Dario Argento's PHENOMENA Gets A 4K Limited Edition Release!

From THE GREAT BRITISH BAKE OFF to a 4K release: It's a big week for Argento's buggy murder mystery.

By Angel Melanson · @HorrorGirlProbs · November 26, 2021, 2:29 PM EST
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As if we weren't excited enough for the recent appearance of Noel Fielding's fantastic Phenomena shirt on The Great British Bake Off, we also woke up to news of an upcoming Phenomena 4K limited edition set from Arrow and Synapse Films.

Dario Argento's Phenomena stars Jennifer Connelly as Jennifer Corvino, studying abroad at a private Swiss academy. It's Argento, after all which means there's a killer on the loose, but luckily Jennifer discovers she can communicate with bugs. With the help of Donald Pleasence's Dr. John McGregor and his trusty chimpanzee caretaker, Jennifer's telepathic bug powers are unleashed and used to hunt the killer. It's absolutely wild, with a killer soundtrack including frequent Argento collaborators Goblin, along with Motörhead, Iron Maiden, Andi Sex Gang, Bill Wyman and Simon Boswell.

Also starring Dalila Di Lazarro (Andy Warhol’s Frankenstein), Daria Nicolodi (Tenebrae), Patrick Bauchau (Clear and Present Danger) and Fiore Argento (Demons). The two-disc limited set includes tons of special features, including the 116 minute Italian cut. Check out the full list of features below.

4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:

New 4K restorations of all three versions of Phenomena, including the original Italian version (116 mins.), the International cut (100 mins.), and the U.S. “Creepers” cut (83 mins.) ∙ 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray™ presentations in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) 

Limited edition slipcase packaging designed by artist Wes Benscoter 

Reversible sleeve artwork 

Collector’s booklet featuring liner notes from Mikel J. Koven, Rachael Nisbet and Leonard Jacobs 

Fold-out poster

A set of lobby card reproduction artcards

DISC 1 (4K ULTRA-HD BLU-RAY) – ITALIAN VERSION

Lossless Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo soundtracks, derived from the original 4-channel Dolby Stereo elements 

Lossless “hybrid” English/Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack

English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack 

Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the hybrid soundtrack 

Audio commentary by Troy Howarth, author of Murder by Design: The Unsane Cinema of Dario Argento

Of Flies and Maggots, a feature-length 2017 documentary produced by Arrow Films, including interviews with co-writer/producer/director Dario Argento, actors Fiore Argento, Davide Marotta, Daria Nicolodi and Fiorenza Tessari, co-writer Franco Ferrini, cinematographer Romano Albani, production manager Angelo Iacono, special optical effects artist Luigi Cozzi, special makeup effects artist Sergio Stivaletti, makeup artist Pier Antonio Mecacci, underwater camera operator Gianlorenzo Battaglia, and composers Claudio Simonetti and Simon Boswell 

Archival interview with Andi Sex Gang

Original Italian and international theatrical trailers 

“Jennifer” music video, directed by Dario Argento 

Japanese pressbook gallery

DISC 2 (4K ULTRA-HD BLU-RAY) – INTERNATIONAL AND “CREEPERS” VERSIONS

Lossless English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo soundtracks on the international version, derived from the original 4-channel Dolby Stereo elements

Lossless English PCM 1.0 mono soundtrack on Creepers, mastered from the original 3 track DME magnetic mix

Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 

Audio commentary on the international version by Argento scholar and author Derek Botelho and film historian, journalist and radio/television commentator David Del Valle 

The Three Sarcophagi, a visual essay by Arrow producer Michael Mackenzie comparing the different cuts of Phenomena

Creepers U.S. theatrical trailer 

U.S. radio spots

The 116-minute Italian cut features approximately six minutes of footage for which English audio does not exist. In these instances, the hybrid track reverts to Italian audio with English subtitles

The Phenomena limited edition set is expected to be available March 8, 2022.