Actors: Tobe Hooper, Robert Carradine, Stacy Keach, David Warner, Mark Hamill
Directors: John Carpenter, Tobe Hooper, Larry Sulkis
Rated: R (Restricted)
Studio: Shout! Factory
Release Date: November 12, 2013
Run Time: 95 minutes
Film: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3 out of 5 stars
“Body Bags” was a made-for-TV anthology that aired on Showtime. Originally it was planned to be a television series, similar to HBO’s “Tales from the Crypt” but never panned out. The film is jam-packed with great genre talent including Mark Hamill (“Star Wars”), Robert Carradine (“Revenge of the Nerds”), Tom Arnold (“True Lies”), Sam Raimi (“Evil Dead”), Stacy Keach (“Up In Smoke”), David Warner (“TRON”) Deborah Harry, Sheena Easton, Twiggy (Member of Marilyn Manson), David Naughton (“An American Werewolf In London”), John Agar (“Tarantula”) and great cameos by Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper and Roger Corman. Overall, this may not be the best anthology but it is still a blast to watch and a must have for any true horror buff.
Official Premise: Two Masters of Horror John Carpenter (“Halloween”, “The Thing”) and Tobe Hooper (“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre”, “Lifeforce”) come together to create a chilling anthology of terror. Alex Datcher (“Passenger 57”) stars as a woman working the late shift at The Gas Station while a killer is on the loose. Then, Stacy Keach (“Road Games”) can’t stand the thought of losing his Hair and he’ll do anything to keep it. And finally, Mark Hamill (“Star Wars”) portrays a baseball player that submits to an Eye transplant after he loses an eye in a car accident.
Shout! Factory delivered this film as a Blu-ray + DVD combo pack. The 1080p transfer looks decent for a made-for-TV film and the DTS-HD Master Audio track works with the film’s suspense and score. In terms of special features, there is some great content here for horror fans. There are three audio commentary tracks included, the first is with director John Carpenter and actor Robert Carradine on “The Gas Station”. The second is again with director John Carpenter and joined by actor Stacy Keach on “Hair”. The last with with producer Sandy King on “Eye” and is moderated by Justin Beahm. There are some some great new interviews with John Carpenter, Producer Sandy King and actors Stacy Keach and Robert Carradine. Lastly there is a trailer included as well.