[wp-review id=”97157″]
On June 19th, 1987, at 9:47 am EST, the Earth passed into the extraordinarily diffuse tail of Rhea-M, a rogue comet. According to astronomical calculations, the planet would remain in the tail of the comet for the next eight days, five hours, twenty-nine minutes, and twenty-three seconds.
All over, mechanical and electronic inanimate objects have a mind of their own. Vehicles, lawn mowers, arcade machines, and even ATMs are rebelling against humans. A small group who gets stranded at a truck stop are trying to survive and find away to stop them.
MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE is written and directed by Stephen King. This is his only directorial credit and you can feel his influence throughout the movie. From the start when the ATM calls Stephen King in his cameo, an asshole, you know that this is going to be a weird ride. Emilio Estevez is the lead and this was right in the middle of his career being on the rise so taking this role might be a part of him trying out what he can. This is a mid-eighties classic and got some nice publicity for Marvel’s Green Goblin.
Cast
Emilio Estevez – William “Bill” Robinson
Pat Hingle – Bubba Hendershot
Laura Harrington – Brett Graham
Yeardley Smith – Connie
John Short – Curtis
Ellen McElduff – Wanda June
Frankie Faison – Handy
Leon Rippy – Brad
VIDEO QUALITY:
The video is a 1080p AVC presentation that is in line with the other Vestron Video releases. The coloring is bright in some areas but muted as whole. When looking at the Green Goblin hood cover, the coloring is one of the bolder colors in the film. The images have been cleaned up to show the details but the things still look soft. The blacks get dark but they are missing the defining contrasting that you look for in a transfer. It doesn’t have the VHS look the some of them have, just a vintage look.
AUDIO QUALITY:
The audio is a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix and there is also the original 2-channel mix as well. I watched some of the film in the 2.0 mix and it does have a good prescience with the music and effects. The 5.1 mix has the killer AC/DC soundtrack in the various speakers, mixed along with the effects and dialogue. The LFEs on the 5.1 mix hit harder than the 2.0, probably to due to the subwoofer getting a separate channel.
SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING
-Audio Commentary: with Writer Tony Magistrale and moderator Michael Felsher
-Audio Commentary: with Actor/Comedian Jonah Ray and Blumhouse Executive Ryan Turek
-Truck Stop Tales: This is with Producer Martha de Laurentiis.
-Rage Against the Machines: This is with Laura Harrington.
-Honeymoon Horrors: This is with the couple on their honeymoon, John Short and Yeardley Smith.
-A Kid in King’s Court: This is interview footage with Holter Graham.
-Maximum Carnage: The make-up effects artist Dean Gates .
-The Wilmington Factor: This extra looks at the film community in Wilmington, NC and the history.
-Who Made Who?
-Goblin Resurrectus: The creation of The Goblin.
-Behind the Scenes Footage
-Still Gallery
-Theatrical Trailer
-TV Spots
Disc Details
1 Blu-ray Disc
Running Time
98 mins
Edition Ratings
Rated R
Region Coding
Region A
Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Audio Mixes
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Subtitles
English
English SDH
Spanish
THE BOTTOM LINE:
MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE is another release that after being in theaters, you might see on a Sunday afternoon on TV. Some, like myself, see it as being classic King, some may call it campy but everyone remembers that Goblin Truck. The Blu-ray is a step up from any of the releases of the movie to this point in both the video and the audio. The extras on the release are really good and give incite on most of the movie’s production. All in all, this is a great addition to the Vestron line and fans of the film should pick up this release.
