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Slither Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this excellent Blu-ray release
The sleepy town of Wheelsy could be any small town in U.S.--somewhat quaint and gentle, peopled with friendly folks who mind their own business. But just beneath the surface charm, something unnamed and evil has arrived and is growing. No one seems to notice as telephone poles become clogged with missing pet flyers, or when one of the town's richest citizens, Grant Grant, begins to act strangely. But when farmers livestock turn up horribly mutilated and a young woman goes missing, Sheriff Bill Pardy and his team, aided by Grant's wife Starla, uncover the dark force laying siege to their town and come face-to-face with an older-than-time organism intent on absorbing and devouring all life on Earth.
For more about Slither and the Slither Blu-ray release, see Slither Blu-ray Review published by Dr. Stephen Larson on August 7, 2017 where this Blu-ray release scored 4.0 out of 5.
James Gunn got his start in filmmaking writing scripts for cult director Lloyd Kaufman in fare such as Tromeo and Juliet (1996) and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000). He continued to pay the bills by penning the screenplays for Scooby-Doo (2002) and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004) before achieving a minor breakthrough with his script for Zack Snyder's remake, Dawn of the Dead (2004). Gunn's major industry calling card came a few years later, however, when he made his feature directorial debut with the horror-comedy Slither (2006). The movie was made under the aegis of Gold Circle Films and producer Paul Brooks with domestic distribution handled by Universal. Although Slither was not a commercial success—grossing nearly $8 million at the box office compared with a production budget of just under $15 million (according to Gunn)—it was well-reviewed by critics and generally considered the top film of that year for its genre.
Slither begins with a meteorite descending upon Earth and landing in a forest somewhere in the American South (the picture was shot in British Columbia). The meteor hatches and shows some pinkish ooze inside. Gunn introduces the principals for which this foreign object will serve with life-altering implications. Starla Grant (the always beautiful Elizabeth Banks) is a high school teacher trapped in a fractured marriage with working-class Grant Grant (Michael Rooker). Grant greets his wife outside after school but the couple is just going through the motions. Grant still loves Starla but she no longer has mutual affection for him. He wants to have sex with her that evening but she rebuffs him so he goes out to the bar and rekindles a romance with Brenda Gutierrez (Brenda James), an old flame. Grant and Brenda continue their coquettish exchange in the woods but stumble upon the meteor, which shoots a dart-like slug into Grant's chest. Although the puncture doesn't kill him, Grant is clearly not the same emotionally or physically, breaking out in his chest and later on in his face/head. Grant transforms into a carnivore and during his trip to the grocery store, he buys fourteen packs of meat. He's also amassing a meat-eating collection in the basement from all of his poaching. Grant's been struck by a parasite and comes by Brenda's house the next day. Initially, he advances on her to make love but the slugs rip from his chest to enter Brenda's body. With Grant away, Starla enjoys drinks with Sheriff Bill Pardy (Nathan Fillion), a childhood friend. When both Grant and Starla are home together, the latter notices her husband has broken out badly but he dismisses it as a bee sting. However, Starla sees Grant's behavior growing stranger and one evening his slugs begin attacking her. Pardy and the cops arrive in time to force Grant out of the house. When Starla and the police venture into the forest, Grant has transformed into a monster. He leads them into a barn where one of the film's signature moments occurs: Brenda's head stuck in the middle of a giant peach.
Kylie wonders how she can get rid of those slimy slugs on the walls and ceiling.
Gunn is a self-professed horror and sci-fi film addict and has acknowledged Ridley Scott's Alien (1979), Frank Henenlotter's Basket Case (1982), John Carpenter's The Thing (1982), and David Cronenberg's The Fly (1986) as significant influences on Slither. Genre fans have also noted that Slither derives its premise directly from Night of the Creeps (1986) but Gunn claims he drew inspiration instead from Cronenberg's Shivers (1975) (although he sounds familiar with the Fred Dekker picture, too). Slither is also a blend of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 and 1978 versions), The Blob (1958 and 1988 versions), and Night of the Living Dead (1968 and 1990 versions). Romero's imprint is especially evident in the climax in which three dozen zombies are traversing through the grassy hills as they make their way to the Grant household. Slither is full of homages but Gunn is not trying to do slavish imitations of classics from the past. Slither is a breed that he can call all his own, including the Grant monster ("the Big One," as its coined) which expands into a huge octopus with its infected victims attached to outer skin. This is a self-reflexive film that's aware of its conventions and takes pride in the riffs that it plays.
Slither makes its US premiere on Blu-ray courtesy of Shout! Factory on this MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50. The movie was originally released on DVD in 2006 by Universal, the same year that the studio put it out on HD DVD. It's been available overseas for a while: a 2008 VC-1 encoded BD-25 by Netherlands-based Dutch Filmworks, a 2013 AVC-encoded BD-25 by Australian-based Umbrella Entertainment, and a 2014 AVC-encoded BD-50 by German-based Koch Media. The Umbrella and Dutch opened the film's original theatrical aspect ratio up from 1.85:1 to 1.78:1 and the Aussie disc can be quickly discounted since it's 1080i. The DVD not only had edge halos and color bleeding but appeared hazy compared to the HD DVD and BDs. The text on the decal of the squad car, for example, is cleaner and clearer on the high-def editions. Skin tones on the Dutch (avg. b.r. 21929 kbps) is lighter. The reviewer Marcel den Haan for the Netherlands site Allesoverfilm.nl reported that the transfer contains wide shots that lack sufficient depth and clarity. He also detects that shadow detail could have been a bit better and sometimes smearing occurs, resulting in details that are less visible. Edge enhancement is sometimes evident and there is a slight amount of video noise. The Koch (avg. b.r. 34001 kbps) is pinker/redder. It also seems to have more chroma noise in the darker scenes than the other BDs. Danny Walch of the German-based review site DVD-Palace observed that the picture is moderately filtered, resulting in low-level noise. According to Walch, there's no artifacting and colors appear full and natural. Contrast is balanced and black levels are deep.
The Shout! appears to have been sourced from the same master as the Koch. It is framed in the native 1.85:1 and carries a lower video bitrate (averaging 27999 kbps) while the whole disc sports a bitrate of 37.62 Mbps. There has also been some filtering applied here. I only noticed about three shots containing white speckles. Otherwise, the image is clean with grain most prominent in the nighttime scenes (faux grain may have been added in post).
Shout! has broken up the feature into twelve chapter stops. (The Universal DVD had an index of twenty scene selections.)
Shout! has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround mix (2241 kbps, 24-bit) and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo option (1604 kbps, 24-bit). How does the 5.1 compare to the European sound mixes? The Dutch has an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (2129 kbps, 16-bit). Den Haan pinpoints that the surround channels split the f/x during action scenes, with the LFE channel producing a deep layer. Dialogue emits primarily from the center channel with the two front speakers allowing the music and other sounds to be heard. There is little separation, however, in these two channels. In addition to a German dub, Koch provides an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (2274 kbps, 16-bit). In his review, Walch spotted the satellite speakers as delivering directional surround effects and a convincing spatiality during the film's horrific moments and action sequences. He also noticed that the subwoofer created some great bass.
Shout!'s lossless audio compares favorably with the NL and DE English tracks. The score by genre specialist Tyler Bates receives good activity on the two front and surround speakers. Dialogue receives stellar amplitude along the center and front channels. There's maybe a little more separation between the front channels when f/x noises are heard. The master that Shout! licensed from Universal is without any defects.
Shout! has provided optional English SDH for the main movie and they deliver a pretty complete transcription of spoken words.
Shout! has rehashed a director/actor commentary track, seven featurettes, a gag reel, and deleted/extended scenes that originally appeared on the 2006 Universal DVD. The indie label has added a brand new audio commentary and two interviews to this C.E. Missing are twenty-nine minutes of cast/crew interviews on the Dutch Filmworks and a stills gallery that was on the Koch Media.
NEW Audio Commentary with Writer/Director James Gunn and Actors Nathan Fillion and Michael Rooker - Recorded in 2017 by Shout!, this is a jovial track with frequent laughter as Gunn, Fillion, and Rooker reminisce on Slither's shoot twelve years ago. Gunn supplies production anecdotes and Fillion chips in with his individual memories. Rooker is the least talkative and often relegated to the background. In English, not subtitled.
Audio Commentary with James Gunn and Nathan Fillion (from 2006) - Gunn was recorded in the studio while Fillion joins the track via phone in Vancouver. This is a screen-specific commentary with a lot of observations made about the course of filming. In English, not subtitled.
NEW The Genesis of SLITHER – An Interview with Writer/Director James Gunn (29:39, 1080p) - Shout! shot this new interview with Gunn, who initially was only going to sell his screenplay of Slither and not direct the picture. He recollects the casting choices, the themes of the film, the importance of Slither to his directing career and how it fits within his larger body of work. In English, not subtitled.
NEW The Other MacReady – An Interview with Actor Gregg Henry (8:09, 1080p) - Mayor Jack MacReady in Slither recalls his original impressions of director James Gunn on the set, brief remarks about his collaborators, the special makeup effects, and what he thought of the film after his most recent viewing. In English, not subtitled.
Deleted and Extended Scenes with Optional Commentary by James Gunn (17:13, upscaled to 1080) - these comprise a dozen clips and unlike the Universal DVD, they can't be played individually. The deleted scenes (eight clips, 9:58 total) and extended scenes (four clips, 7:15 total) have been consolidated. Shout! doesn't provide the scene names on the sub-menu or on any title cards preceding each so I re-list them here courtesy of the Universal disc. They include "Mrs. McCammon's House," "Grant at Work," "Grant/Starla Dinner Scene #1," "The Meat Filing Scene," "Grant Takes Dog Away," "Grant/Starla Dinner Scene #2," "Outside 'Deer Cheer' Lodge," "Starla Zones Out in Classroom," "The Butcher Shop," "Bill and Starla on Lodge Balcony," "Grant at Brenda's House," and "Bill and Kylie Outside Police Station." The scenes can be played with or without commentary by Gunn. They're presented in 1.85:1 non-anamorphic widescreen. Gunn is chatty as he explains why each one was dropped from the final cut. He also mentions preview audiences and test screenings in which he showed early cuts of Slither. In English, not subtitled.
Visual Effects: Step by Step (5:04, upscaled to 1080) - a.k.a. Visual Effects Progressions. This short featurette takes several scenes from the movie and demonstrates the evolution of shots, usually in three stages or more. It depicts the anatomy of a shot and shows how it is conceptualized through animation and green screen. Presented in non-anamorphic widescreen. In English, not subtitled.
Slithery Set Tour with Actor Nathan Fillion (4:41, upscaled to 1080) - the actor who plays Bill Pardy lugs an EPK camera around as he visits with various cast and crew members. Presented in 1.33:1. In English, not subtitled.
The Sick Minds and Slimy Days of SLITHER (10:04, upscaled to 1080) - an EPK making-of doc featuring interviews with writer/director James Gunn, producer Eric Newman, producer Paul Brooks, as well as actors Nathan Fillion, Michael Rooker, Elizabeth Banks, Tania Saulnier, and Gregg Henry. Presented in 1.33:1. In English, not subtitled.
Brewing the Blood – How to Make Blood (3:17, upscaled to 1080) - a.k.a. Gorehound Grill. Kurt Jackson, first assistant for special effects, gives a humorous demo on how to make homemade blood (key ingredient: corn syrup) and shows how it compares with movie blood. Presented in 1.33:1. In English, not subtitled.
Bringing SLITHER's Creatures to Life (18:38, upscaled to 1080) - an extended featurette containing interview snippets with the same actors from the making-of as well as comments from special makeup effects supervisor/ designer Todd Masters, visual effects supervisor John Gajdecki, prosthetics technician Michael "Parasite Mike" Manzel, prosthetics tech Nicholas Podbrey, puppeteer Adam Behr, among others talking on the set. There are text screens of production notes and shots displaying the animated parasites. Presented in 1.33:1. In English, not subtitled.
Lloyd Kaufman's Video Diary (8:58, upscaled to 1080) - cult director Kaufman describes James Gunn's early writing credits and narrates his thoughts on the way to the set of Slither and in the dressing room. He chats with Gunn's then-wife and hair/makeup people. There's also footage of Gunn directing. Appears like VHS quality (and its interlaced) but the image is pretty clean. Presented in 1.33:1. In English, not subtitled.
Gag Reel (8:12, upscaled to 1080) - a series of actor flubs, guffaws, and screw-ups from many scenes in the movie. Presented in non-anamorphic widescreen. In English, not subtitled.
Who Is Bill Pardy? Featurette (5:14, upscaled to 1080) - a gag reel and slew of outtakes featuring actor Nathan Fillion. Cast and crew members make sarcastic remarks about Fillion in an amusing way. Presented in both pan-and-scan and letterbox. In English, not subtitled.
Theatrical Trailer (1:30, upscaled to 1080) - this is more of a teaser by Universal for the film. This didn't make it to Universal's 2006 DVD because, according to James Gunn via IGN, the dual-layered disc was completely full. Macro-blocking is conspicuous. Presented in anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 sound.
Shout! Factory is releasing Slither to coincide with the forthcoming BD, 3D, and 4K releases of Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2. It's clearly a cash cow but a nice opportunity to see the film that changed Gunn's career and elevated his stature. Shout! has struck the same video master that Koch Media used on its BD and it's an outstanding transfer with some noise reduction applied. The uncompressed audio is likewise excellent. Shout! has ported over all of the bonus features on the Universal DVD, recorded a new commentary with Gunn and Fillion, and shot two new interviews. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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