In 1985 The Return Of The Living Dead successfully mixed gore and laughs to create a horrific cult classic movie. In 1987 a poorly received sequel followed, aptly titled The Return of the Living Dead 2. Six years later would see the third (and final?) installment in this series in the form of director Brian Yuzna's Return of the Living Dead 3. The first strike against Trimark's release of Return of the Living Dead 3 is that this is not the uncut version, but the 97-minute R-rated version. This is likely to disappoint fans, though the fact that they're receiving an anamorphic widescreen version of the film should make amends. The picture looks better than expected, with colors vibrant and flesh tones looking very solid. There is some grain and dirt present on the print, but this is to be expected of a film with such a limited budget. Though certainly not reference quality, Return of the Living Dead 3 looks about as good as it's going to get. Audio is less than impressive, with a Dolby Digital Surround 2.0 track performing only slightly above par. Although the effects and music are mixed well, dialogue sometimes sounded slightly strained. Once again this is forgiven since the budget on the film was around the price of a Happy Meal. Also included are Spanish, English, and French subtitles. Return of the Living Dead 3 includes some surprisingly well-produced extra features. Two commentary tracks are included, the first with director Brian Yuzna. This track includes information on how the sequel came to be and how the effects were done, and although a bit dry, this is a very informative and entertaining commentary for fans of the series. The second commentary track is by actress Mindy Clarke and special effects supervisor Tom Rainone. This track leans a bit more to the lighter side than the first track. Both participants seemed to enjoy their experiences on the film, and every once in a while get a good laugh out of the goings-on in the movie. Also included is a trailer for Return of the Living Dead 3, plus a few other Trimark home video titles. Brought back to life on DVD, Return of the Living Dead 3 will make a worthy addition to any true horror fan's film collection.

Despite Anchor Bay's dwindling reputation following the Opera fiasco and some major color timing problems with their much-touted 25th Anniversary Edition of Halloween, fans awaiting a definitive version of George A. Romero's third entry into the Living Dead trilogy may be slightly irritated to learn that Anchor Bay apparently has still not worked out the bugs in their DVD mastering system. And though on the surface this disc appears to be flawless in terms of both video and audio presentation, some of the original dialogue has unfortunately been replaced with an alternate dub that plays down much of the film's shocking profanity. Fortunately, Anchor Bay has seen fit to pack this disc with some truly irresistible extras. The film itself, presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and processed using the relatively new Divimax procedure, is in pristine condition with colors well balanced and solid blacks well represented in the film's endless underground corridors. Likewise, the DTS ES and Dolby Digital EX soundtracks make impressive use of the film's audio with faraway moans and the sounds of dripping water underground literally placing the viewer in the claustrophobic underground compound in which the protagonists struggle to survive. The newly remastered image, combined with the amazing use of audio, really brings new life to the film and is a major improvement over Anchor Bay's previous release of this title. As impressive as the presentation of the film itself is, it's the extras that truly bring this disc to life. A commentary track featuring Romero, producer David Ball, special effects artists Tom Savini and Greg Nicotero, production designer Cletus Anderson, assistant director Chris Romero, and actors Lori Cardille, Joe Pilato, and Howard Sherman may not be as technically insightful as one would hope, but it is nice to hear many key contributors reunited and reminiscing about the trying production. Likewise, a commentary track by writer/director and all-around Day of the Dead fanatic Roger Avery is entertaining for a few juicy bits of background, but it ultimately takes the back seat to the commentary of those who were there firsthand.

MGM has done cult movie fans a favor by plucking this comedy drama from oblivion with a solid albeit no-frills DVD. Long out of print in any format due to music clearance issues, The Last American Virgin is restored in all its kitschy glory on this disc. The anamorphically enhanced transfer faithfully renders the candy-colored visual style of Adam Greenberg's cinematography and the DVD further benefits from a nice surround-stereo mix. Fans of The Last American Virgin should also note that this disc fully retains all the classic early '80s pop hits that originally appeared in the film, all of which are used to powerful effect in the sound mix. Elsewhere, this edition of The Last American Virgin is skimpy on extras but does serve up a funny, briskly-edited trailer that amusingly trumpets the film's hit-laden soundtrack over its cast. All in all, this disc of The Last American Virgin is reasonably priced way for 1980s film fans to get their nostalgia fix.