Forbidden Zone

Fantoma | minutes | | | Standard DVD reviewed by: Fusion3600

In the basement of the Hercules house, a mysterious door leads into a world unlike any other, a realm known as The Sixth Dimension. Frenchy (Marie-Pascale Elfman) learns of this door from her brother Flash (Phil Gordon), who tells her about his classmate Squeezit (Matthew Bright). Squeezit has a twin brother Renee (also Bright), who dresses like a girl and during a party, wandered into The Sixth Dimension. No one has heard from her yet, though Squeezit is convinced he has achieved astral projection with Renee. Frenchy wants to explore this forbidden zone, but her father warns her not to and even sings a cautionary song to drive home his point. Even so, when Frenchy is bored with school, she returns home to sneak a peek into The Sixth Dimension. But an accident sends her full on through the portal and soon enough, she has ventured into the forbidden zone. There she meets all kinds of strange characters, but is soon tossed into prison, when King Fausto (Herve Villechaize) becomes enamored with her. This enrages Queen Doris (Susan Tyrell), who wants to knock off Frenchy the first chance she gets. When Flash learns that Frenchy has gone into the forbidden zone, he and Grandpa are forced to rescue her. But can anyone survive the madness of The Sixth Dimension, let alone escape?

This is one of those movies that just has it all. If you're even a remote fan of cult cinema, then you have to own Forbidden Zone. Not just see, just own this movie, as you cannot sustain yourself on just one session. No, you'll need to watch this film time and again, in order to soak it all in and be able to appreciate its madness. Richard Elfman directs, Danny Elfman scores and offers a wild performance as Satan, then you add in The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, who play numerous roles within the flick. But then you have cult actress Susan Tyrell (Cry-Baby, Flesh & Blood), Fantasy Island star Herve Villechaize, and in a small role, the incomparable Joe Spinell (Cruising, Maniac). So the cast is impressive, the music is out of this world, and if you're tired of the same old cinema, this movie has more insanity than a mental institution. A frog dressed as a butler, a topless princess, one bizarre classroom, and The Kipper Kids, all rolled into one motion picture, plus an endless parade of other oddities. Even with all the random, out of control elements thrown together, Forbidden Zone is smooth and enjoyable. The jokes work, even the ones that weren't intentional, so you'll be laughing from start to finish. I cannot recommend this movie enough, as Forbidden Zone is an awesome flick and Fantoma's disc is terrific.

Forbidden Zone is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. I've seen a tape of this film given to me by director Richard Elfman, which looked decent, but was rough around the edges, as should be expected. But this new restored edition from Fantoma is incredible, with an image level that has to surpass even the original elements. The print is pristine, with only unavoidable grain present and no real debris to mention. This lets the visuals really come through, since grain is light and never weights down the visuals. The depth is impressive, with a lot more detail than I ever expected and a refined presence that is just superb. I never expected Forbidden Zone to look this good, not even close, so Fantoma deserves immense praise.

A new Dolby Digital 5.1 option has also been included, but I had some doubts, as I wasn't sure how much surround sound could enhance this material. I was dead wrong however, as the audio is much more refined and effective than ever before. Scenes that had a flat audio presence before now have a richer texture, thanks to some subtle touches. The speakers will not shatter the windows, but there is a lot more life in the audio here than expected. I heard noises I'd never heard before, while muffled moments and harshness have been eliminated. The audio is crystal clear from top to bottom, above and beyond what we could have asked for in this case. This disc also includes optional English subtitles.

Richard Elfman is joined by writer & star Matthew Bright in a terrific audio commentary session, which shouldn't be missed. The two have a lot of fun with the track, talking about the stars and the trials & tribulations of the production. A great track that never fails to entertain or inform, if only all sessions were this solid. An all new featurette is hosted by Elfman and features interviews with numerous cast and crew members. In addition, the piece has some nice clips of The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, which is an excellent inclusion. A Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation of the isolated musical score is also available, as well as the music video for Oingo Boingo's Private Life, two scenes from The Hercules Family, a selection of outtakes and deleted scenes, and the film's theatrical trailer.