Arrow Video has announced three new titles to join their collection on 4K UHD and Blu-Ray in February: Alice, Sweet Alice (1976), A Certain Killer/A Killer’s Key (1967), and Cruising (1980). These represent a bloody tale of religion and a dysfunctional family, a pair of stylish gangster films featuring a hitman with a unique method of killing, and a controversial crime thriller. Details on these films can be found below:
Alice, Sweet Alice [4K UHD Blu-Ray Limited Edition]
Street Date: February 11, 2025
Synopsis: A young Brooke Shields meets an untimely end in this religious-themed proto slasher par excellence from director Alfred Sole. On the day of her first communion, young Karen (Brooke Shields) is savagely murdered by an unknown assailant in a yellow rain mac and creepy translucent mask. But the nightmare is far from over – as the knife-wielding maniac strikes again and again, Karen’s bereaved parents are forced to confront the possibility that Karen’s wayward sister Alice might be the one behind the mask. Bearing influences from the likes of Hitchcock, the then-booming Italian giallo film and more specifically, Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now, Alice, Sweet Alice is an absolutely essential – if often overlooked – entry in the canon of 1970s American horror.
Bonus Materials
- Brand new 4K restoration of the original theatrical version from the original camera negative by Arrow Films
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD presentations of three versions via seamless branching: Communion (original), Alice, Sweet Alice (theatrical) and Holy Terror (re-release)
- Original uncompressed mono audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Brand new audio commentary with Richard Harland Smith
- Archival audio commentary with co-writer/director Alfred Sole and editor M.Edward Salier
- First Communion: Alfred Sole Remembers Alice, Sweet Alice, director Alfred Sole looks back on his 1976 classic
- Alice on My Mind, an interview with composer Stephen Lawrence
- In the Name of the Father, an interview with actor Niles McMaster
- Sweet Memories: Dante Tomaselli on Alice, Sweet Alice, filmmaker Dante Tomaselli, cousin of Alfred Sole, discusses his longtime connection to the film
- Lost Childhood: The Locations of Alice, Sweet Alice, a tour of the original Alice, Sweet Alice shooting locations hosted by author Michael Gingold
- Deleted scenes
- Split-screen version comparison
- Trailer and TV spot
- Image gallery, including the original screenplay
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Michael Blyth
A Certain Killer/A Killers Key [Limited Edition]
Street Date: February 11, 2025
Synopsis: Anticipating the cool aesthetic of Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill and based on a crime novel by Shinji Fujiwara, the author of the original material for the same year’s A Colt is My Passport, A Certain Killer and A Killer’s Key are similarly stylish contemporary hitman thrillers directed by Daiei’s top director of jidai-geki, Kazuo Mori (The Tale of Zatoichi Continues) and starring the studio’s top actor Raizō Ichikawa (Shinobi: Band of Assassins, Sleepy Eyes of Death). In A Certain Killer, Shiozaki’s low-profile existence as a chef at a local sushi restaurant serves as a front for his true job as a professional assassin whose modus operandi is poisoned needles. He’s approached by Maeda, a low-ranking member of a local yakuza group, to take out a rival gang boss. But the sudden arrival into his life of a spirited young woman, Keiko (Yumiko Nogawa, Gate of Flesh), has dramatic ramifications on his relationship with his new employer. Ichikawa’s lone wolf assassin is back in A Killer’s Key, this time masquerading as a traditional dance instructor named Nitta who is called in to avert a potential financial scandal that threatens to engulf a powerful yakuza group with ties to powerful figures in the political establishment. Co-scripted by the director Yasuzō Masumura (Giants and Toys, Blind Beast) and featuring masterful scope cinematography with an expressionistic eye for colour by one of Japan’s most esteemed cinematographers, Kazuo Miyagawa (Rashomon, Ugetsu), these Japanese crime drama essentials are presented for the very first time to the English-language home video market.
Bonus Materials
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation of both films
- Original uncompressed Japanese mono audio for both films
- Optional newly translated English subtitles
- Brand new audio commentary for both films by critic and Asian cinema expert Tony Rayns
- The Definite Murderer, a brand new 30-minute introduction to the films by Japanese film scholar Mark Roberts
- Original theatrical trailers for both films
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork for both films by Tony Stella
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the films by Jasper Sharp and Earl Jackson
Cruising [4K UHD Blu-Ray Limited Edition]
Street Date: February 25, 2025
Synopsis: Legendary director William Friedkin brings together Al Pacino, the 70s New York gay scene and a searing punk-rock soundtrack in this one-of-a-kind serial killer thriller, finally restored to its long-unavailable original theatrical version in 4K. New York is caught in the grip of a sadistic serial killer who is preying on the patrons of the city’s underground gay scene. Young rookie cop Steve Burns (Pacino) is tasked with infiltrating the S&M subculture to try and lure the killer out of the shadows… but as he immerses himself deeper and deeper into the underworld, Steve risks losing his own identity in the process. Taking the premise and title from reporter Gerald Walker’s novel, Cruising was the subject of great controversy at the time of its release and remains a challenging and remarkable movie to this day, with Pacino’s haunted lead performance as its magnetic centrepiece. With hours of brand-new bonus features, including never-before-seen material from the deepest recesses of the studio archives, you’ve never seen Cruising like this.
Bonus Materials
2 DISC 4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
- Brand new 4K restoration from the original 35mm camera negative by Arrow Films
- 120-page perfect-bound collector’s book featuring articles from The Village Voice and The New York Times, essays from the film’s extras cast, an introduction from William Friedkin, and an archive interview with Al Pacino
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sister Hyde
- DISC ONE FEATURE & EXTRAS (4K ULTRA HD):
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Original lossless English mono audio, 2.0 stereo, and 5.1
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Two archive audio commentaries by director William Friedkin, one solo and one moderated by critic and broadcaster Mark Kermode
- Brand new commentary featuring original musicians involved with the soundtrack
- I Want to Be the Curator, a brand-new interview with actress Karen Allen
- Deleted scenes and alternative footage
- On-set audio featuring the club scenes and protest coverage
- Censored material reels
- Theatrical trailer, teasers, and TV spots
DISC 2 – EXTRAS (BLU-RAY)
- Walking the Line, a brand-new interview with actor, film consultant, and former police detective Randy Jurgensen
- Cut Offs, an interview with editor Bud S. Smith
- Who’s That Guy?, an interview with actor Jay Acovone
- Pounding the Beat, an interview with actor Mike Starr
- Boy on the Bus, an interview with actor Mark Zecca
- Mineshaft Memories, an archive interview with Wally Wallace, former manager of the Mineshaft
- Breaking the Codes, a brand-new visual essay surrounding the hanky-codes featuring actor and writer David McGillivray
- Stop the Movie, a short film by Jim Hubbard capturing the Cruising protests
- The History of Cruising, an archival featurette looking at the film’s origins and production
- Exorcising Cruising, an archival featurette looking at the controversy surrounding the film and its enduring legacy
- William Friedkin’s BeyondFest 2022 Q&A at the American Cinematheque
- Extensive image gallery featuring international promotional material, on-set sketches, and more
Before we let you go, we have officially launched our merch store! Check out all of our amazing apparel when you click here and type in GVN15 at checkout for a 15% discount!
Make sure to check out our podcasts each week including Geek Vibes Live, Top 10 with Tia, Wrestling Geeks Alliance and more! For major deals and money off on Amazon, make sure to use our affiliate link!
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.