Videodrome (Criterion Collection) (DVD)

When Max Renn goes looking for edgy new shows for his sleazy cable TV station, he stumbles across the pirate broadcast of a hyperviolent torture show called Videodrome. As he struggles to unearth the origins of the program, he embarks on a hallucinatory journey into a shadow world of right-wing conspiracies, sadomasochistic sex games, and bodily transformation. Starring James Woods and Deborah Harry in one of her first film roles, Videodrome is one of writer/director David Cronenberg’s most original and provocative works, fusing social commentary with shocking elements of sex and violence. With groundbreaking special effects makeup by Academy Award®-winner Rick Baker, Videodrome has come to be regarded as one of the most influential and mind-bending science fiction films of the 1980s.

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

• New high-definition digital transfer of the unrated version, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
• Two audio commentaries: David Cronenberg and director of photography Mark Irwin, and actors James Woods and Deborah Harry
• Camera (2000), a short film starring Videodrome’s Les Carlson, written and directed by Cronenberg
• Forging the New Flesh, a new half-hour documentary featurette by filmmaker Michael Lennick about the creation of Videodrome’s video and prosthetic makeup effects
• Effects Men, a new audio interview with special makeup effects creator Baker and video effects supervisor Lennick
• Bootleg Video: the complete footage of Samurai Dreams and seven minutes of transmissions from “Videodrome,” presented in their original, unedited form with filmmaker commentary
• Fear on Film, a 26-minute roundtable discussion from 1982 between filmmakers Cronenberg, John Carpenter, John Landis, and Mick Garris
• Original theatrical trailers and promotional featurette
• Stills galleries featuring hundreds of rare behind-the-scenes production photos, special effects makeup tests, and publicity photos
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

PLUS: An essay by Carrie Rickey and, in the DVD edition, additional essays by Tim Lucas and Gary Indiana.

VIDEODROME - DVD - CRITERION COLLECTION

Starring: James Woods, Sonja Smits, Debbie Harry, Peter Dvorsky, Leslie Carlson, Jack Creley, Lynne Gorman, Julie Khaner, Reiner Schwarz, David Bolt, Deborah Harry

Rating: R