Synapse Films: Titles Coming Soon!

As I recall Suspiria steelbook was on Amazon.com for something like $79.99

 

The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue review + screenshot comparisons: http://www.mondo-digital.com/letsleeping.html

Pretty nice improvement...

 

That looks real nice. You can see so much more detail in those caps. You can tell the old ones were also DNR'd and they just look murky by comparison.

 

Yeah, even on release, I wasn't impressed by the old BD transfer. It was better than the DVD, but the DNR was annoying.
Glad we finally got a proper remaster now.

 

I'm curious to revisit the film now that it actually looks good lol.

 

I've been seeing Suspiria UHD going out of stock most everywhere and I'm getting a little paranoid Synapse won't reprint it as they're telling people Ultra HD doesn't sell well enough for them to do their next releases in UHD so I've decided now or never and can justify it as assuring myself a slipcover (for something like Suspiria I do like to have it).

I found the cheapest was on eBay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Suspiria-4...w-4k-Transfer-Argento-All-Region/303385729526

Which turned out to be from CAV directly when the digital transaction completed so that worked out well enough.

 

Synapse can be weird about giving straight forward answers to things too. I wonder if they could clarify?

I know on Facebook recently someone said they couldn't wait for LEMORA and they replied saying there's no plans for that one. I asked how that was the case since they showed us they were working on it in the past and never got an answer.

 

Same if you ask about plans for a regular release of a pricey steel book... “not at this time”

 

I sorta hate Synapse’s steelbook method of releasing movies then dropping all the extras when they release a standard edition. I feel like they’d probably sell more copies if they just put stuff out in standard cases with extras like most boutique labels do.

I dunno maybe it’s just me, but I’ve never been a steelbook guy.

That Suspiria UHD is a stunner though, so if it is going OOP I suggest snagging a copy while you still can. One of their best releases hands down.

~Matt

 

That I can understand more because they want to trick people into getting the Steelbook, as there's usually always been a standard release later.
Still, it makes me like them a little less as a company when they can't be more straight forward to people's queries and this silly business model of high priced Steelbook's first.

 

I have the steel, but you guys have convinced me to pick up the 4K as well, especially since I upgraded my system recently.

 

So I need to hang onto the steel...?

 

I think the Demons movies might be the only ones where they dropped the extras? Most of the others are the same disc(s) as the steelbook.

 

More bad news from Synapse. I believe they've given up on Creature from Black Lake because they couldn't find the elements for it, and they recently said that their search for the 35 mm foreign cut of Chorakhe / Giant Crocodile came up empty. I was really looking forward to both of those and would very much prefer and imperfect presentation with print damage to no release at all. Lemora: A Child's tale of the Supernatural is one of my favourite titles in the Synapse catalogue, and it's a bitter disappointment to have them tease us with a release and then, with no explanation whatsoever, read that there are no plans for a release. I appreciate the work that Synapse puts into their technical presentations, but their release pace is frustrating, and I dread the thought of them having the rights or materials to titles they might never get around to doing.

On a positive note, those screengrabs from their release of The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue look absolutely stunning!

 

With the exception of CD-soundtracks, have there been any steelbook-exclusive extras since Demons and Demons 2?

 

If anyone would know you would Z. I don't think Synapse has excised extras since the Demons for the very simple reason that it costs time and money to make a new disc sans extras. So it's somewhat self defeating when trying to ring out a few extra bucks. But it's funny how that original sin lives on.

I'm pretty befuddled by the whole Lemora situation. Originally they said the DVD didn't sell well enough to warrant HD (which I could believe). Then out of the blue they announce it in the works leading one to believe it was imminent... Then almost exactly FIVE silent years later they say "no plans" which is a "wha?!?" I was really looking forward to that. Hopefully they mean there's no date on the calendar but those words aren't promising. Rumor mill is already at work saying the rights owner wants too much money now and this has left Synapse's grasp. If Synapse really did lose the rights before finishing their Blu-ray I hope that's a wake up call to them. "Real artists ship!"

Glad I didn't sell my Lemora DVD last October. And I think I'll hang on to my Deadly Spawn disc now too.

 

Got the Synapse Living Dead at Manchester Morgue steelbook today and just watched it, looks fantastic.

I hadn't watched it since getting the old Anchor bay DVD tin box set about 20 years ago so it was almost like seeing it for the first time. OK, so it's not the upgrade that Suspiria got from its remastering as the original film elements here are a bit soft and grainy in comparison, but this must be the definitive transfer and I can't imagine it ever looking any better.

Soundtrack great as well, remixed in 5.1 and there was even some good surround and subwoofer action at appropriate moments. (Which really just makes me even more annoyed about their Tenebrae release being mono only, but that's another story!).

Movie itself is better than I remember it being too. Definitely recommend this release even if you've never seen the movie before, although maybe waiting for a cheaper single disc version would be the way to go if you're not sure about it.

 

I have to say I'm confused about this company, I appreciate they do great prints but there release schedule is poor and I know they have said that it takes time.

OK, answer me this. We can all agree Vinegar syndrome prints are great, yes? Well how come they can get 3 to 4 releases out a month and synapse can't do that in a year? The companies are around the same size and the prints from what I've seen are on a par.

 

Synapse only has 2 employees and they do the remastering, direct sales, conventions, everything. Vinegar Syndrome has at least 6, I think.

 

Still, even with the extra people they are getting monthly release out. Synapse seems to have a few a year if we're lucky.