Hardware (2-Disc Limited Edition)
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Average customer review:Product Description
REMASTERED IN STUNNING HIGH DEFINITION
FROM ORIGINAL VAULT MATERIALS!
It was the movie that stunned audiences, shocked the MPAA and marked the debut of one of the most uncompromising filmmakers in modern horror. Golden Globe® winner Dylan McDermott (The Practice, Dark Blue) stars as a post-apocalyptic scavenger who brings home a battered cyborg skull for his metal-sculptor girlfriend. But this steel scrap contains the brain of the M.A.R.K. 13, the military's most ferocious bio-mechancial combat droid. It is cunning, cruel, and knows how to reassemble itself. Tonight, it is reborn...and no flesh shall be spared. Stacey Travis (GHOSTWORLD) co-stars - along with appearances by Iggy Pop, Lemmy of Motörhead and music by Ministry and Public Image Ltd. - in the kick-ass sci-fi thriller from Richard Stanley (DUST DEVIL) that Fangoria calls "gritty, trippy and frightnening...HARDWARE is one of the best horror movies you've never seen!"
Totally Uncut, Uncensored and On DVD For The First Time Ever!
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #5295 in DVD
- Released on: 2009-10-13
- Rating: Unrated
- Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
- Formats: Color, Dolby, DVD, Limited Edition, NTSC, Special Edition, Widescreen
- Original language: English
- Number of discs: 2
- Running time: 93 minutes
Editorial Reviews
Review
The Best Sci-Fi Horror Film Of The Year! --Fangoria
Customer Reviews
This is what you want... and THIS is what you get.
Nineteen years ago I remember going to see a little film called Hardware and I remember HATING it because I felt deceived by the trailers that shamefully advertised this film as The Terminator meets The Road Warrior which being a huge fan of both of those classic sci-fi films was precisely what I was expecting to see. What I got, and was completely unprepared for, was a pornographic visual nightmare filled with gratuitous violence and an incoherent plot about some killer Terminator-esque combat droid found in the sands of a post-apocalyptic wasteland that's transformed into an industrial art sculpture by some hot chick and I remember wanting to walk out of the theater but felt compelled to at least get my (then) six bucks worth before leaving the theater offended and I never looked back... until now.
A few years later I picked up the Hardware soundtrack because I remembered it was the most memorable part of the film. I loved Simon Boswell's haunting electronic score and the unforgettable Public Image Limited song the Order of Death which echoes in your head with "This Is What You Want...This Is What You Get" lyrics ironically summarizing my initial reaction to the film perfectly. Around that time I happened to catch Richard Stanley's following film Dust Devil - The Final Cut which I really enjoyed with it's great visuals and also featuring a terrific Simon Boswell score.
When I saw that Hardware was released on Blu-ray I decided to give it another look. It's amazing how the quality of blu-ray makes you revisit many films that you may not have otherwise particularly liked watching the first time around but I remembered the striking post-apocalyptic visuals and 80's industrial music video style and having appreciated Richard Stanley's succeeding films I knew he was a director with vision and made me decide to give it another chance. Upon watching it I had remembered the exact moment that made me want to get up and leave the theater when Jill's perverted neighbor played by William Hootkins (yes that's Porkins from Star Wars) starts singing the "wiberly-woberly walk" and I still find his character repugnant but that's really the whole point. Stanley is intentionally creating a dissonant atmosphere showing the deconstruction of culture precipitated by dependency on technology, intrusive surveillance and the pervasiveness of mass media and invasion of privacy.
Watching it now I can appreciate the film's socio-political undertones such as population control and the realization that this film was actually a few years ahead of its time anticipating the post-modern industrial motifs of Ministry. To the film's credit, Richard Stanley's stylized vision is what sets Hardware apart from the formulaic commercialized mainstream blockbusters of today and somehow manages not to date itself too much and remains a completely unique independent film unlike anything I've really seen since.
Richard Stanley discusses his ideas behind the intended "Hardware 2: Ground Zero" script on the supplemental features that was written at the time of the first film but was never made due to legalities between studios that has prevented him from fully realizing his concept on a grander scale. I actually found myself interested in seeing what Hardware 2 might look like made today with the latest advancements in special effects technology that would enable Richard to open up the canvas and let his ideas spill out onto the screen. Watching the interview you can see that Stanley is a very intelligent and articulated artist who knows what he is talking about and has a precise understanding and vision for his craft. There's also an excellent hour-long documentary "No Flesh Shall Be Spared" produced exclusively for the blu-ray that features all new interviews that will make you appreciate the film and the complications of working with visual effects pre-CGI along with deleted scenes, a German theatrical trailer and some of Stanley's short films including "Incidents In An Expanding Universe" the Super 8 genesis of Hardware.
Hardware is definitely not a film for everyone and if you you are looking for accessible sci-fi-/horror that's easy to swallow you won't get it here. On the surface Hardware is a visceral nightmare whose disturbing and offensive imagery is conveying ideas and themes far more complex than the average mainstream audiences are simply willing or capable of grasping and most will find it a struggle to interpret the lines between self-indulgent art and purely cinematic entertainment.
"This is what you want... and this is what you get."
Excellent film! Great transfer and amazing extras!
I've been waiting ages for this film to come out on dvd, since I only got to see it once on vhs. It was well worth the wait. The hi-def film transfer is amazing and really does justice to this high art, sci fi, horror film. What is even more amazing is the bonus disc. It is chock full of interesting interviews with the cast and crew which provide amazing insight about the making of and releasing of the film as well as the aftermath of trying to obtain the rights to release it on dvd. It also has a separate 8-minute interview with Richard Stanley regarding Hardware II, which never got made. It also has three short films by Richard Stanley. All in all, it's a wonderful little box set and is well worth the $20 to have in your collection. A film that was way ahead of its time finally released on dvd in its uncut glory for all to enjoy!
A Great Blu-Ray Transfer!
I have been a fan of this movie from the first time I watched it years back. if your into sci-fi this movie will score high for you. The movie transfer to Hi-Def....I watched this movie via Blu-Ray in 1080i Video & 5.1 Audio,the visuals are outstanding for a older film just a few minor film blemishes in the start of the film but nothing to scream about. The audio was tight & separation was flawless. Bottom line, A great transfer..A must have for any sci-fi movie buff.




