Hadestown: The Musical (2026/Bleecker Street Blu-ray)/Luther The Geek (1989/MVD/Troma Blu-ray)/Masters Of The Universe 4K (2026/Amazon MGM 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray)/Theatre Fantastique: The Complete Three Seasons (2014 - 2017/Hollinsworth Blu-ray)

4K Ultra HD Picture: B Picture: B+/B+/X/C Sound: B+/B/B+/C Extras: D/B/C/C Main Programs: B/C/C/C

Here's an interesting mix of genre releases...

Hadestown: The Musical (2026) is a highly cinematic stage production that has been beautifully captured for Blu-ray courtesy of Bleecker Street Media. The acclaimed Tony Award and Grammy Award-winning musical, written by Anaïs Mitchell and directed for the stage by Rachel Chavkin, blends American folk music, blues, and New Orleans-inspired jazz into a visually stunning and emotionally compelling theatrical experience.

The lavish production reimagines the ancient Greek myths of Orpheus and Eurydice alongside the story of Hades and Persephone, weaving together two tales of love, sacrifice, temptation, and the struggle between hope and despair. Set against the backdrop of a Depression-era-inspired industrial underworld, the musical follows Orpheus, a gifted young musician whose love for Eurydice leads him on a dangerous journey into Hadestown, a subterranean kingdom ruled by the powerful and intimidating Hades. As Orpheus attempts to rescue Eurydice from the underworld, he must confront seemingly impossible odds and ultimately face a test of faith that will determine their fate.

What makes Hadestown particularly fascinating is its unique combination of traditional Greek mythology with distinctly American musical and visual influences. The production's industrial aesthetic, elaborate lighting design, and atmospheric staging create a world that feels simultaneously ancient and contemporary. The contrast between the warmth of the world above and the cold, mechanical environment of Hadestown provides a striking visual representation of the musical's underlying themes of freedom, exploitation, love, and mortality.

The music is undoubtedly one of the production's greatest strengths, with Mitchell's compositions seamlessly blending folk, jazz, and blues into a distinctive theatrical soundscape. Rather than relying on conventional Broadway-style musical numbers, Hadestown incorporates an almost continuous musical narrative, allowing its songs to propel the story forward while revealing the emotional complexities of its characters.

The performances are equally impressive, particularly Andre De Shields as Hermes, who serves as the production's charismatic narrator and guide through the unfolding tragedy. Reeve Carney brings an earnest vulnerability to Orpheus, while Eva Noblezada delivers an emotionally resonant performance as Eurydice. Patrick Page's commanding presence and remarkably deep voice make his portrayal of Hades especially memorable, while Amber Gray brings an unpredictable mixture of humor, melancholy, and theatrical energy to Persephone.

From a filmmaking perspective, the captured stage production offers an opportunity to appreciate the elaborate theatrical staging while also bringing viewers closer to the performers through carefully composed camera angles and intimate close-ups. This approach allows the emotional nuances of the performances to register more clearly than they might from a traditional theater seat, while the wider compositions preserve the scale and choreography of the original production.

The film stars Andre De Shields, Reeve Carney, Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada, and Patrick Page.

Hadestown: The Musical is presented in 1080p high definition on 2K Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec (33.80 Mbps), a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) mix. The presentation is beautifully photographed and the audio is clear and of high quality.

No Special Features.

Ultimately, Hadestown is a remarkable fusion of mythology, music, and theatrical spectacle that successfully demonstrates why the production has earned such widespread acclaim. Its imaginative storytelling, memorable performances, and haunting musical arrangements make it a must-watch for musical theater enthusiasts, while its cinematic presentation offers an accessible introduction for audiences who may be unfamiliar with the original Broadway production.

Carlton J. Albright's Luther The Geek (1989) is now available on Blu-ray courtesy of Troma Entertainment. One of the more unusual entries in the late 1980s slasher cycle, the film combines elements of psychological horror, backwoods terror, and exploitation cinema into a bizarre and occasionally unsettling experience that has since developed a cult following.

The story begins with a young boy named Luther who witnesses a disturbing carnival sideshow act involving a performer known as a "geek," whose grotesque routine consists of biting the heads off live chickens. The traumatic experience leaves a lasting impression on the boy, ultimately contributing to his descent into madness. Years later, after being imprisoned for a series of brutal murders, Luther is released back into society, despite remaining deeply disturbed and exhibiting increasingly animalistic behavior.

Now an adult, Luther has developed an obsession with chickens, communicating through bizarre clucking noises and displaying a particularly vicious method of attacking his victims. His return to freedom quickly leads to another murderous rampage, eventually bringing him into contact with an unsuspecting family living in an isolated rural farmhouse. What follows is a nightmarish game of cat and mouse as Luther terrorizes his victims with an almost primal ferocity.

While Luther The Geek borrows recognizable elements from established genre classics such as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and other rural exploitation thrillers, it manages to distinguish itself through its particularly strange central antagonist. Unlike the masked killers commonly associated with the slasher genre, Luther is a deranged, almost feral individual whose behavior is as unsettling as it is occasionally absurd.

The film's greatest strength lies in its willingness to embrace such an outrageous concept without completely descending into parody. Edward Terry delivers a memorably eccentric performance as Luther, relying heavily on physical mannerisms, facial expressions, and animalistic vocalizations rather than conventional dialogue. His portrayal gives the character an unpredictable quality that helps elevate the film beyond its otherwise familiar slasher framework.

As one of the more recognizable cult titles associated with the Troma library, Luther The Geek remains an entertaining example of independent 1980s horror filmmaking. Its combination of grotesque violence, dark humor, and low-budget ingenuity makes it an interesting curiosity for fans of obscure slashers and exploitation cinema.

The film stars Stacy Haiduk, Edward Terry, Joan Roth, Thomas Mills, and Jerry Clarke.

Luther The Geek is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray, utilizing the MPEG-4 AVC codec and a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The disc includes lossy, English Dolby Digital 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) and English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo audio tracks. The high-definition presentation is generally serviceable, offering a reasonable level of detail considering the film's age and modest production values. Facial textures, costumes, and practical makeup effects are presented with respectable clarity, although the overall image quality remains somewhat inconsistent.

The most noticeable shortcomings involve the color grading and correction, which could have benefited from additional attention. Certain scenes appear less balanced than others, with occasional inconsistencies in color temperature and saturation that prevent the image from achieving a particularly refined appearance. While these issues do not significantly detract from the viewing experience, they suggest that the film could benefit from a more comprehensive restoration in the future. The audio presentation is similarly adequate, with dialogue and the film's more aggressive sound effects coming through clearly enough. Neither track represents a particularly remarkable sonic experience, but both are suitable for a low-budget horror production of this vintage.

Special Features:

Original Lloyd Kaufman DVD Intro

Carlton J. Albright's Blu-Ray Intro

Director's Commentary with Carlton J. Albright

Classic Interview With Director Carlton J. Albright

Classic Interview with William Albright

A Conversation With Carlton: An Interview With Carlton Albright

Fowl Play: An Interview With Jerry Clarke

Fowl Takes

Troma's Freak Show

INNARDS! Music Video

and Radiation March.

Troma's Blu-ray release of Luther The Geek provides a perfectly acceptable way to revisit this wonderfully bizarre late-1980s slasher. Although there is certainly room for improvement in the visual presentation, particularly regarding color correction, the disc remains a worthwhile addition for collectors of obscure horror and exploitation cinema. Fans of offbeat slashers should find plenty to appreciate in Luther's uniquely deranged brand of terror.

Travis Knight's Masters Of The Universe 4K (2026) hopes to do the 1987 film one better with a larger budget and visual effects four decades newer, but the results land up being just as bad, with Nicholas Galantine (as Prince Adam, at first?) taking over from a then-much larger Dolph Lundgren as He-Man and Jared Leto taking over the roll of Skeletor so well handled by Frank Langella in the older film. I thought Galantine might be too small to play the role, but he does land up being uncanny in his resemblance to some versions of his character, though this version takes way too long to get going.

Its like they cheaped-out for the first few reels, then Idris Elba shows up, but cannot save this and try as the rest of the cast might, it just never makes up for its slow, dragged out start. It still marches on to the obvious, but is actually too long at over two hours, waisting its and our time. Don't these people know how to edit anymore? The visual effects often look very dated and in other ways, overdone to a point of being a spoof of themselves. The music score is forgettable and battles flat. Add the dozens of missed opportunities and the fans have been failed again. Now you can see for yourself.

The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 2.35 X 1, Dolby Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image has some good color, but is soft throughout, especially when they arrive in Eternia, making the old 1980s movie look a little better by comparison. They took the idea of live-action cartoon a little too far, but the lossless Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems) is active and impressive enough, even more so than the rest of the film.

Extras are limited and include a Behind-The-Scenes Promotional Gallery with twelve short featurettes brings together cast and crew interviews covering the characters, costumes, production design, weapons, and the challenges of bringing Eternia to the big screen.

and Masters of Light: Skies of Eternia Drone Spectacle (in HD, a brief 3:20) covering a promotional event in Los Angeles involving approximately 1,600 illuminated drones arranged into images inspired by the movie, including He-Man, Skeletor, and Castle Grayskull.

We have more of the franchise elsewhere on the site, including several animated releases and the 1987 film, which you can read more about at this link:

https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/16879/Enter+The+Video+Store:+Video+Vengeance+(1987+-

Ansel Faraj's Theatre Fantastique: The Complete Three Seasons (2014 - 2017/aka The Complete Series) has been collected in a Blu-ray release courtesy of Hollinsworth Productions. Drawing inspiration from the literary works of Edgar Allan Poe, H.G. Wells, and H.P. Lovecraft, this hauntingly entertaining, low-budget anthology series brings a variety of classic tales of horror, mystery, and the supernatural to life through an imaginative and often surreal approach.

Rather than relying on elaborate special effects or large production budgets, Theater Fantastique embraces its independent filmmaking roots, emphasizing atmospheric storytelling, theatrical performances, and creative visual techniques to establish its distinctive identity. The series draws heavily from the traditions of classic Gothic horror and vintage television anthologies, delivering a collection of unusual stories that range from psychological terror and macabre fantasy to dark comedy and supernatural suspense.

One of the more interesting aspects of the series is its willingness to experiment with the source material, offering unconventional interpretations of familiar literary themes while maintaining an appreciation for the authors who inspired them. The result is a charmingly eccentric collection that feels like a throwback to an earlier era of genre television, when atmosphere, imagination, and storytelling often took precedence over spectacle.

The ensemble cast includes Christopher Pennock, Elyse Ashton, Kelsey Hewlett, Nathan Wilson, Kelly Kitko, Eric Gorlow, Annie Waterman, and Richard Halpern, with special guest appearances by Sally Kirkland, Jerry Lacy, Lara Parker, and Lisa Richards.

The collection features a wide assortment of adaptations and original stories, including The Madness of Roderick Usher, Nosferatu Beyond Death, A Descent Into a Maelstrom, The Happy Home of the Murderous Mahones, Madame LaSoeur, The Family Wolff Christmas, A Poem of Poe, The Job Interview, Hitchcock Blonde, Masque of the Red Death, Mrs. Hall's Mysterious Guest, The Haunted Home of the Murderous Mahones, Screening After Midnight, The City of Dreadful Night, The Werewolf of Venice, and Randolph Carter and the Silver Key.

While the modest production values are occasionally apparent, they also contribute to the series' handmade charm. Faraj demonstrates an enthusiasm for Gothic literature and classic horror storytelling, crafting a collection that should appeal to viewers who appreciate experimental independent cinema, literary adaptations, and the nostalgic atmosphere of old-fashioned horror anthologies.

Theatre Fantastique: The Complete Three Seasons is presented in 1080p high definition on 2K Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78 X 1 and lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) soundtrack mixes. Unfortunately, the presentation here is nothing to write home back with many shots in soft focus on very compressed. Obviously this was a ultra low budget production and some of the stories are produced better than others visually. There are some bad green screen chroma keying going on in a few places. The audio however is pretty consistent and audible.

Special Features: Christopher Peacock Remembered presented by Terror At Collinwood

Ultimately, Theater Fantastique: The Complete Three Seasons is an intriguing collection of macabre storytelling that celebrates the imagination and creativity of independent filmmaking. For fans of Poe, Lovecraft, and unconventional genre entertainment, this Blu-ray set offers an opportunity to explore a distinctive assortment of dark and fantastical tales.

- Nicholas Sheffo (Masters) and James Lockhart

https://letterboxd.com/jhl5films/