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Blu-Ray : Highly Recommended
Ranking:
Sale Price: $11.95 Last Price: $ Buy now! 3rd Party 10.75 In Stock
Release Date: October 9th, 2012 Movie Release Year: 2012

Holliston: The Complete First Season

Overview -

Two down and out aspiring filmmakers struggle with life, career, and the opposite sex as they attempt to make it out of the small New England town they are trapped in and into the big time.

OVERALL:
Highly Recommended
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Video Resolution/Codec:
1080p / MPEG-4 AVC
Length:
223
Aspect Ratio(s):
1.78:1
Audio Formats:
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles/Captions:
None
Special Features:
Sneak Peek TV Special
Release Date:
October 9th, 2012

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

I'm thankful Adam Green ('Hatchet'/'Frozen') and Joe Lynch ('Wrong Turn 2: Dead End') got to make their TV series, 'Holliston' the way they wanted to make it. A few years ago, a certain network bought the show, but wanted to make it very family friendly, taking all of the good ideas away. Thus, it was put on hold for the foreseeable future. This gave some time for both Green and Lynch to break out in to the horror film genre, where they succeeded.

Then, the good folks over at FEARnet heard about the series, and finally let Green and Lynch have full control of their show and they set out to make the first season of 'Holliston' just the way they wanted. It was so successful, the network has ordered a second season, which they're currently filming.

Adam Green writers, directs, and stars as a less successful version of himself. His real life best bud, Joe Lynch, is also along for the ride. The pair live in an apartment that would make any horror movie fan giddy. It's chock full of horror movie memorabilia, toys, and posters. It seems like that's all they spend their little money on, because the never pay rent or their bills.

They earn their money by making cheap late night television commercials at a local network station, where their boss, Lance Rockett (Dee Snider from Twisted Sister) gives them advice. Green and Lynch are joined by Laura (Laura Ortiz), who is Lynch's girlfriend, a ditzy artist with a passion for painting gruesome canvases. Then there is Green's ex-girlfriend Corri (Corri English), who, no matter how many times she says otherwise, Green insists he will win back. And lastly, we have Green's imaginary friend who lives in his closet, the demon we all come to love, Oderus Urungus, the frontman from the band, GWAR, who plays himself, complete with all of the prosthetics and thong.

The overall plot of the show follows Green and Lynch trying to make a horror film called 'Shinpads', a film about a zombie soccer team. However, their stomachs were bigger than their eyes and cannot raise enough money to make the film. However, they decide to fully produce a trailer to pitch to investors.

'Holliston' is a mix of 'Seinfeld,' 'Friends,' and 'Evil Dead 2.' There is a plethora of exploding heads, blood, vomit, and other bodily secretions. One episode involved Green and Lynch lying in the same bathtub, because they got sprayed by a skunk. That bathtub soon becomes filled with their own vomit and blood, while their girlfriends are out buying douches. It doesn't get any better than that, does it? There are tons of cameos too. Some include Tony Todd, Bill Moseley, Kane Hodder, and Seth Green.

'Holliston' is a very fun and bizarre show. There is nothing else like it on television. If you're a fan of horror, gore, and sitcoms, then 'Holliston' is the perfect recipe,one that will leave you wanting more.

Video Review

Ranking:

'Holliston' comes with a glorious 1080p HD transfer and 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The series is filmed like a multi-camera sitcom. Here they used red cameras, where everything is bright and colorful. The scenes at their apartment and the television studio look very good. You can make out every toy and poster. The detail is crisp where you can make out lines in people's faces and the meaty chunks of food in the vomit.

The blacks are deep in most scenes. Colors have plenty of pop, from the blood in Green and Lynch's apartment, to Lance Rockett's colorful spandex rock outfits. I did not notice any video noise, halos, aliasing, or artifacts. For this being filmed like a multi-camera sitcom, it looks phenomenal.

Audio Review

Ranking:

'Holliston' sports a lossless DTS-HD 5.1 audio mix, which sounds great. Yes, it has the sitcom vibe to it, so nothing is too involved. The laugh track is actually funny, as it just seems odd to have one on this type of show, which was entirely created and not real. The dialogue is crisp and clear without any cracks or hissing.

I did enjoy how the surround speakers were utilized way more than a normal sitcom. This being a horror sitcom, there are big surprises and bangs, which will cause a full use out of your speakers. The theme and music are never over played and fit in nicely with the dialogue. Every thing was perfectly mixed to balance out a nice sound of horror and comedy.

Special Features

Ranking:
  • Cast Commentaries - Green, Lynch, Ortiz, and English provide fun commentaries on every episode of this six episode first season. Green and Lynch do most of the talking, but English and Ortiz provide a lot of funny moments. This is a must listen, as it is hilariously fun, with on set anecdotes and a treasure trove of information about making the show. You can tell they had a lot of fun with this.
  • The Road To 'Holliston' Featurettes (HD, 19 mins) -Here is a set of little featurettes including The Pitch: Green and Lynch act out a funny skit and talk about how I imagine most of their pitch meetings went for this show.
  • Corri English Audition: English pretends that she is meeting Green for the first time with Green being in character. All sorts of awkwardness happens here as Green gets creepy. Pretty funny.
  • Network Notes: A very funny look at what 'Holliston' might have been if it was a family friendly show and was not under the creative control of Green and Lynch.
  • Oderus Urungus Screen Test: This proves why Urungus got the role and how amazing he is.
  • Dee Snider Make-Up Test: A few different makeup-tests done on Snider to perfect his aging rock star look.
  • On Set with Laura Ortiz: Ortiz shows us what she is like on set, or does she?
  • Deleted Scenes (HD, 14 mins) -Every scene is introduced here by Ortiz and Green. Here are three scenes which include an alternate ending and alternate opening to a couple of episodes. In addition, one of my favorite scenes, which is aone unedited camera shot where each cast member passes chewed gum from one another. Great stuff.
  • Behind the Scenes Featurettes (HD, 29 mins) -Here are a few different featurettes that talk about the making of the series including the history of the show, the cast, the art direction the costumes and makeup, the cameos, and a few insights on some of the grosser and funnier scenes. One of them is of the bathtub scene I mentioned above, which is worth the price of this blu-ray alone.
  • Blooper Reel (HD, 6mins) A very funny blooper reel is shown here. I actually watched it twice, it was so funny.
  • Sneak Peek TV Special (HD, 20mins) Here is a sneak pee FEARnet aired in advance of the series premiere to bolster excitement.

'Holliston' is a great new series. The horror references are great, and the cameos are plentiful and amazing. The audio and video are top notch, and the extras were surprisingly entertaining. I can't wait for the 2nd season to premiere next year. If you're a fan of horror movies, I highly recommend 'Holliston.' You might just lose your head watching it.