Masters Of Horror: Series 2 - Volume 1 [DVD] [2007]

Not quite as consistently good as the other box sets, but the stronger episodes make it well worthwhile.

This box set is what I wanted from a series with such a promising title; there are some truly great stories here.The opener Pelts (Dario Argento) is about the fur trade and a curse that follows the slaying of a family of raccoons. There are some pretty nasty death scenes here which reflect the ways in which animals are trapped and killed for their fur. Argento himself is adamant it is non-political.The second Pro-Life (John Carpenter) starts out as a simple anti-abortion tale but there is a surprise twist and the birth scene is so reminiscent of a famous scene from Carpenter's classic The Thing.Family (John Landis) is absolutely brilliant as loner Harold (George Wendt) gets himself a family like Norman Bates might have done and soon has eyes for the wife of his new next door neighbour. Landis also has a great twist at the end and a different one to what I thought was coming.Right to Die (Rob Schmidt) where a woman is barely alive after a car crash but when they try to switch off her life support....there is also a nice twist at the end, one that I never saw coming, this is the tale I thought may be weakest but I have to admit Schmidt pulls it off brilliantly.The Screwfly Solution (Joe Dante) is a nice apocalyptic tale as a virus turns men into homicidal misogynists which the title ties in to the way in which the Screwfly was eradicated. Thanks for avoiding an all's well that ends well ending, it would not have worked as well.The Black Cat (Stuart Gordon) based on the Poe tale is the one that does not meet the high standards of the others here. It's not that it is a bad show but the others are just so much better. Jeffrey Combs portrayal of Poe did not work for me but the story itself is mostly faithful to the spirit of Poe's tale.The closing tale Valerie on the Stairs (Mick Garris) is a great atmospheric tale that starts off like a ghost story set in a house filled with failed writers but soon gets far creepier, hardly surprising as the story is by Clive Barker, and the final ending is a mind-blower.The extras have been trimmed from what the first series may have led you to suspect but that is a good thing as it takes away the element of repetition, what you get here are a making of film for each episode, commentaries and documentaries on special effects or editing which varies depending on the episode.I recommend this collection to all horror fans.

Just what I wanted as a gift. Good quality, fast delivery. Thanks.

Like it but not same boxsetI believe it should match the other two boxset volumes (red & purple) because it should be like this as the set with directors info booklet. Also I get the one just like red and purple from the image on the order.

Excellent horror stories by the top directors!!! Great collection of true horror!!!

Following on from Series 1 and considering the work that went into this series the end results are still the same - slick but uninspiring.The entries are as follows:Pelts(Dir Dario Argento)Not as bad as Jenifer but it is close.Meat Loaf stars as a furrier who "inherits" some raccon pelts from a sadistic trapper and creates a coat which has the habit of.....Poor acting( a trademark that of the whole MoH oeuvre and probably its biggest drawback),dull story and excessive gore sink this clunker.Pro-Life(Dir John Carpenter)Young teenager gets trapped at an isolated women's clinic with her headcase father Ron Perlman and her three brothers determined to get in and stop her abortion of....Yucky,silly story that after a tidy opening goes kind of where you expect it.Family(Dir John Landis)Not a patch on Landis' entry in series 1.George Wendt plays a delusional psycho whose idea of the perfect family is not yours or mine.He sees fresh meat with the arrival of new neighbours but are they quite what they seem?.Heavy handed with intrusive music,little suspense but a funny if obvious ending.Right to Die(Dir Rob Schmidt)The ever watchable Martin Donovan gives this tale its meat as the husband who survives a car accident that basically burns his wife to "death".However she is reluctant to go quietly and her spirit goes a visiting.Not bad but it plays it's hand too early.The Screwfly Solution(Dir Joe Dante)A "virus" is spreading across the world driving men to kill women.Two scientists Jason Priestly and Elliott Gould think they may have developed a cure but it isn't long before fate comes a knocking at their door.Decent story here presented with imagination and wit with a nice feel to it let down by too literal and downbeat an ending.The Black Cat(Dir Stuart Gordon)Jeffrey Combs does okay as Edgar Allan Poe who lapses into drink and melancholy when the world rejects his poetry.His young wife is dying of consumption and the cat doesn't seem too fond of him.Good atmosphere and story are done in by one too many endings.Be warned - if you are very fond of cats you may wish to avert your eyes at two key moments.Valerie On The Stairs(Dir Mick Garris)Self indulgent but creepy tale based on Clive Barker short story about a house for unpublished writers which is haunted by a woman borne from the collective will of the resident writers.Unfortunately her "paramour"is the beast between the walls,Tony Todd reprising his Candyman role.Okay as far as it goes.Production values are again first rate and a good range of extras.As of writing,there are two other reviews posted for this set and while I don't doubt their veracity for a second, to give this set 5 stars is wildly over generous on any sensible level.Without being glib what would they give Alien - ostensibly a haunted house suspenser in space - which is better than this whole set put together.It does not deserve it.

Enjoyed most of the stories. Will soon start on series 3. They are okay in length, for if you have a spare hour between things you must do, just fit one in.

By the time of the second series rolled in, the production values had shrunk and the series had really ran out of steam. If I had to pick a favorite, it would have to be "Pro Life", directed by John Carpenter.By no means is this a bad collection, but it is fairly obvious that the series was getting dried up. One for completionists.

Gekauft um meine Sammlung zu vervollständigen.Auf der Blu Ray sind 3. Kurzgeschichten von verschiedenen Regisseuren.1. John Landis- Family Psycho2. Mike Garris- Valerie on the Stairs3. Tom Holland's- We all scream for ice creamZusätzlich zu den Teilen, gibt es als Bonusmaterial, Making odd, Audiokommentare uvw.Von meiner Seite 5 von 5 Sterne