Contamination
The Eggs Factor
Release Date: OUT NOW!
1980 | 15 | Dual- format Blu- ray & DVD Director: Luigi Cozzi Cast: Ian McCulloch, Louise Marleau, Marino Mase, Siegfried Rauch, Gisela Hahn
Back in the ’ 80s Contamination was an official video nasty, yet here it is available with a 15 certificate. Okay, so it’s had that since 2004, but no wonder: aside from a few exploding people there’s not much in it to warrant “nasty” status – nor that much of interest otherwise.
The inspired- by- Alien plot has extra- terrestrial eggs arriving on Earth, in a cargo ship that drifts into New York harbour, its crew dead and mutilated. Survivors star Ian McCulloch investigates, but before he meets the “Alien Cyclops” responsible we suffer a very saggy middle section in which not much happens in a foreign hotel. Dialogue is dire, the general plot’s pretty dopey and those combustion special effects are more likely to raise titters than gasps nowadays.
One for nasties completists, who this swanky Blu- ray is probably aimed at anyway.
Extras: More than it deserves: a commentary by Fangoria editor Chris Alexander; an archive makingof documentary ( 23 minutes); a 2014 Q& A with director Luigi Cozzi and star Ian McCulloch ( 42 minutes); a featurette on Contamination’s music, with Goblin keyboardist Maurizio Guarini ( 12 minutes); a new interview with the director ( 43 minutes); a featurette on Italian genre movies that cashed in on Hollywood blockbusters ( 18 minutes); a graphic novel based on the original screenplay; plus the theatrical trailer and a booklet.