Monday, July 2, 2018

DVD Review - Scared to Death: Horror Movie Collection

Mill Creek Ent., 22 hrs 11 mins; $14.98

If you're wanting some scary movies to watch this summer, then look no further, as you can now own the DVD set Scared to Death: Horror Movie Collection from Mill Creek Entertainment, featuring a mix of slashers, monsters, and aliens on 4 discs.

Basically, it's a repackaging of three separate DVD releases (Queens of Scream, Possessed by Evil, and Monster Movie Mix), but with a new slipcover. Queens of Scream was released in 2016 and features the horror films "I Know What You Did Last Summer," "Vacancy," "When A Stranger Calls," and "The Cave." Possessed by Evil was also released in 2016. It features five movies: "Devour," "The Plague," "Wind Chill," "Insanitarium," and "Vinyan."

Now I've already reviewed Queens of Screams and and Possessed by Evil back in 2016, so I'm not going to go into any further details about them. You can read my original reviews here: Queens of Scream * Possessed by Evil

I'm not for sure if Monster Movie Mix is a re-release or not, but it features a mixture of old movies and television shows.

The titles on the Monster Movie Mix are:

  • The Corpse Vanishes - A 1942 film starring Bela Lugosi as a mad scientist
  • Night Fright - A 1967 science fiction tale about a mutated alligator that turns into an ogre-like creature that terrorizes a small town.
  • Killers From Space - A 1954 science fiction film starring Peter Graves as a nuclear scientist who gets tangled up with aliens.
  • Destination Space - A 1959 made-for-television movie about the first rotating wheel space station.
  • The Passage Beyond - A 1951 episode of the "Lights Out" anthology series. This episode focuses on the ghost of Lady Anne.
  • Blunder - A 1951 episode of the "Tales of Tomorrow" anthology series. The episode centers on a scientist working on a nuclear reactor in the Arctic.
  • Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde - A 1955 episode of the "Climax!" anthology series. It's just another adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic tale.
  • Tales of Frankenstein - An unsold 1958 television pilot co-produced by Hammer Film Productions and Columbia Pictures. The pilot centers on Baron Frankenstein (played by Anton Diffring) creating a new monster.
  • Verdict From Space - A 1951 episode of the "Tales of Tomorrow" anthology series. The episode centers on an inventor named Gordon Kent, who is on trial for murdering a scientist.
  • Flash Gordon: Return Of The Androids - A 1954 "Flash Gordon" episode, which centers on Flash Gordon trying to protect the secret location of the Androids.
  • Captain Z-Ro: Meteor - A 1956 episode of the children's television series Captain Z-Ro, which centers on the Captain testing out a new spaceship.
  • Johnny Jupiter - An "untitled episode" of the ABC's 1953-1954 series Johnny Jupiter, which centers on Duckweather, a young employee at a TV repair shop who gets advice from a magical TV set.


Final Thoughts


This is a very odd collection of DVDs. The movies on the Queens of Scream and Possessed by Evil are either slashers or thrillers, so I do understand why Mill Creek Entertainment paired them up together. However, I don't understand why the Monster Movie Mix DVD was included with them, as the 1950's flicks and television episodes on the release doesn't have anything in common other movies.

Out of all the movies, my favorites are Wind Chill, Vacancy,  and I Know What You Did Last Summer!

The picture and sound quality varies per DVD, but don't expect excellent quality as you're not going to get it. Queens of Scream crams 4 movies on one DVD, so the resolution isn't the best. Possessed by Evil is slightly better with 3 movies on one disc and 3 movies on the other. The Monster Movie Mix shoves 12 titles onto one disc.

If I was reviewing the DVDs individually, I would give a 4 out of 5 rating for both Queens of Scream and Possessed by Evil, and give The Monster Mix  a 2 out of 5 rating. As for rating the Scared to Death: Horror Movie Collection as a whole, I would have to give it a 3 out of 5 rating. While I do like some of the movies, as a collection, the Monster Movie Mix doesn't go with the other two DVDs. Plus, the old 1950's titles aren't very good, well, all except for Tales of Frankenstein, which I sorta enjoyed watching. Also, the cover art on the slipcover is a little bit lazy; I mean it's the same artwork on the Queens of Scream DVD. It would have been nice if the artwork on the slipcover was original; then it would be collectable. 



*Note : I received a complimentary copy for review purposes. All opinions are my own.







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