Missing DVD of the day

[yendi]

I've been on two "We Want it on DVD" panels at Arisia, at which we discussed various things that were shockingly unavailable in a modern format (although many of them, like Daria, Max Headroom, and Skidoo, are now out).

But I hadn't realized that the greatest made-for-TV film in the USA network's history of great schlock, Buried Alive, wasn't out on DVD.

Not only does Buried Alive feature Tim Matheson and Jennifer Jason Leigh, but it was directed by Frank Darabont, of Walking Dead and Shawshank Redemption fame. It was his directorial debut (although he'd already written the screenplays for Nightmare on Elm Street 3 and the remake of The Blob, both of which are surprisingly good), and the movie that got him the job of directing Shawshank (I'd assume, since it was his only movie until then).

And it was written by Mark Patrick Carducci, who wrote one of my favorite guilty pleasures, the water-soluble monsters attacking San Francisco classic, Neon Maniacs (which I've written about here).

They've announced a UK release for this Halloween, but there's still no US release planned. And that makes me sad. It's a silly pseudo-noir schlockfest, but such a fun one. I'm shocked that Darabont's name alone wasn't enough to get it released, given his recent success.

(incidentally, of the Amazon links here, note that Daria and Walking Dead are both at around 60% off, in case they're not already in your collection).

Comments

[slipjig.livejournal.com]

Y'know, I flipped that one on one night out of boredom, and was shocked at how better-than-it-had-to-be it was. The less said about the sequel, though, the better, Ally Sheedy notwithstanding.

(Psst! You forgot William Atherton!)

[yendi]

Yeah, the sequel was awful (and one of the few made-for-TV movies I'd actually looked forward to).

The Woman in the Room

[greatcalvero.livejournal.com]

I'd never heard of Buried Alive, so I'll be checking that out. I like Darabont a lot.

I don't know how much pull, if any, Stephen King would have had on the Shawshank film, but King has always said that Darabont's 1983 adaptation of his short story "The Woman in The Room" was his favorite of all the short films based on his work. That might have had something to do with Darabont getting the gig helming Shawshank Redemption.

Re: The Woman in the Room

[yendi]

That's a more likely scenario; I wasn't aware of the short film.

[lovingboth]

Already out on DVD somewhere in Europe, according to amazon.co.uk if you really can't wait.