Chopping Mall (Vestron Video Collector’s Series) [Blu-Ray]

Director: Jim Wynorski

Cast: Kelli Maroney, Tony O’Dell, Russell Todd

Release Date: September 27, 2016

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Disc Rating: 9/10

Synopsis:

Teenagers trapped in a high-tech mall overnight must find a way out before three malfunctioning security robots destroy them in ‘Chopping Mall’.

The wonderfully 80’s cult classic ‘Chopping Mall’ arrives home in glorious high definition as the first entry in the new lineup of Vestron Video Collector’s Series Limited Edition Blu-ray releases. ‘Chopping Mall’ follows a group of teenagers who have everything set and planned for a wild night filled with drinking and debauchery set to take place after hours in the local mall where the majority are employed. Yet as the alcohol flows and the teens begin to get wild, they soon realize there was one thing they hadn’t planned on; the new robotic mall security patrol units that following a freak electrical storm have gone on a murderous rampage killing everyone in their path. Initially released in 1986 and directed by Jim Wynorski (The Return of Swamp Thing, 976-Evil II), ‘Chopping Mall’ is a bloody, often hilarious and just plain fun cult classic from the 80’s that still delivers the gory goods after all these years.

‘Chopping Mall’ makes its Blu-ray debut as the first entry in the Vestron Video Collector’s Series lineup, released alongside fellow 80’s cult classic ‘Blood Diner’ (keep your eyes peeled for our review of this title shortly as well) and ‘Chopping Mall’ finally arrives with a fairly impressive overall Blu-ray release. The release delivers gorgeous high definition video and audio presentations on the film, along with a collection of great extras such as multiple audio commentary tracks and much more, many of the extras specifically created for this release (more detailed information regarding the bonus content can be found in the special features section of the technical specification coverage below). Most fans of this enjoyably silly little film will likely want to make sure to grab a copy of this solid new ‘Chopping Mall’ Blu-ray release to add to your collection, likely to display next to some of these additional Vestron Blu-ray releases, many of which are sure to be must own releases themselves. The only real deterrent for fans of ‘Chopping Mall’ and these other Vestron classics arriving on Blu-ray is likely to be the notably high pricing of the releases.

Overall, fans of the wonderfully fun and goofy bloodbath that is ‘Chopping Mall’ will almost surely want to make sure to grab a copy of the Vestron Video Collector’s Series Limited Edition Blu-ray release of the film. The gorgeous high definition video and audio presentations combined with all of the great extras (not to mention the fact it’s available on Blu-ray at all) should make this one a definite must own for many of the film’s fans. I also urge fellow genre fans that may not have previously had the pleasure of this humorous, gory and just outright fun little 80’s film to make sure and give it a shot should the opportunity present itself.

VIDEO:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Chopping Mall’ features a full 1080p High Definition presentation utilizing a 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks pretty wonderful as a whole, providing a sharp and detailed presentation that looks gorgeous, yet still retains a number of source artifacts including some pops, burns and some notable grain which only helps to contribute to the authenticity of its source material and provide a faithful digitally restored presentation that looks better than ever. Overall, this is a fantastic high definition video presentation that should easily please most fans of this goofy cult classic.

AUDIO:

The Blu-ray release features a lossless Monaural 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. This lossless presentation of the film’s Original Monaural Soundtrack sounds outstanding for what it is and provides a clean, smooth and faithful audio presentation from start to finish that captures the sound effects and dialogue beautifully while still managing to retain that cheesy and familiar 1980’s quality, and never suffering any noticeable faults throughout. Overall, this is a solid 2.0 DTS-HD MA Monaural soundtrack that delivers in every way necessary and shouldn’t disappoint.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Chopping Mall’ includes a healthy collection of worthwhile extras, including a number of bonus goodies created specifically for this Blu-ray release. Included on the release are ‘3 Audio Commentary’ tracks; the first with ‘Director/Co-Writer Jim Wynorski, Actress Kelli Maroney, and Co-Writer/2nd Unit Director Steve Mitchell’, the second with ‘Historians/Authors Nathaniel Thompson (Mondo Video) and Ryan Turek (Shock Till You Drop)’, and the third and final track with ‘Director/Co-Writer Jim Wynorski and Co-Writer/ 2^nd Unit Director Steve Mitchell’. Also included are an ‘Isolated Score Track by Chuck Cirino’ and a collection of Behind the Scenes Featurettes including interviews/comments with the cast and crew and more. The included Featurettes are: ‘Back To the Mall’ (running approximately 26 minutes in length), ‘Chopping Chopping Mall’ (running approximately 8 minutes), ‘Talkin’ About the Killbots’ (approximately 12 minutes), ‘Scoring Chopping Mall! An Interview with Composer Chuck Cirino’ (11 minutes), ‘The Lost Scene’ (3 minutes), ‘Army of One’ (6 minutes), ‘The Robot Speaks! Ten Questions with the Killbot’ (2 minutes), and ‘Chopping Mall: Creating the Killbots’ (16 minutes). The ‘Trailer’ for the film is also included (1 minute).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray and resized. They additionally will suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on this Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

Disc Rating: 9/10

‘Chopping Mall’ Arrives on Blu-ray September 27, 2016 As Part Of The Limited- Edition Vestron Video Collector’s Series from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.

Purchase your copy today by clicking on the Amazon cart Icon immediately below!