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[tab title="Movie Review"]
Because the gangster of love don’t need no fried chicken!
Starring Snoop Dogg and Pam Grier, director Ernest Dickerson’s Bones is an incredibly tight updated take on blaxploitation flicks by way of horror. The mashing of genres works to create a film that has gone on to earn a sizable cult following thanks to its haunted tale of a hustler returning to the city streets for the big payback.
Okay, so Snoop Dogg as Jimmy Bones isn’t the greatest of villains, but he has a slinky way which makes him fairly damn scary. This is good because this film’s supporting cast - including Khalil Kain as Patrick, Bianca Lawson as Cynthia, Ricky Harris as Eddie Mack, Clifton Powell as Jeremiah Peet, Katharine Isabelle as Tia, and Michael T. Weiss as Lupovich - doubles-down on the nuttiness thanks to their constantly dumb decisions when confronted with Bones’ vengeful spirit. {googleads}
You see, during the 1970s, Jimmy Bones kept the drugs out of his local community. He was a great protector of African-American families, yet he was killed and buried in the basement of one of his buildings and the neighborhood went to Hell. Rumors circulated about his partners and a corrupt cop being responsible for his death, but no one could prove it. Twenty two years later, thanks to the discovery of his bones by a group of young adults eager to turn his property into a club, he returns for his revenge . . . and he doesn’t care who he hurts.
And it all starts with the discovery of a wild, red-eyed dog who can eat a pound of raw hamburger in seconds flat. Bones is a solid flick that takes its horror to heart and creates a film that is as over-the-top as it is ruthless. 
But, honestly, without the involvement of Grier (who looks amazing as always), Dickerson, and cinematographer Flavio Labiano then this film would not have the staying power that it does. Their collective smarts elevate the thinly scripted material and help build a bridge between the sleek urban nightmare that is Bones and the gothic-heavy bloodletting work of Mario Bava. There is a connective thread here and it hinges on the urban atmosphere leaning toward the European, thanks to the skeleton looking building that was once the burial ground for Jimmy Bones and some of the camera work which capitalizes on the practical effects.
Scream Factory presents Bones with a brand-new 4K transfer, capitalizing on the film’s urban and run-down locations. Fans of the movie will enjoy the bold colors and inky blood-runs that constantly drip throughout the horror film. It’s a great way to see this film, especially with its class commentary as the ghetto youth of the past now have middle class kids that their hero is hunting down in this brave new horror story.
Roll the bones! Jimmy Bones is back in action!
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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - March 31, 2020
Screen Formats: 2.39:1
Subtitles: English SDH
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; single disc
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
The time is 1979. Jimmy Bones (Snoop Dogg, Training Day) is respected and loved as the neighborhood protector. When he is betrayed and brutally murdered by a corrupt cop (Michael T. Weiss, The Pretender), Bones' elegant brownstone becomes his tomb. Twenty-two years later, the neighborhood has become a ghetto and his home a Gothic ruin. Four teens renovate it as an afterhours nightclub, unknowingly releasing Jimmy's tortured spirit. It's thrills and chills when Jimmy's ghost sets out to get his revenge.
Video:
Presented by Scream Factory, the release houses a pretty clean and crisp 1080p transfer. Texture and fine detail – note the dried hairspray on the follicles – are both present and colors are properly saturated. The gore is excessively thick and the make-up work is of a darkly precise matter. There’s little CGI so the effects are mostly practical and thankfully have a clear definition in the darkness of the building..
Audio:
The DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 track pounds out the beats and the bloodletting as hip-hop and horror are mixed together.
Supplements:
Commentary:
- Snoop Dogg, Ernest Dickerson, and Adam Simon provide the film’s feature-length commentary.
Special Features:
- Bones comes loaded with a new 4K transfer and lots of NEW interviews from the filmmakers.
- NEW 4K Scan From The Negative
- NEW Building Bones – An Interview With Director Ernest Dickerson
- NEW Bringing Out The Dead – An Interview With Co-screenwriter Adam Simon
- NEW Urban Underworld – An Interview With Director Of Photography Flavio Labiano
- NEW Blood N Bones – An Interview With Special Makeup Effects Artist Tony Gardner
- Audio Commentary With Actor Snoop Dogg, Ernest Dickerson, And Adam Simon
- Digging Up Bones
- Urban Gothic: Bones And It’s Influences
- Deleted Scenes With Optional Director’s Commentary
- Dogg Named Snoop Music Video
- Theatrical Press Kit With Behind-The-Scenes Footage
- Teaser Trailer
- Theatrical Trailer
Blu-ray Rating:
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[tab title="Film Details"]
MPAA Rating: R for violence/gore, language, sexuality and drugs.
Runtime: 96 mins
Director: Ernest R. Dickerson
Writer: Adam Simon, Tim Metcalfe
Cast: Snoop Dogg, Pam Grier, Michael T. Weiss
Genre: Horror
Tagline: This Dogg's got a bone to pick.
Memorable Movie Quote: "What's the matter, bro? You spooked?"
Theatrical Distributor: New Line Cinema
Official Site:
Release Date: October 24, 2001
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: March 31, 2020.
Synopsis: The time is 1979. Jimmy Bones (Snoop Dogg, Training Day) is respected and loved as the neighborhood protector. When he is betrayed and brutally murdered by a corrupt cop (Michael T. Weiss, The Pretender), Bones' elegant brownstone becomes his tomb. Twenty-two years later, the neighborhood has become a ghetto and his home a Gothic ruin. Four teens renovate it as an afterhours nightclub, unknowingly releasing Jimmy's tortured spirit. It's thrills and chills when Jimmy's ghost sets out to get his revenge.
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[tab title="Art"]
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