-of-consciousness narrative in check'each set-up is fulfilled. The filmmakers also demonstrate a mastery of digital effects techniques (the bluescreening, matting, morphing, etc. are seamlessly integrated), and because the film was shot and edited on Jackson's home turf (New Zealand), all this computer compositing was miraculously accomplished on the cheap. The DVD version duplicates the cinematic experience beautifully: The Frighteners is letterboxed at 2.35:1 (it was shot in Super35) and enhanced for widescreen televisions. Free from artifacts, mostly devoid of moiring or shimmering effects, with vivid saturation and contrast (much of the movie takes place in moonlit exteriors or a light-less haunted house, but the image never turns muddy or grainy), the presentation should be considered demo material.

What of the sound? The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is extremely aggressive, with directional effects aplenty. (Of particular note is a jail-cell scene in which ghosts are heard fighting behind the walls; their voices travel from speaker to speaker as they circle around the room.) Danny Elfman's score is loud and almost constant, but voices and other sounds are never difficult to understand.

Universal, despite having announced a year-and-a-half ago that The Frighteners would receive "Signature Collection" treatment on LaserDisc, opted not to include any extras on this DVD edition beyond the usual trailer (1.85:1, Dolby Surround) and production notes. The menu is bland but user-friendly. The case is Amaray.

The latest video incarnation of Universal's The Thing, on the other hand, receives Special Edition treatment on a new LaserDisc and DVD. Among the extras, an 80-minute making-of documentary, and a feature-length commentary by Carpenter and his frequent thespian collaborator, Kurt Russell. More on these supplementary materials in a moment.

Carpenter's The Thing is ostensibly a remake of Howard Hawks' production The Thing From Another World (which was in turn based on the short story "Who Goes There"), though it has more in common with Ridley Scott's Alien or Philip Kaufman's 1978 Invasion of the Body Snatchers. An American outpost team in Antarctica rescues said husky from said Norweigan scientists. During the investigation of the Norweigan camp that ensues, stoic, alcoholic MacReady (Russell, in prototypical Carpenter antihero mode) and Dr. Cooper (Richard Dysart) discover an alien ship, bizarre videotapes, and the exoskeleton of something vaguely human which may have been burned alive. They return to their base with as much evidence as they could gather and set Blair (Wilford Brimley) to work on analyzing the dead creature. Meanwhile, the hunted husky is causing problems for the other dogs in the kennel.

"The Thing" is a shapeshifter, and it can adapt to any organic form it so chooses. And it's really, really hard to kill. Blair goes mad calculating the possibilities for global takeover by such a lifeform and is fearfully locked away. The remaining team members become suspicious of one another, for the alien's replication is virtually undetectable. Sudden, unexpected bursts of blood-splatter and gore enhance the tension of their Agatha Christie-esque predicament.

Carpenter's filmography is checkered. He has probably been at the helm of more cult movies than any other director of his generation. (Me, I'm a loyal fan of his The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China, and (*gulp*) Memoirs of an Invisible Man.) The Thing had a fairly unsuccessful theatrical run--it opened the same summer as E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial, an optimistic alien encounter story that had been embraced by virtually all of North America. (Is it any wonder Carpenter jumped at the chance to make his offbeat, gentle Starman next?) Thanks to video and PayTV, The Thing has had a shelf-life far longer than Universal's expectations; this special edition video is a gift to those dweebs like myself who have admired it for years.

The Thing might be the most atmospheric picture Carpenter ever made, but sometimes it's all mood and tone; who are these Americans, anyway? What exactly is their initial mission? And is it just me, or is co-star David Clennon the spitting image of Cliff DeYoung (F/X's heavy)? One never invests much in these characters (the one crucial difference between The Thing and a masterpiece like the abovementioned Invasion of the Body Snatchers), but the movie is consistently suspenseful nonetheless. And its set-piece--the crew members are tied down to chairs for a blood-test that will reveal everyone's true identity--is as good as anything found in the pictures from which it borrows. Every gloomy frame (save for a few nicks and scratches) shines on Universal's DVD, though as you may already know, the image is not 16x9-enhanced--a curiosity since it's the only thing not special about this special edition.

Properly letterboxed at 2.35:1 (unlike the previous widescreen LD, which boasted noisy video and a slightly compromised aspect ratio), The Thing is an ocular treat. Carpenter has a flair for low-key lighting, and the high contrast interiors are rendered exquisitely in this new transfer. Occasionally, flesh tones appear unnatural (a bit too pink and/or pasty), but I'm not sure it's the fault of the transfer or the source material. The employed palette of cold blues and reds (many scenes feature either fire or ice), on the other hand, is stunning. I found the image very 'film-like'--not overly sharp or grainy, easy on the eyes at all times. Rob Bottin's effects work looks especially good; crystal clear, The Thing is now a more vomit-inducing experience than ever before. Again, mayhaps anamorphic enhancement would result in even more noticeable improvements over the 1994 LD release, but this Collector's Edition DVD is the best The Thing has ever looked on home video.

The soundtrack has been remastered in Dolby 5.1. All in all, The Thing sounds great, if a little low on deep bass. Separation effects are cool, particularly during the helicopter sequences. Ennio Morricone's minimalistic score is a sonic treat.* Dialogue is a bit hollow-sounding at times, not uncommon for a 1982 film--other reviewers have described the voices as "shrill" and "thin" whenever the characters yell. Morricone's ominous music is also housed by itself on a hidden audio track of the disc; for those who'd like to access it, I'll quote the following directions from the Digital Eyes website:

Thanks to one of our sharp-eyed customers, we now have the instructions to the extremely hidden music score. On the disc, proceed as follows:

From the main menu, go to Bonus Materials.

Select the Terror Takes Shape documentary.

Activate the Language Selection button.

Press Music Score!

Ba-da-bing!!

There's more. Said doc, "The Thing: Terror Takes Shape", is marvelous, with detailed explanations of the film's genesis by Carpenter, Russell, Cundey, and many other key cast and crew. The animated Bottin provides (as he did on Criterion's Se7eN LD) the best anecdotes; by turns obnoxious and humble, Bottin mostly describes his innovative effects work as time-consuming but relatively easy. Carpenter looks like the chain-smoking skeleton of his former self, but at least (in "...Terror Takes Shape" and during the excellent feature commentary) he gets right to the point and keeps it simple. (Incidentally, more than once on the DVD he calls The Thing the first part of his "apocalypse" trilogy, which sounds like after-the-fact hooey to me.)

Included within the doc and among the bonus materials are freeze-frameable storyboards, various effects tests (featuring some Harryhausen-esque stop-motion work ultimately cut from the final film, and bluescreen demonstrations), and a (nicely restrained) trailer. And that ain't all: check out the deleted scenes (which are panned-and-scanned and feature mostly unmixed sound), some of which are mere extensions of sequences that did make it into the final cut. One of these outtakes clarifies Blair's findings, but had it been included would have robbed the movie of some of its suspense. The supplements put this disc on a par with Criterion LDs in their heyday.

Universal has yet to go that extra-extra mile: The Thing's features can be accessed via a boring menu, featuring still pictures set to the movie's eerie music. (Each sub-menu uses a different piece of the score.) The requisite production notes are of, well, note, since they mention a few things not said elsewhere in the special features (such as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre's Tobe Hooper's involvement in the production). All in all, this is a fantastic package. Universal is currently one of the most DVD-friendly studios, even if their decisions are sometimes questionable (The Frighteners' 16x9 enhancement versus The Thing's 4:3 master). And, as this double bill of excellent discs/movies made clear, Universal is continuing a tradition begun in the 1930s (with Frankenstein, Dracula, and the like) as the most horror-movie friendly of studios.-Bill Chambers