The Gate [Blu-ray]

I've seen this film at least a dozen times since I was a child. Of course it creeped me out far more back then than it does now, but it is an honorable mention in the collection of horror films I've seen, for a multitude of reasons.1. Despite its corniness, its villains are creative. When I compare this 80's classic to more modern horror, say Drag Me to Hell, the saving grace of The Gate is that we can see how disturbing and grotesque the demons actually are. A lot of modern "demon" movies (which have grown tired and stale over the years) don't use as many special creature effects, and that, to me, does them a huge disservice, because it's truly one of the things that kept The Gate so entertaining over the years.2. It's cheesiness doesn't feel forced. It feels more like a "so bad, it's good" situation. I think they tried their best with The Gate, and its corniness was a product of its times.3. It's hilariously nonsensical. Normally I'd consider this a huge downside to any film, but somehow the confusion in this movie almost benefits it. You leave the film with so many questions and never any answers... which is kind of how I'd feel if there really was a gate to Hell in my backyard, come to think of it.4. The creature effects were on point. It always makes me miss the monster movies of the eighties, where the villains actually looked and behaved terrifyingly. Horror films are so focused on jump scares today because they assume actual creatures won't scare anyone, and I think the blame lies on indie B monster movies released straight to video. Hollywood... monster movies need a comeback. A Quiet Place was a good start, maybe move on from there.5. Nostalgia. It always brings me back to my adolescence.The Gate is a corny, silly film... but somehow it's one I never forgot, unlike a lot of the trash I see nowadays.

I have had the blu ray since 2017 so I dont know why im only just reviewing it here now.... The Gate is a childs horror film of the 80s, well i grew up on it anyway... Ive always appreciated its weird atmosphere and it has always stayed with me complemented by a score that stands out. The composers main theme stays within me and makes me think about my life and childhood pretty much like Jerry Goldmiths Psycho 2 main theme... Sometime you cant imagine a film without its soundtrack but the gate is a well made tidy little horror that deserves every bit of cult attention it gets.. perfect example of how horrors aint made like anymore, comparing horrora to then and now.... some 80s horrors didnt have the budgets, that was fine cause the 80s supplied the rest. Then horrors in last 20 years, all repetitive "jump scares" with no good atmophere nor score. The gate blu ray is a 10/10 and the film is an amazing trip to how boys was in the 80s...

Absolutely love this movie packaging product receive AB bill through the mail absolutely wonderful.

This is a fun 80s supernatural horror movie - with a young Stephen Dorff. Great time!

The Gate [Blu-ray]This is the first Vestron Video Collector's Series release I've bought. It's Lionsgate, and they must be trying to cash in on the Vestron Video copyright. As it turns out, the disc is far better than the package, and though this is annoying, it's what really matters.Packaging:At first look, it's pretty disappointing. A glossy O-Ring with rectangular hole in the back for the barcode. For some reason, that barcode wasn't good enough, because they put a barcode sticker over it which caused tearing in the cheap, glossy O-Ring when I removed it. Then, finally getting the damn thing open, I found the cheap RECYCLE blu-ray case with all of the holes cut in it. This basically says "disposable" to me, not "Collector's Series". Collectors keep their movies and discs, they don't want them exposed to dust and moisture, and they don't recycle the cases. For a Collector's Series blu-ray, why is the packaging so cheap? I replaced the disposable case with a more solid blu-ray case that I bought, which shouldn't be necessary! The cover art is original though, and a cool image it is.The Disc:Before this, I only had the Platinum Disc Corporation DVD release; this Lionsgate blu-ray is excellent in comparison. For starters, the 16:9 presentation is a definite upgrade and it looks nice, though I'm not any professional when it comes to grading HD transfers. On my 40" 720p Plasma screen, it looks good.Special Features are abundant. Many featurettes focusing on different aspects of the movie. Multiple commentaries, trailers and galleries pretty much round it out. Though no really entertaining features that everyone must see, there's a lot of information and some promotional materials included here. This is far more than I've read of the previous Lionsgate DVD.Is this worth the upgrade? For the Special Features and likely picture quality upgrade from the previous DVD, I'd say it depends on what you want. From my old Platinum DVD, it's no contest. It's a great blu-ray. I just wish they'd have done a better job packaging it. For the retail price of $40, I expect not only this level of quality in a disc or even better, but also packaging along the lines of what Arrow Video or The Criterion Collection releases. It should be a collector's item beginning to end.