Massacre at Central High Blu-ray Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Renee Daalder
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Robert Carradine, Kimberly Beck, Andrew Stevens, Derrel Maury
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Anamorphic, NTSC, Widescreen
• Distributer ‏ : ‎ Synapse Films
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 28 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 13, 2022

 

         Although the title sounds like a slasher film, the killer of Massacre at Central High is never a mystery to anyone, audience included. Instead, the film plays out like an after-school special about bullying with excessive violence and nudity. You can almost imagine how it could be remade today as a heavy drama in the same vein as We Need to Talk About Kevin, but is instead an odd mix of camp and self-serious teen melodrama in this 1976 release. Even though the film approaches the narrative more realistically than a slasher, there is nothing remotely believable about Massacre at Central High.

 

Preman: Silent Fury Blu-ray Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Randolph Zaini
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Khiva Iskak, Muzakki Ramdhan, Kiki Narendra, Paul Agusta, Gilbert Pattiruhu
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, Widescreen
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ Indonesia
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 32 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 27, 2022

         Often it is more significant what the protagonist does in an action film, rather than what they say. For this reason, the hero being deaf in Preman: Silent Fury allows for the emphasis to remain on the action elements. For much of the buildup, the protagonist is a silent observer, until he decides to make his stance known through violence. This is a wonderful setup for an action movie, but it is unfortunately let down by the execution of Preman’s narrative.