- Format: PAL
- Language English
- Subtitles: English
- Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Number of discs: 1
- Classification: 18
- Studio: Anchor Bay
- DVD Release Date: 23 Oct 2006
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B000GQMM18
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 29,636 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
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Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
Jody is the kind of guy that every 1970s teen looked up to. He's in his early 20s, has a cool car, splendid 1970s hair, a leather jacket, plays guitar and (naturally) snags all the girls. His little brother, Mike, in particular, admires him and emulates him at every turn. Things start to go astray, however, when the two brothers and their friend Reggie attend a funeral for a friend. Mike notices a tall man working at the funeral home; in the course of his snooping, he sees the tall man put a loaded coffin into the back of a hearse as easily as if it was a shoebox. Jody doesn't believe his little brother's stories, though, until he brings home the tall man's severed finger, still wriggling in what appears to be French's mustard. From there, the film picks up a terrific momentum that doesn't let up until the sequel-ripe twist ending.
Phantasm was one of the first horror movies to break the unspoken rule that victims were supposed to scream, fall down and cower until they were killed. Instead, Mike and Jody are resourceful and smart, aggressively pursuing the evil inside the funeral home with a shotgun and Colt pistol. Furthermore, the script has a great deal of character development, especially in the relationship between the two brothers. The film even has a surprisingly glossy look, despite its low-budget origins, and little outright gore (except for the infamous steel spheres that drill into victims' heads). This drive-in favourite was a big success at the time of its release, and spawned three sequels. Little wonder; it includes an inventive story, likeable characters, a runaway pace and, of course, evil dwarves cloaked in Army blankets. The end result is one of the better horror films of the late 1970s. Hot-rod fans take note: Jody drives a Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda, the pinnacle of 1960s muscle cars, rounding out his status as a Cool Guy. --Jerry Renshaw
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
An absolute feast for fans of this franchise. You get all four films plus a bonus disc with a juicy feature length documentary and some other good stuff.
The films are all in great picture quality and with new 5.1/DTS mixes. They all have commentaries, their trailer and biographies/photo galleries.
Really the only negative thing I could say is that the censored footage from number two is still missing, as well as the additional/deleted scenes. If the people who sold a bootleg set some years ago could get a hand on the work print, why no one from Anchor Bay. But that's just quibbling, you will not get better versions of these films, with better extras or in better quality.
The films themselves are of course the classic first one which really is a very unique film, even for a 70s underground horror film, number two is a great horror-actioner, number three an illadvised tour into zombie-comedy and number four sort of a metatext on the whole Phantasm universe.
In this set, even the subpar third film is acceptable and the very underrated fourth part caps the series with a perfect ending, at least for me personally.
The films are all in great picture quality and with new 5.1/DTS mixes. They all have commentaries, their trailer and biographies/photo galleries.
Really the only negative thing I could say is that the censored footage from number two is still missing, as well as the additional/deleted scenes. If the people who sold a bootleg set some years ago could get a hand on the work print, why no one from Anchor Bay. But that's just quibbling, you will not get better versions of these films, with better extras or in better quality.
The films themselves are of course the classic first one which really is a very unique film, even for a 70s underground horror film, number two is a great horror-actioner, number three an illadvised tour into zombie-comedy and number four sort of a metatext on the whole Phantasm universe.
In this set, even the subpar third film is acceptable and the very underrated fourth part caps the series with a perfect ending, at least for me personally.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
even though shot on a modest budget phantasm is a masterpiece by don coscorelli .the stars of this franchise of movies are "the tall man "
"flying silver spheres" & those little nasty dwarves from hell " or maybe not! but theres plenty of one liners to take the edge off the bleakness.
but for value this boxed of five discs,phantasm,phantasm ii,phantasm iii
phantasm iv oblivion &bonus you get a lot for your money.if you buy the sphere with the same ammount of discs expect to pay more,but its worth
it! basically when you watch the films you make up your own mind "is jodie dead?" "was phantasm all a dream in mikes head?" have a look theres
plenty of blood for gorehounds .incidentally,ive got the boxed set & the
sphere set ,ah but then im a phan !
"flying silver spheres" & those little nasty dwarves from hell " or maybe not! but theres plenty of one liners to take the edge off the bleakness.
but for value this boxed of five discs,phantasm,phantasm ii,phantasm iii
phantasm iv oblivion &bonus you get a lot for your money.if you buy the sphere with the same ammount of discs expect to pay more,but its worth
it! basically when you watch the films you make up your own mind "is jodie dead?" "was phantasm all a dream in mikes head?" have a look theres
plenty of blood for gorehounds .incidentally,ive got the boxed set & the
sphere set ,ah but then im a phan !
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
Phantasm rates as one of the better lower budget horrors of the latter 70s.Released at the tail end of 1978, Phantasm has now gone on to acheive cult status within the horror movie fraternity.The story revolves around two orphaned brothers who happen to live near a cemetry, where all manner of sinister occurrences have become common place. Events begin to take an ominous twist for the brothers when a close friend meets a mysterious demise.During the funeral, the younger brother notices a giant undertaker known simply as the Tall Man,played to great effect by Angus Scrimm, single handedly lifting a casket and loading it into the back of his hearst and driving away.In true horror film style, the curiosity of the boy gets the better of him and decides to investigate-oh dear.As expected, his meddling opens up a can of worms he wished he hadn't.Within the cemetry, all manner of ghoulish events await those who dare to enter. Resurected corpses, blood thirsty hooded dwarves reign terror, and perhaps one the most memorable forces of evil being a metal ball with protruding spikes which flies through the air mercilessly pursueing its prey before draining the victims of their blood.Phantasm has spawned a number of sequels, although being credible films in their own right, none can ever equal the masterful original, which even by todays standards over twenty years on remains a true testament of classic horror movie making. Aside from the excellent story, spine chilling moments and a truly fantastic nemesis in the shape and form of Angus Scrimm, who lends a great deal of presence to the role as the maniacal undertaker,is in my opinion among one of the best on screen foes the horror genre has seen, the film's soundtrack score is also worthy of praise.All in all, Phantasm has the lot. Oh, I haven't even mentioned the ending, well I wouldn't want to give to much away, but its a great finale-one which leave your nerve endings shot. Phantasm truly is a classic of its time, when you consider the film's limited budget and distribution via a small independent production company-it has certainly stood the test of time. So be prepared for a rollercoaster ride of thrills and moments to make you cringe in the dark.Beware of the tall man.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Variations on a theme
Old school fantastic-horror of the 'is this all a nightmare?' narrative playground. The first has low budget, no, i mean proper low budget not the modern equivalent, late seventies... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Zaroff
Not fantastic but...
I hadn't seen this for more than 25 years, so to watch the DVD on a big widescreen TV was a real treat. Read more
Published 2 months ago by S J Buck
I cannot for the life of me work out how this is regarded as a classic...
A young boy and his brother attempt to solve the mystery of the strange "Tall Man" and his strange collection of shiny silver death balls in Don Coscarelli's 1979 horror Phantasm. Read more
Published 5 months ago by UndeadCritic
Phantasm
Good scary fun from the '70's - spooky old undertakers - graveyards - zombie dwarfs - alien technology - ice cream vans - dimension portals - what more could you ask for?!
Published 13 months ago by Mrs. Margaret H. Morris
He's Not Even Tall!
I really don't know where the other reviewers are coming from because I found this film pretty chronic, it's poorly scripted, poorly acted and completely illogical, it literally... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Duluoz Lautrec
PHANTASTIC DVD BOX SET
Just bought this dvd box set ,its a great looking set - the slipcase has a lenticular / holographic picture of THE TALL MAN complete with flying spiked sphere on the front cover ,... Read more
Published on 24 Jan 2010 by XANDER
PHANTASM
ABSOLUTLY BRILLANT.........
I HAVE ALL OF THE FILMS IN THE SERIES
IN MY TOP 20 BEST EVER FILMS........
ITS ACLASSIC, I'VE WATCHED IT NEARLY 20 TIMES
ANDY D
I HAVE ALL OF THE FILMS IN THE SERIES
IN MY TOP 20 BEST EVER FILMS........
ITS ACLASSIC, I'VE WATCHED IT NEARLY 20 TIMES
ANDY D
Published on 10 April 2009 by K. A. Healey
GREAT HORROR/SCI-FI
The PHANTASM series is one of the best horror series ever made. Far above your average Freddy/Jason slasher films, this series has a story, characters you do care for and an eerie... Read more
Published on 12 Nov 2008 by Sick-o
PHANTASM: A cult classic!
This is a brilliant boxset. All films are presented on exciting dvds, with fancy menus, the best being the first where you follow phantasm spheres flying around, and the picture... Read more
Published on 30 Sep 2008 by charlie steeds
GREAT HORROR/SCI-FI
The PHANTASM series is one of the best horror series ever made. Far above your average Freddy/Jason slasher films, this series has a story, characters you do care for and an eerie... Read more
Published on 10 July 2008 by Sick-o
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