Stalker (1979) (2pc) (Sub)

Starring:Aleksandr Kajdanovsky, Alisa Frejndlikh, Anatoli Solonitsyn, Nikolai Grinko, Natasha Abramova, Faime Jurno, Ye. Kostin, R. Rendi, Olegar Fedoro
Director: Andrei Tarkovsky
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

The acknowledged inspiration for The X-Files, and the basis for an updated 2005 network version, Kolchak: The Night Stalker was a short-lived 1974 series spun off from a pair of extremely popular made-for-TV movies about the supernatural adventures of dogged newspaper reporter Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin). Though plagued by low ratings and critical brickbats, the show has cultivated a huge cult following over the past three decades, which has given rise to this three-disc set, which compiles all 20 episodes of the show. Though none of the episodic stories matches the suspense and writing strength of the Night Stalker or Night Strangler movies, TV horror fans will appreciate the parade of interesting and inventive monsters encountered by Kolchak (including a witches' coven in "The Trevi Collection"; an Aztec cult in "Legacy of Terror"; a Hindu Demon in "Horror in the Heights," which was penned by Hammer Films scribe Jimmy Sangster; and a headless biker in "Chopper," an episode deemed in extreme poor taste by Stephen King and co-written by Robert Zemeckis, Bob Gale, and Sopranos creator David Chase). McGavin is of course topnotch as Kolchak, and he's well-matched by Simon Oakland as his hot-tempered boss; guest stars include Scatman Crothers, James Gregory, Phil Silvers, Eric Braeden, Tom Skerritt, and Richard Kiel as the monster in two back-to-back episodes. Sadly, no extras accompany this fun collection of Kolchak's creepiest cases. --Paul Gaita

Customer Reviews:

Kolchak Lives!.......2007-07-02

By today's special effects it might be subpar, but the storylines, cast and characters were superb. It seems like there were more than 20 episodes to the series [not counting the feature length made for TV movies] but it was only twenty. UNLESS you count McGavin as a reporter in the TV movie "Hangar Eighteen" as the 21st episode where he played a "Kolchak" character in everything but name, with the storyline following "The Night Stalker" theme faithfully.
Of the core group of actors from the series Jack Grinnage is the only one left. He told me of an future episode where his character Ron "uptight" Updyke got to be the hero and saved Carl's life, but the series had been cancelled before the episode was shot. And the cancellation got a lot of help from McGavin who wanted to also report on "normal" things like crime, and do so in locations besides Chicago.
Jack Grinnage is easy to find, and one of the nicest people you could ever write and get autographed photos from (including The Night Stalker), and a very accompolished actor in his own right-remember "Rebel Without A Cause" with James Dean?
All in all I give this series SIX STARS and two bags of microwave popcorn per episode, because it has been the impetus for the X Files, and all the supernatural mediocrity that has spawned since-somehow they just missed the boat [BIG TIME as in QE-2 SIZE].
At least he is back together with his beloved wife Kathie Browne, who appeared in episode 20, "The Sentry", once again-and I'm sure they are the featured performers and every Command Performance gets a "heavenly" standing ovation.

Kolchak DVD was done well.......2007-05-31

Where some had complained about the mastering quality, I found it acceptable and not distracting even where some night scenes were "dark." Of course, night is dark. I enjoyed the old style of horror and gore where you don't get blood splattered in the viewer's face as you do today. I enjoyed the lighter side of scary that this series brought to us with Kolchak's bland humor. It was fun and worth going back to the good old days.

Thanks

Kolchak-The Night Stalker.......2007-05-14

I bought these dvd's because I remembered this probram when it was new. My brother and I would sit and watch with our eyes half covered, peeking out from behind the covers. Honestly, it was better then. Maybe I grew up, but it wasn't as frightening now, and many of the funny stuff I remember was removed. In the original shows, it seems Kolchak would tear a page out of the phone book in almost every episode, while tracking down leads. These have been taken out of all but one episode. This makes me wonder what else has been removed.

return to past.......2007-05-13

The series inspired the x-files, when a child passed here in Brazil I age and series impressed me very, it was good for having the purchase chance it and for being able to review the series again. A great souvenir!

Great content, fair video quality.......2007-05-07

With the advent of a new Night Stalker series starring Stuart Townsend, it only makes sense to become reacquainted with the original series starring Darren McGavin. While the new Kolchak: Night Stalker lacks the witty repartee of the old series -- and has less charismatic actors -- the old Kolchak has stood the test of time with its quirky cast and kitschy special effects.

The video quality leaves much to be desired, however. Frequent problems with stopping and/or artifacting proved to be an annoyance, but the content still makes up for the DVD's technical short-comings. The worst part of this whole series was that, sadly, it had to end.

This is one boxed set I'll be watching over and over and over again.

The Night Stalker/The Night Strangler (Double Feature)

Average customer rating:

A must see
Night Stalker a must watch- Excellent
X Files Fan, this was First
Does not age gracefully
A 70s Cult Classic!!!

The Night Stalker/The Night Strangler (Double Feature)
Starring: Darren McGavin , Carol Lynley , Simon Oakland , Ralph Meeker , and Claude Akins
Director: John Llewellyn Moxey , and Dan Curtis
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
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Amazon.com

The Night Stalker
Wisecracking Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin) is a rumpled news hound plucked from the fast-talking newspaper flicks of the 1940s and dropped into the swinging '70s. What makes the eccentric Kolchak even more unique, however, is his nose for the supernatural, a trait that leaves his editor (Simon Oakland) exasperated and the police less than amused. When he insists that a late-night Las Vegas serial killer (who leaves his victims drained of blood and sporting twin holes in the neck) is a modern-day vampire, he's practically run out of town by the local authorities. Naturally, he stalks the vampire himself, an unlikely Van Helsing armed with a silver cross, a wooden stake, and his ever-present tape recorder and flashbulb camera. Carol Lynley is his understanding girlfriend, and Ralph Meeker, Claude Akins, Kent Smith, and Charles McGraw costar as the Vegas cops and politicians Kolchak systematically alienates with his abrasive charm and smart mouth. Directed by Dan Curtis from a witty script by Richard Matheson, the quirky mix of horror and humor turned The Night Stalker into a ratings sensation that inspired a sequel (The Night Strangler) and a short-lived TV series (Kolchak: The Night Stalker). The X-Files creator Chris Carter acknowledges the show as a major inspiration, and has cast McGavin in a recurring role as a retired X-Files veteran with an acerbic personality and a familiar rumpled wardrobe. Kolchak lives! --Sean Axmaker

The Night Strangler
The Night Strangler finds down-on-his-luck investigator Carl Kolchak in Seattle, hot on the trail of a serial killer hiding in the underground city beneath the streets, a gas-lit fantasy world frozen in time (L.A.'s famous Bradbury Building--which has also appeared in Blade Runner and DOA--becomes the spooky city's architectural centerpiece). Exotic dancer and medical student Jo Ann Pflug tags along as partner and bait, and the exasperated Simon Oakland returns as Kolchak's harried editor. Genre fans will enjoy the appearances of popular character actors John Carradine, Margaret Hamilton, Wally Cox, and Al Lewis. Noted horror and science fiction author Richard Matheson scripted this meandering, low-key thriller with plenty of humor, which McGavin delivers with deadpan delight. --Sean Axmaker

Description

THE NIGHT STALKER THE NIGHT STRANGLER

Customer Reviews:

A must see.......2007-06-17

This movie stands up to current films. The acting is good. The make up is not cheesy. Just a good film.

Night Stalker a must watch- Excellent.......2007-04-11

Watched the night stalker when i was a kid, so it bought back some great tv moments. Such a great watch with drama,action and of course many laughs with Darren McGavin. An absolute must watch.

X Files Fan, this was First.......2007-02-08

Dan Curtis, Producer of the Soap Opera DARK SHADOWS, created to television the likes of Carl Kolchak. This character, from a Jeff Rice novel, was played by Darrin McGavin (who later played Mulder's and Murphy Brown's father)who appears in both movies

Curtis made this hack Vegas newspaper reporter into a vampire hunter. It is pure 1973 TV horror, it will hold you, but still safe for the kiddies. Barry Atwater is great as the Vampire. With MASH's Larry Linville as the Medical Examine and Simon Oakland as Tony, Kolchak's editor. This TV movie is the stuff B-rated horror movies are made of.

The sequel the Night Strangler has Kolchak in Seattle searching for a strangler in the underground. Richard (Oscar Goldman from the six Million Dollar man & The Bionic Woman) Anderson as the Strangler and Oakland reprises the role of Tony

This is 35 years old and it still fun to watch these two films on DVD

So X-file fans, watch what Chris Carter had said was one of the inspiration for The X-files, Kolchak The Night Stalker

Bennet Pomerantz AUDIOWORLD

Does not age gracefully.......2007-02-07

I LOVED these shows as a kid. Scared the crap out of me. 30 years later they are like
a bad Love Boat episode with former film stars appearing in bad cameos.
Perhaps your 8 year old needs something to see....

A 70s Cult Classic!!!.......2007-02-06

Before there was X-files and all the rest those sci-fi shows involving the paranormal, we had Carl Kolchak intrepid reporter. The made for tv movies Night Stalker, and the sequel The Night Strangler were ratings blockbusters in their day and were shown over and over on the network and late night Creature Feature's television. The disc contains both episodes and the transfer is very good in my opinion for a 70 telepic. You do get a little fuzz, and some bleed through in some sequences but for the most part it is just great in both audio and video. In Night Stalker, follow Carl through the 70s era Las Vegas as he chases down Yanos Skorzeny a man with a thrist for blood and the nightlife. Carol Lynley as Carl's girlfriend gayle lends a more humanistic side to Carl that we really didn't get to see in the sequel and subsequent follow up series.
The second feature the Night Strangler finds Carl who has since moved on from the bright lights of Vegas to the pacific northwest of Seattle where once again he is on the hunt for someone who is no longer cxonsidered human. Richard Anderson of The Six Million Dollar Man series stars as Dr. Richard Malcom/Dr. Malcom Richards and Darren McGavin really sinks his teeth into the role. For the price you cannot go wrong with this disc if you are fan of the paranormal shows, or the Night Stalker in general. The entire series is available for sale, and the quality is just as good as the first two movies. Carl moves on once again to Chicago and proceeds to chase down the monster of the week. Some reports read that it got tedious for the star and others report that more creative control was wanted by the actor. Either way, sadly the show only lasted one season but the memories will last a lifetime for me. Enjoy!!!

Average customer rating:

A good series that was canceled to early
a pleasant diversion into the surreal...
If only they hadn't called it Night Stalker
Is it too late to bring this show back?
don't bother!

Night Stalker - The Complete Series
Starring: Cotter Smith
Director: Tony Wharmby , and Daniel Sackheim
Manufacturer: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
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If Night Stalker had been given a chance to establish its own identity, this "reimagining" of the popular early '70s TV movies might have thrived. Instead, many viewers perceived the short-lived series as a thinly disguised X-Files spinoff, with former X-Files producer Frank Spotnitz apparently hired to recycle X-Files plots in a slightly different format. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since the series boasts superior production values and dark, sometimes violent horror plots as effectively creepy as anything seen on X-Files. But fans of the original (both TV movies and 1974 series) bristled at ABC's obvious youth-market makeover that turned Darren McGavin's original "Carl Kolchak" from a cynical, sarcastic middle-aged reporter on the fringes of journalism into a hip, handsome, Mustang-driving young reporter (played by Irish actor Stuart Townsend) who's literally marked for death in what was intended (if the series had survived) to be an epic battle of good vs. evil. By pairing Kolchak with an equally young, attractive, and skeptical colleague named Perri Reed (Gabrielle Union), the series struggled to find its place among such popular shows as Medium and the CSI juggernaut, and there just wasn't enough originality to keep viewers interested. Ratings plummeted after the pilot premiered on September 29, 2005, and of the ten episodes produced and included here, only six were broadcast before the show's inevitable cancellation.

As Spotnitz conceived it (with several X-Files veterans serving as directors or consulting producers), Night Stalker revolved around an epic "mythology" that would've emerged had the series continued. Spotnitz outlines these broader details in his smart, informative DVD commentaries, allowing viewers a greater appreciation of how the series was being planned. As it stands, the new Kolchak is striving to solve the violent, monstrous attack that killed his wife, and his ongoing investigations draw him deeper into supernatural events, mostly explored in episodes so similar to X-Files that you could easily exchange Kolchak and Reed for agents Mulder and Scully and barely notice the difference. From their high-rise offices at the Los Angeles Beacon (beautifully filmed in high-def digital video), Kolchak and Reed solve brutal murders, bizarre deaths, and other mysteries with the help of photographer Jain McManus (Eric Jungman) and editor Tony Vincenzo (Cotter Smith), while a cynical FBI agent (semi-regular cast member John Pyper-Ferguson) suspects Kolchak of killing his wealthy wife to inherit her estate. As these 10 episodes demonstrate, the hard-won trust between Kolchak and Reed would become the series' emotional anchor, with Townsend and Union establishing an appealing chemistry that served the series well.

Unfortunately, Night Stalker was doomed from the start. The series was cancelled in the midst of a two-part episode, leaving viewers with an unresolved cliffhanger and unanswered questions about the mysterious "four horsemen of the apocalypse" biker gang that's been a looming threat throughout these episodes. Thanks to Spotnitz's detailed commentaries and video interview included on this two-disc set (along with printable DVD-ROM scripts from unproduced episodes), these and other mysteries are tantalizingly explained, and these ten Night Stalker episodes stand as testament to a high-quality series that never had a chance to prove its long-term potential. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Carl Kolchak returns in a new series of spine-tingling adventures. Produced by the X-FILES' Frank Spotnitz and based on the original '70s suspense drama, NIGHT STALKER updates the chilling classic in a startling new way. "There's something stylishly scary at work here," says The New York Times. Caught up in an obsessive hunt for his own wife's murderer, Kolchak (Stuart Townsend) discovers that his imagination is no match for the evil that truly lurks in the dark. Paired with skeptic Perri Reed (Gabrielle Union), television's favorite crime reporter will stop at nothing to uncover the supernatural side of the night. Featuring four episodes never seen on TV that complete the series and a host of exclusive bonus material, this 2-disc DVD set is so good it's scary.

Customer Reviews:

A good series that was canceled to early.......2007-07-01

The Night Stalker was a very good series that was canceled before it could really reach its prime. It is a supernatural show similar in theme to the X-Files about a man searching for answers about his wife's murder. Most of the episodes are episodic with the main theme kind of tying them together.

Overall, the problems with the Night Stalker has to do with its untimely demise. The show didn't have time to resolve anything with the main theme. Another thing is that it doesn't really go into detail what allows some of the themes to occur. You just accept them at face value. This might have been a larger problem if the show hadn't been so enjoyable.

Overall, I would say that this is a very good show that was canceled to early. It would have been nice to have some things resolved.

a pleasant diversion into the surreal..........2007-05-24

definitely more palatable than the endless, tedious and unimaginative police dramas which saturate and nauseate primetime television...not to mention the complete capitulation of the networks toward reality programming...

This short-winded series casts a shadow all its own. It delivers genuine creepiness and chilling pyschological ruminations against dark, brooding sets. That it does'nt resemble the "McGavinish" seventies series is perhaps a good thing. And while this does'nt impugn the earlier series, the present should be judged on its own merits. Impressive.

If only they hadn't called it Night Stalker.......2007-05-11

This is actually a very good show for those who like Medium, Supernatural, American Gothic, etc. More serious than Supernatural, but not as ponderous as X-Files, the show has its own mythology that builds from episode to episode as we learn more about the characters and their pasts. That said, this show really has nothing to do with the original Kolchak. In the original, each show stood on its own with nothing to do with the other shows and Kolchak was deliberately unhip and alone. By calling this show the Night Stalker instead of just coming up with a new title, the show created too many expectations based on nostalgia which probably helped doom it. The DVDs are available very cheaply used, so if you have any interest in the above listed shows, you should give this a try and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Is it too late to bring this show back?.......2007-04-23

It's unfortunate when people cling to the classics without being open to interpretations by other artists. The 2005 Night Stalker series was definitely something fresh and new - having a different feel to it than most shows on television in that year. I was very sorry to see it canceled.

I was a die-hard fan of the X-Files series, but I don't agree with some of the other comments regarding Night Stalker's 'x-files feel.' I think the perceived similarities are purely superficial. The driving force behind the stories is quite different, as are the relationships between the main characters and the manner of filming. There are many levels of "dark," my friends.

I'm a fan of both Stuart Townsend and Gabrielle Union - I think they're both very talented (and unfortunately, underrated) actors. Casting is key, and they had good on-screen chemistry. This show had a lot of promise.

don't bother!.......2007-03-09

I bought this by mistake, thinking it was the original "Night Stalker" series which I remember watching as a kid and loving because of the characters, storylines, and general creepiness of the series. When I realized that Frank Spotnitz was the Executive Producer and writer for the "re-vision" (as it's been called on another website) I hoped this would make this series watchable. I also loved the "X Files" (of course--duh) and, while I knew this "Night Stalker" wouldn't be the "X-Files" I was hoping for similar writing, storylines, etc. I was hoping to be as engaged and kept-on-the-edge-of-my-seat as I was with most episodes of the "X Files" (save for those horrible years when Duchovny was absent from the series).

What a disappointment!

I stuck it out for 2 episodes before finally giving up. The storylines are contrived and not completely fleshed out. The acting is mediocre at best and the lead character essentially stumbles through the episodes I watched. The entire time I was thinking, "Geez, this is bad. I really could be doing something more interesting with my time--and money." I finally gave into these thoughts, popped the DVD out, and stuck the series in the pile of DVDs that I will be re-selling.

I can't really think of or offer anything that would make this even remotely watchable to people--unless you rarely watch TV series on DVDs, have time to waste, don't have any expectations of what you'll be experiencing, and have never seen either the original "Night Stalker" or "X Files."

Average customer rating:

this is the best of Tarkovsky's movies
masterpiece
Ponderous film-making at its best!
Tarkovksy's best film (along with Solaris)...
Stalker by Andrey Tarkovsky

Stalker: A Film by Andrei Tarkovsky
Starring: Aleksandr Kajdanovsky , Alisa Frejndlikh , Anatoli Solonitsyn , Nikolai Grinko , and Natasha Abramova
Director: Andrei Tarkovsky
Manufacturer: Kino Video
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Challenging, provocative, and ultimately rewarding, Andrei Tarkovsky's Stalker is a mind-bending experience that defies explanation. Like Tarkovsky's earlier and similarly enigmatic science fiction classic Solaris, this long, slow, meditative masterpiece demands patience and total attention; anyone accustomed to faster pacing is likely to abandon the nearly three-hour film before its first hour is over. On the other hand, those who approach Tarkovsky's work in a properly receptive (and wide awake) frame of mind are likely to appreciate the film's seductive depth of theme and hypnotic imagery. Set in what appears to be a post-apocalyptic future (although the time-frame is never specified), the eerie and unsettling story focuses on the title character, Stalker (Aleksandr Kajdanovsky), who leads characters known only as the Writer (Anatoli Solonitsyn) and the Scientist (or Professor, played by Nikolai Grinko) into a mysterious region called The Zone. Tarkovsky films their journey as a long odyssey, or religious pilgrimage, and center of The Zone--said to be under an alien influence--is where each of these men hopes to find a kind of personal transcendence. Despite obvious parallels to The Wizard of Oz, Tarkovsky's film is devoid of special effects or any fantastical elements typically associated with science fiction or fantasy. Instead, Stalker makes astonishing use of sound and bleak-but-beautiful imagery to envelope the viewer into the eerie atmosphere of The Zone and the dank, colorless landscape that surrounds it. And while the film's glacial pacing may be off-putting to some viewers, there's no denying that Stalker has a mesmerizing power of its own, including a thought-provoking and highly debatable ending that propels the film to a higher level of meaning and significance. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

this is the best of Tarkovsky's movies.......2007-06-17

This movie speaks in different ways to different people and even for the same viewer there are different levels of understanding the messages depending on how many times you've watched the movie or what other new spiritual experiences you may have had in between.

One can not simply like this movie, you either "worship" Tarkovsky for this creation or you consider it a boring piece of crap. This depends on the individual line of horizon.

masterpiece.......2007-05-25

Stalker is a rare movie experience. If you have seen other works from Tarkovsky then you will love this one. However if you are new to Tarkovsky then this may be a bit of a challenge. The film is long and slow - a bit like a dream. You have to concentrate throughout the movie and come to your own conclusions and interpretation at the end.

The story has been explained by other reviewers so I wont bother repeating what they have already said.

The acting and cinematography are faultless. Throughout the movie I felt as if I was on the journey to the "Zone" with the 3 main characters. So many of the images could stand alone as a photographic work of art.

The quality of the DVD is excellent reproducing the desired look that Tarkovsky wanted.

Sometimes I feel that "Stalker" is not a film - it feels more like a dream with a philosophical theme.

I am truly lost for words. Let me add that "Stalker" would be on my top 10 list of greatest films ever made and considering how many fine movies have been made over the years it is very high praise indeed.

In conclusion, if you are a mainstream movie goer and love films like Spiderman and Starwars then this film may not be for you. Rent the DVD if you can and at least see it once. You may be surprised at how much you like it.

Ponderous film-making at its best!.......2007-04-15

I read many rave reviews of this film and so bought it confident that I would enjoy the film. Admittedly I'm not a fanboy of Tarkovsky, but I had heard of the storyline of "Roadside Picnic" which this was inspired by and which has translated into a fabulous computer game (Stalker -- 2007). I was fully expecting something strange and perhaps slow, but had an otherwise open mind. The beginning of the movie is intriguing -- the Stalker and his companions plan to penetrate into the Zone past the military checkpoint. This they carry off at great risk to themselves. Finally clear of the military, they confront the Zone itself with all its dangers. They confront the first appearance of an anomaly in great trepidation. There is a glimpse of something unusual in the tall grass. All this should set the heart of players of the game Stalker racing, and without having read the book, I would imagine up to this point the movie is very faithful to the story.

Now had Tarkovsky continued in however minimal a fashion with this great opening, the film would have been stunning. But the highpoint of the film after this point -- or, excuse me, the highpoint of the action in the film -- would be an encounter with a real dog. The interim period up until the finale, which had its moments, consists of long looks at murky mud puddles and beautiful long pans of an ugly albeit colorful landscape. It's an internal film, all right, which is another way to say it is stupefyingly boring unless you're just fine with zero action. This was Tarkovsky's stated intention -- he knew the story and could have made a post apocalyptic film like so many others, but he wanted something different.

I'm sure I'm in the minority on this one -- otherwise why would so many wax poetic on the brilliance of this film? But from the perspective of one with a fairly high tolerance for oddity and slow spots, I must say this movie is worth a rental but a hard sell for a permanent spot in ones collection. I drifted in and out of conciousness trying to stay awake to see something interesting. Beautifully photographed and musically scored, this is a yawner of staggering eminence. Here's hoping someone will adapt the story with a bit of Tarkovsky's genius without his obsessions, which I'm afraid render the whole affair rather sterile.

Tarkovksy's best film (along with Solaris)..........2007-03-18

This film is as amazing as you have heard. It's arguably Tarkovsky's best film (and the last one he made completely under the auspices of the USSR), and a film that gets inside your head and your soul. The plot is rather simple. An alien force lands on Earth, and then leaves. The area where they landed is a vast wasteland where the laws of physics are suspended. It's been dubbed the zone (or 3OHA in Russian). A stalker (not the current definition), a writer, and a professor venture into the zone, where there is a room that will grant you your most inner wishes. Now, it's not what you ask for, it's what you really desire. The room reads into your soul. This is a very slow, cerebral movie (it wouldn't be a Tarkovsky movie otherwise), but it has to be seen many times to fully comprehend it. I love Stalker's "dream" sequence, which has one of the most amazing shots I've ever seen in cinema. The ending is really exceptional as well. I have seen Stalker at least 10 times, and I can see 10 more. It was a difficult shoot (Tarkovsky had to stop shooting because there was a defect in the film stock he was using. He had to reshoot from scratch, essentially), yet, it is Tarkovsky's greatest film along with Solaris and Andrei Rublev. When you watch it, make sure that you choose the original mono soundtrack. The DVD company, RUSCICO, remixed the soundtrack to 5.1 dolby, but they ADDED sound to the original film, including music during the ride to the zone (which originally only had dialogue and the sound of the trolley car). It was awful. They ended up reissuing the disc with both tracks after the outcry by Tarkovsky admirers.

Stalker by Andrey Tarkovsky.......2007-02-21

This is a one of a kind film. There is no special effects except artist's own canvas. The whole movie holds viewer in irrational state of suspense, and he doesn't even know why...

Average customer rating:

The Stalker 2
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PRETTY DECENT FAMILY HALLOWEEN FLICK
Family Halloween Film.
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Release Date: 2001-09-04

Amazon.com

A 12-year-old moves with his newly divorced father to Dad's hometown and confronts the usual bullies, town curses, and rampaging by the undead in this screen adaptation of the R.L. Stine juvenile novel of the same name. Danny's first introduction to Walker Falls is the police removal of his spooky door decorations because Halloween is forbidden in this All Hallows' Eve answer to Footloose. To make matters worse, his grandfather (the ever wacky Christopher Lloyd) dies in a pumpkin accident and comes back as a goofy zombie ready to help Danny and his new (girl)friend solve the town mystery. Packed with lots of gross-out zombie action and plenty of junior high humor, this PG-rated film contains mild horror scenes, but no naughty words and one innocent kiss. Fans of the book series should be satisfied with this 93-minute adaptation, which may even inspire some young viewers to pick up a book. (Ages 9 and older) --Kimberly Heinrichs

Description

Twelve-year-old Danny Walker is shocked to learn that the small Minnesota town he just moved to can't celebrate Halloween because of a local curse. With the help of his recently deceased (but still kicking) Uncle Fred, Danny must battle an army of prankster ghouls rising from the ground to break the curse once and for all - and bring back the magic of Halloween.

Customer Reviews:

Halloween Family Favorite.......2007-01-10

We first saw this movie on ABC Family. It's just enough of a scare for the entire family no matter the age. There's humor, too!

PRETTY DECENT FAMILY HALLOWEEN FLICK.......2004-10-23

This was orginally a TV movie which plays every year on the Family Channel. As family Halloween movies go it's pretty decent. Not so scary that very young ones cannot watch but good enough that adults will enjoy it as well.

The story was written or at least based on a story by R.L. Stine of Goosebumps fame and really plays like an extended episode of the old Goosebumps TV show.

A wonderful imaginative and fun Halloween story. Of course one must suspend belief for a while, but it is worth watching. Christopher Lloyd is his usual manic self, and brings life to what would be a typical zombie/monster movie without his energized performance.

When 12 year old Danny Walker moves to his Patriarchal home town in Minnesota he finds that the town does not celebrate Halloween, and things are not quite what they appear to be.

An enjoyable movie that may be destined to be a Halloween classic.

Family Halloween Film........2003-10-07

WHEN GOOD GHOULS GO BAD is a made for television movie, based upon a R.L. Stine story that first aired a few years ago on the Fox channel. The movie is narrated by and stars Christopher Lloyd as the patron of his small town. He has everyone call him Uncle Fred, including his own son and grandson and is a town legend. Uncle Fred used to own the chocolate factory that was the town's bread and butter. However, after a tragic accident involving a baking kiln that Uncle Fred had donated to the local high school, he shut the factory down and the town has been struggling ever since. However, with the accident at the school there also came a curse, that the town was to never celebrate Halloween again or else the young man who was baked alive would come back from the grave to destroy the town. Twenty years pass and Uncle Fred's son and grandson move back to town, wanting to celebrate Halloween. However, the townspeople won't have it. Then strange events start to happen and things go from strange to just plain bizarre.

WHEN GOOD GHOULS GO BAD is a good family Halloween movie to watch together. There isn't anything too scary and much of what could be frightening is tapered with a good sense of humor. The story is easy to follow and the acting is fairly well done for a made for tv flick. Christopher Lloyd is always a joy to watch and if for no other reason, this movie is worth watching for his performance. There aren't a whole lot of deep messages in the movie, though it does have a lot to say about the importance of family and staying connected (in more ways than one). Happy Halloween viewing.

Zombies keep coming out of the ground. YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!.......2002-01-30

Curtis Danko made a statue so scary that it can burn somone's eyes out! So nobody dares to look underneath it.

Good.......2001-11-13

Good fun Halloween movie takes place in a town where nobody celebrates Halloween, or even says the word Halloween because of a past tragety. The movie is about about a boys grandpa who dies after having a "Halloween" (getting hit on the head by a pumpkin) and comes back, as a good guy.

Average customer rating:

The Stalker
Starring: Tracy Ryan , and Tera Patrick
Manufacturer: Platinum Disc
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ASIN: B000BNX558
Release Date: 2005-10-04

Average customer rating:

thought provoking
Visionary work of art
A journey into the human soul.
A movie way behind your eye lids
"No one goes back the same way."

Stalker (1979) (2pc) (Sub)
Starring: Aleksandr Kajdanovsky , Alisa Frejndlikh , Anatoli Solonitsyn , Nikolai Grinko , and Natasha Abramova
Director: Andrei Tarkovsky
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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The Mirror
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Nostalghia

ASIN: B00006IUJ5
Release Date: 2002-10-15

Description

This science fiction milestone from director Andrei Tarkovsky (Solaris) takes you into the Zone, a mysterious, guarded realm containing a mystical Room in which occupants' secret dreams come true. Stalker, a man able to lead others to this holy grail, escorts a writer and a scientist through this foreboding territory and confronts several unexpected challenges along the way. Based on the novel "Roadside Picnic" by Russian sci-fi writers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky.

Customer Reviews:

thought provoking .......2007-01-05

the answer to life is still being searched for even though there is so little of it left.

Visionary work of art.......2006-09-26

Andrei Tarkovsky is one of cinema's great visionaries. But the visions that Tarkovsky explores are ones that lie dormant within us all. That he has chosen the science-fiction genre to explore these inner worlds and landscapes in "Stalker", only adds to the obtuse and challenging quality of the film. Like "Solaris" before it, this is a film devoid of special effects and devoid of the universal narrative concerns and themes which one associates with the genre, one could ask whether it is science-fiction at all. As one expects the patience of the narrative build up is quite demanding and instead of action set pieces, the main sequences of the film are derived through dialogue exchanges. The zone brings up all kinds of ethical concerns which are explored, but it's presence in the world as an Eden like space is its most important function. Just as the harsh, polluted and decaying modern Russia is sepia tinted, the zone is shot in lustrous colour, giving the greens of the vegetation an added lustre and vitality. This formal device to me works in an allegorical fashion. The Zone is a space separate from the corruption and tyranny of a dehumanising communist regime and as such its very existence is the ultimate wish fulfilment for the people. What it actually means and how it comes to be there, remain a mystery and one open entirely to subjectivity.

A journey into the human soul. .......2006-07-21

This film is not a film, it is more a long and deep journey into the landscape of the human soul. Certain moments are absolutely unbelievable and mindblowing. Do not expect any kind of plot or surprising ending; this is a different kind of filmmaking. It is more of an experiment of thought rather than an trying to tell a story. A must watch for anyone interested in spirituality.

A movie way behind your eye lids.......2006-07-04

Eerie, haunting music (deranged strings, melanchomanical flute, dark ambient) as a foreboding of imagery that consists of vast, weed-scattered plains filled with Trümmer, piles of dirt, ruins, litter. Gates that only seem to close and lock. High, rusty fences that only seem to be put there to keep people boldly out, and not savely in.
Degenerated panorama's and desolate scenes of scourched, withered remains of culture and society. Troubled pools of water with behind it a skyline of blackened factories and concrete buildings filled with hissing, steaming machines.
On and on. On and on.

Next... rundown houses, earth covering earth, puddles of black water and oozing mud. Houses without recognizable facades. Bars with stools you cannot easily sit on. Dank, hysterical poetry.
Outside soldiers march on, their backs crooked or even broken, burdend by the smog of unconceivable dreams.

Within the interiors of one of those many anonym bars, chilly, colourless shadows. They hide three faces. That of a scientist, that of a writer, and that of Stalker.
They look at each other. Not really being there. Not really loking at each other. More looking past one another, staring into some unknown empty, sun-ridden void.
They ponder, wander around in their own autistic minds. That they will soon enter "The Zone", a forbidden place beyond the vast desolate plains, is clear to them, but they are in no way arroused. No extasy, no emotion. Deadpan cries of Angst, of an omniscient feel of extensialim. Expanse-Schmerz.

Then, after the machine gun fire, the grunging engine of the jeep, the echoing of panic-arrousing footsteps, pieces of bricks plunging into the gazing, empty puddles of water, the mesmerising cadence of the trolley fills the screen. On and on. On and on. Silence creeps in.
Enter the wastelands.

This is "The Zone". A zone that is both history, fiction and enigma.
This is the forbidden world of Stalker.
Be a witness to both lurking fears, unseen extasy, cinematic idiosyncracies, waterfilled dreams and, in the closing shot, a small but sparkling miracle.
Let Stalker guide you through all this, and through all the hidden murderous traps and be astound. Be bewildered. Be anything more than you was before.

Then... closing credits. Close your eyes. Close your mind. Close a movie that transcends any genre or description. A movie that is almost an unidentifiable Zone in itself: it has and entrance, but no real exit.
Watch it once, and you'll watch it forever...
And ever...
And ever...

"No one goes back the same way.".......2006-05-14

I just finished watching Stalker for the fourth time over a period of three years, and I am now just a little bit closer to that sense that I "know" the film, but at the same time realize I will never understand it in all of its complexity. But I will certainly always appreciate and embrace it for the great achievement that it is. Stalker is unquestionably one of my favorite films of all time, and it's its mystery, its slowness, and intellect that make it such. Tarkovsky was truly a genius, not only evident by this film, but also by the many others he directed, including Nostalghia and Solaris.

There is so much in this film. It's about Christianity, Existentialism, Spiritualism, and Annihilism. It's a bone to the destitute and a slap in the face to the greedy. It's a challenge to examine and continuously reexamine one's existence.

"And if there wasn't any grief, our lives wouldn't be better, they'd be worse. Because then there'd be no happiness either. And no hope."

This is not the easiest film to watch because it moves very, very slowly. The pace is the total antithesis to current American filmmaking. At its best, it's hypnotic, and pausing the film several times to reengage might be necessary. But the journey, paralleling the one to the Zone, is ultimately well worth it. Highly recommended.

Average customer rating:

Manhunt: Search for the Night Stalker
Starring: Gerry Bamman , Julie Carmen , James J. Casino , Eddie Castrodad , and Ed Corbett
Director: Bruce Seth Green
Manufacturer: Direct Source Label
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ASIN: B000KQF71G
Release Date: 2006-12-26

Average customer rating:

A must see
Night Stalker a must watch- Excellent
X Files Fan, this was First
Does not age gracefully
A 70s Cult Classic!!!

The Night Stalker/The Night Strangler
Starring: Darren McGavin , Carol Lynley , Simon Oakland , Ralph Meeker , and Claude Akins
Director: John Llewellyn Moxey , and Dan Curtis
Manufacturer: Anchor Bay
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ASIN: 6305095450
Release Date: 1998-08-05

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

A must see.......2007-06-17

This movie stands up to current films. The acting is good. The make up is not cheesy. Just a good film.

Night Stalker a must watch- Excellent.......2007-04-11

Watched the night stalker when i was a kid, so it bought back some great tv moments. Such a great watch with drama,action and of course many laughs with Darren McGavin. An absolute must watch.

X Files Fan, this was First.......2007-02-08

Does not age gracefully.......2007-02-07

A 70s Cult Classic!!!.......2007-02-06

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