The Exterminator

Blu Review 46 - The Exterminator
The Exterminator Blu-ray Review

Distributor : Synapse Films (US)

For a movie that contains such visual delights as beatings, burning, beheading, forced prostitution and the painfully slow decent of another unfortunate victim into a working meat grinder, it is no wonder that the The Exterminator has had its share of controversy over the years.

Robert Ginty plays an ordinary every day guy who after a particularly nasty attack on his best friend, sets about dispatching the criminal element of 1980's New York in ways which would give even Jigsaw nightmares. Highlights of vengeance include extreme facial surgery involving a group of hungry rats, poison tipped bullets and the previous mentioned incident where the local gangster is quite literally turned into a string of sausages. Even the family dog doesn't escape unharmed in this one folks!

With the varying amounts of violence on display, it is no wonder that the film has suffered numerous cuts...

I GIVE UP !!!!!WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE GIVE THIS MOVIE A PROPER RELEASE!!!
Ok I thought the Anchor Bay re-release of this film a few years ago would be the LAST and final time this FANTASTIC movie would see the light of day. Then only last month I find out that TANGO? Entertainment has slated to release this film and it has been digitally REMASTERED!!!SWEET.I then read that this will ONLY be available FULLSCREEN not in Widescreen. BIG DISAPPOINTMENT!! So today the disc arrives. The packaging is super cheap and nothing to it.However I NEVER judge a disc on that. So i pop the disc in...well Yeah HURRAY it is in WIDESCREEN HOWEVER THIS HAS NOT BEEN REMASTERED!!!!!!!!It is exactly the same poor print Anchor Bay was shoving in our faces. So these guys pick up ther print from Anchor Bay and slap it in a new box. Check out the Green Background scenes AND the Rooftop scenes (always a good point to see those nicks and scratches)This is pathetic. This film MORE than deserves a proper release. If you OWN the Anchor Bay cut of this then keep it and skip this. If not...

THE CRIME RIDDEN STREETS OF NEW YORK CITY CIRCA 1979-1980. THE "EXTERMINATOR CAPTURES THOSE TURBULANT TIMES BRILLIANTLY......
The Exterminator was made before big budget movies like the The Terminator 1984 and Terminator 2 - Judgment Day (Extreme DVD) 1991, Exterminator relied on a low budget and some great acting and guts. I will say The Exterminator was, and is a blueprint for all hollywood vigilante type films after 1980, that even "Titanic 1997" director James Cameron has seen and took notice of. People have complained about a properer release of "The Exterminator". I agree, I wish this 1998 Anchor Bay release had some extra features, interviews, Director comments and of course "Exterminator" Trailers. This film is presented in its original widescreen 1:85:1. I think the film transfer of this film to dvd is excellent and again another fine Anchor Bay release. The roof scene with the pigeons you do see some dust lines, but that was because the of this films low...

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