The Dead Next Door: 2K restoration of zombie cult classic shambles to retail as 2-disc collector’s edition
’90s horror imprint Tempe Entertainment today announced the launch of its Blu-ray label Tempe Digital with the September 26th release of the cult 1990 independent zombie shocker The Dead Next Door. Priced at $29.95 SRP, this 2-Disc Collector’s Edition includes the same Blu-ray from the company’s limited (and now out of print) 3-Disc Ultimate Edition, along with an all-new DVD featuring a collectable slipcover and three new bonus features.
Two-and-a-half decades before The Walking Dead made zombies mainstream on cable television, 19-year-old writer/director J.R. Bookwalter (Ozone, Witchouse 2: Blood Coven) embarked on The Dead Next Door, an ambitious horror feature pitting an elite team of Zombie Squad soldiers against hoards of the undead and the secretive religious cult hell-bent on protecting them. The film would ultimately take four years to complete with the help of a now-famous Hollywood director and more than 1,500 Northeast Ohio residents, who portrayed the multitudes of bloodthirsty ghouls.
For this 2-Disc Collector’s Edition release, brand-new 4:3 and 16:9 1080p HD masters have been painstakingly created from a 2K restoration using the original Super-8mm film elements. Also included is a 5.1 surround mix which restores the voices of the original cast members for the first time ever, vintage and newly-prepared bonus materials, and much more. The DVD includes a 4:3 standard-definition presentation of the restored feature plus a candid audio commentary by the director recorded in 2001, which was previously only available on long out-of-print international releases.
The second disc also features an all-new 2017 interview with actor Scott Spiegel (director of cult favorites Intruder and From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money), as well as a 1999 tour of several locations where the film was shot. Rounding out the Collector’s Edition is a beautiful slipcover featuring newly-commissioned artwork, which will only be available with the first pressing of 1,000 units.
The Dead Next Door 2-Disc Collector’s Edition Blu-ray + DVD will be available everywhere on September 26, 2017 at $29.95 SRP, with retail distribution from MVD. Check it out here!