Hanger Blu Ray Review (Unearthed Films)
Hanger is a 2009 horror film co-written, produced, special fx, costume design, and directed by Ryan Nicholson (Famine, Live Feed, Gutterballs 1/2, Torched, and Star Vehicle). Nicholson is mainly known for his special fx work on such films as Final Destination, Scary Movie, Ghost Rider, The Predator, Deadpool 2, Blair Witch, Reindeer Games, Dreamcatcher, Lake Placid, & many others. He directed his own films for his own company Plotdigger Films while he wasn’t working on those major productions. It was co-written, composed, and produced by Patrick Coble (Gutterballs and Live Feed). The film is banned in Australia and Germany.
Unable to bring in any more money for Leroy (played by: Ronald Patrick Thompson from Collar, The Flash, Arrow, and Supergirl), her abusive pimp, the pregnant Rose (played by: Debbie Rochon from Tromeo and Juliet, Model Hunger, Terror Firmer, Slime City Massacre, and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV) tries to run away in the middle of the night, but is caught by Leroy. Using a clothes hanger, Leroy performs an impromptu abortion on Rose, unintentionally killing her in the process. Leroy disposes of Rose’s baby in a dumpster, where its cries attract the attention of a homeless man, who raises the disfigured child as “Hanger”. On his eighteenth birthday, the vagrant sends Hanger (played by: Nathan Dashwood from Gutterballs, Batwoman, Arrow, and Smallville) off to live with John (played by: Dan Ellis from American Guinea Pig: Bloodshock, Gutterballs, and Star Vehicle), his biological father.
John informs Hanger that he has gotten him a job at the junkyard. He will be working there and living with Russell (played by: Wade Gibb from Gutterballs, Shifter, and Cannibal Lipstick), an acquaintance with Down syndrome. John gives Hanger a picture of Rose, and picks up a prostitute for him to have sex with, but upon seeing Hanger’s mutilated face, the woman goes into hysterics. He is shy and he doesn’t have luck with women. John tries to set up a plan to get revenge on Leroy. Hanger and Russell are drugged by their weird co-worker Phil (played by: Alastair Gamble from Gutterballs, Hardwired, and Mind’s Eye). They are teased by Nicole (played by: Candice Lewald from Gutterballs) at work soon after. All these recent events due more damage to the already unstable Hanger. Will he get his revenge on everyone that’s done him wrong in life? or Will he ignore it all like always????
Hanger is a great little nasty and sleazy revenge flick from special fx artist Ryan Nicholson. This is one of his best features and it has some awesome fx when it comes to gore and all the unique characters in this. All the main roles here really stand out and they all look they have been through hell. This takes place in a very off community and most of them appear like they have been toxic waste. It does have eye candy it in courtesy of Debbie Rochon and Candice Lewald which looks amazing in this. The script has it’s issues but it’s very entertaining and it doesn’t hold back at all. Russell is a very controversial role and it probably comes off super offensive when it comes to Asians. Almost all of the characters here are very unlikable so you actually want them to get slaughtered in this. Hanger is very brutal, graphic, and it will cross the line for most people so make sure that you don’t have a weak stomach while viewing it. This one actually has some of the best acting when it comes to the Ryan Nicholson universe. Debbie Rochon, Nathan Dashwood, and Dan Ellis all increased the quality of the production with their performances. The rest of the cast is your typical over the top stuff that you would expect from a Plotdigger feature. It has a funny cameo from cult director and Troma creator Lloyd Kaufman. There’s never a dull moment with Hanger, it’s so much fun and it’s one of the more entertaining efforts when it comes to extreme horror. RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Unearthed Films! This 1080p (1.78:1) transfer is a huge upgrade compared to all the older DVD releases of this and it’s the best it’s ever looked on home video so far. It has a few different audio options which includes English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 Surround. The soundtrack sounds much better on this brand new home video release and it’s the biggest stand out when it comes to the audio. It has a “XXX Version of Hanger” that’s 90 minutes and it’s even more extreme than the other version which was already wild. It’s in standard definition. It has an “Audio Commentary” with director Ryan Nicholson. He was always one of my favorites to listen to when it came to these commentaries. He’s full of knowledge, lots of great stories, and he always has a great time discussing his work on these tracks. A full length “Behind the Scenes Featurette’ that runs an hour and 54 minutes. “Behind the Stoma: The Making and Taking of Hanger” is around 20 minutes. “Taking of Hanger Enough Dope to Hang Yourself With: On The Set with Lloyd Kaufman” is around 12 minutes with the cult director. It has 7 minutes of “Deleted Scenes” and around 20 minutes of “Additional Footage”. It has the 3 minute “Black on White Bred” 30 minute “Stills Gallery”, and the 2 minute “Blooper Reel”. It also has “Trailers” for Hangar, Gutterballs, Torched, The Untold Story, and A Serbian Film. This disc is loaded, you know what’s crazy about that? This is only the standard release. The limited edition 2 disc one has a bonus disc full of countless hours of behind the scenes footage. This is available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!!
