Society

So, I had heard of this movie a long time ago but by then the original DVD of it had long since gone out of print and the only copies I could find of it were on video-tape-- and to top it off it was that weird point in history where we'd all accepted DVDs as our sole home video format and many of us, myself included, had let our VCRs fall into disrepair. That said, I didn't get to see this wonderful little film until it was delivered to my mailbox."Society," is a rare breed of two film genres: political and horror. Think along the lines of "Bob Roberts" meets "Videodrome." A strange combination, but this weird blend creates a unique vision from legendary horror producer Brian Yuzna taking the director's chair for this film. I'd give a synopsis of the plot, but if you're reading this review, chances are you already know what it's about, so I'm going to talk about the product itself and what it offers.It comes in a very large digipak, which is nice to see-- it's wide-- and I mean WIDE for a Blu-Ray digipak. My "Trilogy of Life" Blu-Ray digipak from Criterion isn't as thick as this and it has some very deluxe three dimensional packaging. Inside is the digibook itself containing a Blu-Ray and identical DVD of the film and special features, there's also a miniature poster for the movie, a retrospective pamphlet and some advertisements for similar films, so that's nice to have. In addition to all of that is a small "perfect bound" comic book called "Society 2: Party Animal," which acts as a sequel to the film (because let's face it, the ending of the movie does make you go: 'Wait, what?'), I haven't read it yet, but it seems to be pretty solid in terms of art direction, but I'm not a big graphic novel aficionado so I can't tell you too much about it.The special features are plentiful, including a 15 minute retrospective with Brian Yuzna, a 20 minute look back with some of the actors, a 20 minute interview with "Mad George" who did the makeup effects in the movie and a music video that he helped make using similar special effects to those seen in "Society," and a Q&A with Brian Yuzna after a 2014 screening of the film. There's also a backstage interview with him (Yuzna) from the film's 1989 premiere and of course, what collector's edition would be complete without an audio commentary from the filmmaker himself? So that's all there.Like I said, the movie is good. I really liked it. It's certainly not for everybody-- if you're wigged out by sex and violence this movie sort of combines them into a singular entity. I also want to add that the lead actor, Billy Warlock sounds exactly like Michael J. Fox in "Back to the Future" when he talks. I'm serious! Close your eyes and listen to him talk in the movie and tell me you don't see Marty McFly!

This movie was probably the most unnerving movie I've ever sat all the way through. It's not perfect but it's still a gem of body horror and tension in my eyes.Let me preface this by saying I tend not to watch a lot of horror movies (or play horror games for that matter) because so many have jump-scares which just make me feel anxious, which is why I usually stick to horror comics and books. This movie made me deeply uncomfortable multiple times to the point where I had to pause throughout it on first viewing. Not just because of the subject matter and visuals as the movie goes on, but because of the fantastic way that tension riddles the movie due to the way it's shot. It was more uncomfortable and scary with ZERO jumpscares than any other horror movies I've seen. I seriously had to pause for several minutes after the ending to process. I'm personally avoiding spoilers because this a movie that's best to go into completely blind. I heard good things about it from the guys at RedLetterMedia on YouTube and went in without spoilers, and it was for the best.Of course the movie isn't perfect, the characters can make some stupid decisions and the acting is spotty (some scenes were pretty good, some... not so much). But this is one of the few movies where I didn't find myself paying attention to it much because the tension and unfolding story were enough to keep me on the edge of my seat and intrigued.So not 5/5 as a perfect movie, but 5/5 for the overall experience. Never been so captivated by a horror film in a manner where I wanted to stop watching because I was uncomfortable but couldn't stop because I had to see what it was building up to.

I consider myself a fan of practical effects used to create body horror. I loved John Carpenter's "The Thing". This movie was different.I will keep spoilers to a minimum. The first two-thirds of this movie builds a paranoid, sinister atmosphere. The protagonist is distrustful of his family and the society they are a part of. He doesn't know what is going on, and that terrifies him. Strange things keep happening, making him question his sanity. He's even afraid of his social circle.Eventually, the truth is revealed. The buildup to that final reveal made me incredibly uncomfortable. The "truth" is mind-bogglingly grotesque. I haven't felt like this since I watched Split. If you can stomach body horror, I recommend this movie strongly. It's a very weird movie that only gets weirder as it goes along.It is a bit campy, more so at the end, but I think overall it is a solid horror movie. If that sounds good to you, go ahead and watch it.

Wow. Very interesting movie with very messed up scenes. Basically poking at the difference in classes and how rich people treat those not so fortunate. These "people" consume others and turn into blobs of arms and legs. Really interesting watch. A must for anh horror fan. The package itself came in great condition, no damage.

Esta es una oscura alegoría al elitismo. La película es repugnante (sobre todo en el clímax), pero con mucha comedia negra y genuinos momentos de tensión. La edición de Arrow en steelbook es hermosa en su presentación, trae además de un folleto de más de 20 páginas de imágenes y un ensayo al respecto de sul valor cultural; por su parte el bluray contiene un buen numero de extras como entrevistas con los actores, el director (Brian Yuzna) y el encargado de los efectos de maquillaje (Mad George). La entrega fue rápida y el producto bien embalado.

Il DVD è in condizioni ottime. E il film un classico dell'horror che non poteva assolutamente mancare in una collezione per cinefili.

Society fait partie de ces films dont j'ai découvert des extraits alors que j'étais lycéen et auxquels j'ai décidé de ne me confronter qu'une fois adulte, il faut dire qu'en fonction des sensibilités il ne manquera pas de mettre mal à l'aise : visiblement je n'étais pas prêt lorsque j'étais plus jeune.Pour les amateurs du genre, c'est un classique à ranger aux côtés de Re-animator I et II ou From Beyond, mais celui-ci se différencie par sa critique virulente sur les castes de la haute société américaine.The Ecstasy of Films, non contente d'être dirigée par une personne passionnée et à l'écoute de ses clients, nous sert le film dans un écrin (comme à son habitude), permettant de découvrir ou redécouvrir Society dans une qualité particulièrement inespérée pour un film de genre. De quoi donner des leçons à bien des éditeurs.Je ne possède pas l'édition DVD mais à défaut de trouver l'édition Bluray si elle est épuisée, n'hésitez pas à vous la procurer, l'éditeur soignant toutes ses éditions.

Review for the Duel Format Blu-ray-DVD setThis is yet again another amazing Arrow films release of an old 80's classic, Society is seriously one messed up film and that's no exaggeration, it probably has one of the strangest storylines ever and one of the craziest endings ever, Basically the plot is about a boy who lives with his extremely wealthy parents in Beverly Hills, now he's a teenager he's started to have crazy messed up visions about his mum and dad and sister and starts to feel something's wrong with his life and his family, the more he looks into it the more he discovers the truth about his so called life and the lies he's been fed, and the shocking truth comes out! The story really builds up well and keeps you interested and confused about what is happening, the real action is saved for the finale of the movie but its worth the wait, its a real gross-out ending with plenty of messed up things happening, the gory practical effects look fantastic for the time even now they are pretty sick, this is certainly one for the horror shelf, a fantastic 80's gem, directed by the brilliant Brian Yuzna who has done some great movies over the years like Return of the living dead 3, Re-Animator 2-3, Progeny, he's one of the great masters of horror, the cast in this movie is great too and the music score, its an all round classic, check this limited edition out now before they are gone!!The Blu-ray picture looks great in HD,Features..Newly remastered 2K digital transfer of the film, approved by director Brian YuznaHigh Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentationOriginal Stereo 2.0 audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearingBrand new audio commentary by YuznaGovernor of Society a brand new interview with YuznaThe Masters of the Hunt a brand new featurette including interviewsFeaturette with FX artists Screaming Mad George, David Grasso and Nick Benson2014 Q&A with Yuzna, recorded at Celluloid Screams FestivalBrian Yuzna in conversation backstage at the Society world premiereScreaming Mad George music videoCollector's booklet (22-pages)Society, The official comic sequel to Society, reproduced in its entirety in a perfect-bound book (56-PAGES)Brilliant packaging with embossing around the skin faces etc,Blu-ray REGION FREE ABC, DVD REGION FREE 0, 99-mins, 1989.English language, English subtitles.