Nightbreed Review

4 stars of brilliantly reconstructed and remastered horror classic.

Nightbreed is written and directed by renowned horror author Clive Barker (Hellraiser, Candyman), based on his novella, Cabal. It was originally released in 1990 and is presented here on High Definition Blu-ray with a host of special features courtesy of Arrow Video. This release includes both the theatrical cut and the radically different director’s cut.

“Midian is where the monsters live. And you came to die.”

Aaron Boone (Craig Sheffer – A River Runs Through It, The Program) is a troubled man who has been under the care of psychiatrist Philip Decker (David Cronenberg – The Brood, The Fly). He believes he is improving, however he still has bad dreams, where he is dead and underground in a place called Midian, a city populated by monsters.

He is planning to get away from it all with his girlfriend Lori (Anne Bobby – The Hanover House, Beautiful Girls), however their plans are ruined when he is called in to see Decker. There have been murders he is told, very similar in nature to those he described during his early sessions.

Confused and believing himself to be a monster, he heads out in search of Midian. Not realising he is being manipulated by Decker, he sets in motion a chain of events which will have dire consequences, not just for himself but for the inhabitants of Midian.

Nightbreed is unmistakably Clive Barker, populated with strange and fantastic creatures. The members of the Breed are unforgettable, Narcisse (Hugh Ross – Dorian Gray), Peloquin (Oliver Parker – An Ideal Husband), Rachel (Catherine Chevalier – Grange Hill) and Lylesberg (Doug Bradley – Hellraiser, The Cottage) among many others.

The original film suffered from quite severe and brutal editing from the studio, resulting in a theatrical release which bore little resemblance to Clive Barker’s vision for his story. This release includes the director’s cut, which is 20 minutes longer than the original, but includes over 40 minutes of new footage, completely changing the feel of the film.

With lots of special features included too, this is a great package, a must own for horror fans and well worth adding to your collection.

“You found your way back here for the same reason I did. We belong here. There’s no place else on Earth that would take us in.”

Nightbreed Limited Edition is available to buy now on Blu-ray and will be released on 28th October 2019.

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

• High Definition Blu-ray™ (1080p) presentations of the 120-minute director’s cut, transferred from the original camera negative, and the 102-minute theatrical cut, transferred from the original interpositive
• Lossless 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and uncompressed 2.0 PCM audio on the director’s cut
• Uncompressed 2.0 PCM audio on the theatrical cut
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• New audio commentary on the theatrical cut by critics Adrian J Smith and David Flint
• Audio commentary on the director’s cut by writer/director Clive Barker and restoration producer Mark Alan Miller
• Introduction to the director’s cut by Clive Barker and Mark Alan Miller
• Walking the Line Between Heaven and Hell, a new video interview with critic Kat Ellinger
• Speaking up for the Monsters, a new video interview with critic Kim Newman
• Tribes of the Moon: Making Nightbreed, an extensive documentary on the making of the film, featuring actors Craig Sheffer, Doug Bradley, Anne Bobby and many more
• Making Monsters, a documentary on the film’s creature designs, featuring special makeup designer Bob Keen
• Fire! Fights! Stunts!, a video interview with second unit director Andy Armstrong
• Deleted and alternate scenes
• Monster Prosthetics Masterclass
• Cutting Compromise, a video interview with editor Mark Goldblatt
• The Painted Landscape, an exploration of the work of concept artist Ralph McQuarrie
• Matte painting tests
• Makeup tests
• Lost stop motion footage
• Extended torture scene
• Rehearsal test
• Theatrical trailer
• Rare TV spots
• Multiple image galleries, including early sketches, set photos, poster and pre-production art, stills from the UK launch party at Tower Records, and more
• Original screenplay (BD-ROM content)
• Reversible sleeve feature original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
• Double-sided fold-out poster
• Limited edition 40-page booklet, featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Amy Simmons and an in-depth history of the film’s development, release and rehabilitation by Mark Salisbury, co-author of Clive Barker’s Nightbreed: The Making of the Film