THE ‘BURBS Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review

[froodle]

Joe Dante’s 1989 film The ’Burbs was released with marginal success and a poor critical response, but when I saw it as a young lad, I completely fell in love with it. Growing up in the suburbs myself, I knew what it was like to have the creepy house in the neighborhood and have one’s mind go wild with the possibility of nightmarish things going on within its walls. The perfect blend of comedy and light horror is something Dante had perfected by this film, and the endlessly quotable dialogue kept my friends and I laughing for years after first watching.

Since then, I try to watch The ’Burbs at least once every couple of years, and to date it’s at the top of my rewatch list, just above Rear Window, a film that helped provide inspiration for The ’Burbs. Thankfully, others share my love for this film, and a cult following has emerged, resulting in a few solid home releases – but none better than Shout! Factory’s latest Collector’s Edition Blu-ray.

Sporting a new 2k transfer, Dante’s classic has never looked, or sounded better, providing a crisp picture that – although somewhat indistinguishable from the last Blu-ray release, which just happened in 2016 – has improved quality.

The real reason I picked this version up, aside from the other bonus content I’ll highlight momentarily, is that it includes the original workprint version of the film from Joe Dante’s archives. This is something I’ve read about in the past (and Dante himself has held screenings of it), but I never saw it before this release.

Although the quality is decidedly a bit rough, and the editing isn’t as polished, it features a slew of extended and deleted scenes, some of which slightly change the dynamic of the narrative. There’s also an alternate ending, one of at least three that were shot for the film that are similar, yet it doesn’t pack the same punch as the theatrical version. For fans, this is the main reason to pick up this Collector’s Edition.

On the 2016 version, the bonus content was pretty sparse, only featuring an alternate ending and the trailers, but this new edition comes packed with lots of great extras, including new interviews with Joe Dante and other cast and crew members (no Tom Hanks or Bruce Dern sadly), a making-of featurette, still galleries and an alternate ending. The case cover is also reversible, featuring the original poster on the opposite side (something I love when companies do), which I immediately swapped out.

There’s an audio commentary track on the disc featuring writer Dana Olsen, which is nice, but it’s also a bummer that Joe Dante is not featured in it. The extended interview with him sort of makes up for it, but it still would have been nice.

As of now, this is the definitive version of one of my favorite films of all time and another quality release from Shout! Factory’s Shout Select series. I’m so glad that this film is finally getting the recognition it deserves.