Lord Of Illusions

It is a Clive barker classic the sort of movie if he had more time and energy I think he would make more of those sorts of movies maybe his fans are ready for them more now than when it was made.

Buyers ought to be aware that the information on the packaging for this Blu-ray contains a lot of errors, and that (according to IMDB.com) there have been three different runtime versions of this film. They list 109 minute for the theatrical release, 119 minutes for a "director's cut" and also a 121 minute "unrated director's cut". On the back cover of the 1998 "Unrated Director's Cut" (MGM, Region 1, 24fps prog scan, 121 minutes), the first item listed under "Special Features" is: <"Contains footage not seen in theatres or as part of the "Director's Cut">This Blu-ray is definitely the 109 minute "theatrical release" - and it is not likely to be the "definitive" high definition version for long. On 14th February 2014 Clive Barker made the following announcement on his Facebook page (which was later confirmed by USA distributor Scream Factory who anticipate a mid-2014 release of a definitive collectors edition): "The other movie of mine that Shout is preparing a definitive new edition of (I've just seen the art-work for the DVD. It's superb ) is indeed LORD OF ILLUSIONS, as many of you have already guessed. The edition will have both cuts of the film, interviews, analysis, a profile of D'Amour traced through all his literary and cinematic journeys and Nix knows what else...It's going to be a whole new vision of D'Amour's world, all the way up to, and including, THE SCARLET GOSPELS. My love to you all, Clive Barker"I own the 121 minute 1998 "unrated director's cut" DVD so I've been able to compare it to the Blu-ray edition and make a confident positive recommendation for the quality of the Blu-ray. The 101 Films Blu-ray is brighter and has significantly greater detail - however after closely comparing the two in "A-B" fashion on my PC, I'm suspecting that the darkness of the DVD was might have been an intended element of the style of the film - and that the brightness of the Blu-ray edition might be due to the clever new high definition transfer technology (Clive Barker would know).The Blu-ray is AVC encoded 1920x1080 24p, letterboxed slightly to the original film aspect of 1.85:1 and with 48kHz 16 bit PCM stereo audio - whereas the 1998 "Unrated Director's Cut" edition is 720x480 24p anamorphic 1.77:1 (no letterboxing) with a choice of three audio tracks: Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, Dolby Digital 5.1 surround for the isolated music track, and Dolby Digital 1.0 for Clive Barker's commentary.I was surprised that there was only the Blu-ray disc, in a single disc case, even though the cover states that it ought to contain a second disc - the "Director's Cut DVD". Amazon UK lists a "101 Films" DVD version as a separate item. The Blu-ray cover also claims that the film is just 87 minutes (when it's really 109) and that it is in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, when the only soundtrack is PCM stereo (only).I will be hanging on to my 1998 "Unrated Director's Cut" NTSC anamorphic widescreen DVD for all the extras that you do not get with this Blu-ray - the three above-mentioned audio options, an 8 page booklet, 32 chapters (about 4 times as many as the Blu-ray) and for the 12 minutes of extra material which does significantly contribute to the story.If you loved the experience of Lord Of Illusions in the cinema, then you will love this 2014 101 Films Blu-ray edition. If you want all the extras though, you will have to buy the "unrated director's cut" edition DVD - or wait till mid-2014 and see what the "Scream Factory" USA collectors edition Blu-ray has to offer.

Clive Barker is one of today's most revered and respected writers of Horror and has written some amazing screen plays of his own novels which have translated wonderfully to the big and small screens respectively. The cast are not Hollywood "A Lister's" but performances are excellent all around. "Lord of Illusion" is a story that talks about the hidden world of Magic, Demons, Gods and the transcendence of the human condition. The story is strong, the roles well acted and the special effects believable. The characters are so well written and their interactions are rich and complex. From the first few moments of the film you invest in the characters and their foibles and are drawn into the complex tapestry of unfolding events. This is not a film for the faint hearted or children as there are moments of violence, gore and spiritual darkness that can have a negative and lasting effect on sensitive viewers. To truly enjoy Clive Barker's work you need an open mind and a deep love for the Supernatural and Horror film genres. Once again, if you are of a sensitive mind set and are easily offended by irreligious and heretical content then this film is not for you. If however the dark side of the universe floats your boat then this is the perfect film for you. Buy this DVD and be thrilled by a truly dark story.

The blue-ray arrived safely using sufficient packaging. The case is in an excellent condition and was sealed. Waiting for a fellow Clive Barker fan to be able to get to my house so we can see the director's cut together for the first time in a night of Clive Barker films - Hellraiser, Nightbreed and then after stuffing ourselves with beer and popcorn for a few hours, Lord of illusion. I have been waiting years to see the director's cut of this film since I first heard of it. Loved the old version and still not pleased that the film company's seemed to have set out to kill this film and Barker's career; we could have had several films in this series and Nightbreed if he had been allowed the success due to him.

A supernatural thriller with elements of horror. Scott Bakula seems to have had this role written for him and Daniel van Bargen is flaming excellent as the antagonist of this flick.

I have owned lots of versions of Lord Of Illusions. From the U.S VHS release, the sweet LaserDisc version, obvious DVD version and now this beautiful, definitive release Blu Ray from Scream Factory. Any horror fantasy fan capable of playing Region A discs needs to own it! It's got the director's cut in 1080p, which the U.K release has not. Commentary by the master, Clive Barker. The old featurette; "A Gathering of Magic". Over an hour of original behind the scenes footage. A new interview with storyboard artist Martin Mercer which is more interesting than I thought it would be! 15 minutes photo gallery. It might not sound like much but it's all very informative for any fan.I do prefer the director's cut over the theatrical, it is just more fleshed out. More interactions between characters and more of a sense of how Harry finds himself in this situation. I can't spoil it for people who haven't seen it because it's an interesting journey to follow but I do highly recommend it for any genre or Barker fan. I personally prefer it to Hellraiser, I think because it's more polished.

Prefer the book

Daniel von Bargen plays a stellar performance.

Der Film ist klasse ! Spannung, Action und Aufregend! So ist es mir ergangen !

Quel plaisir de retrouver Clive Barker en director's cut. Un film incroyable, des personnages mémorables dans un scénario où Harry D'amour a le rôle principal. Merci Clive pour ton travail. Un film merveilleux et sombre.

This is a great movie I like all of clive barker's film's all a must buy.thank's guys. Merry Christmas. To all

Un unico consiglio, guardatelo in lingua originale magari con i sottotitoli attivati, il doppiaggio orginale è cento volte superiore.Philip Swann è considerato il più grande illusionista del mondo. Tuttavia pochi sanno che in realtà nei suoi spettacoli non utilizza dei trucchi, bensì vera magia. I suoi poteri derivano da una devastante esperienza di dodici anni prima, quando aveva cercato di cogliere l'autentica percezione della realtà da Caspar Quaid, un uomo con poteri ed abilità demoniache. Per costringere Swann a essere il suo braccio destro nella distruzione del mondo, Quaidd rapisce una ragazzina, Dorothea, e nelle vicende che portarono alla sua liberazione, Swann sembra esser riuscito a uccidere e sigillare l'anima di Quaid. Tuttavia, dodici anni dopo questi eventi, alcuni seguaci di Quaid iniziano a compiere dei massacri e si mettono alla ricerca di Swann, ora marito di Dorothea. Per impedire il risveglio del vecchio mentore, Swann inscena la sua morte. La cosa insospettisce Dorothea, all'oscuro dei piani del marito, e decide di ingaggiare il detective Harry D'Amour (perseguitato da visioni demoniache) per far luce sugli eventi. Fonte, Wikipedia -> [...]