NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray (May 2021): Vinegar Syndrome present 2 versions of the 1989 horror flick, "The Cellar" on Blu-ray. These two versions are the newly scanned & restored 2K (from its 35mm original camera negative) theatrical cut and the unseen director’s cut (scanned in 2K from the director’s personal 35mm lab print). The introduction from director Kevin Tenney explains the reasoning for these two very different releases. He even jokes that you would have to be pretty masochistic to watch the officially released "producers cut". Said cut takes up about 22GB of the dual-layered 50GB Blu-ray disc, with the director's cut taking up around 23.5GB. The director's cut sports a slightly higher bitrate than the producer's supportive bitrate. While the producer's cut ends up looking a bit more polished, there are still random examples of debris/scratches, usually in the form of a tiny white blip or hair-like scratches. These minute defects are very inconspicuous though, and only add to the film texture. The director's cut is framed ever-so-slightly differently, showing a tad more on the right and bottom side of the frame, while showing less on the upper/left side. This cut also seems to be a shade blue, though this could just be due to the lab print used. The director's cut seems to show a bit more information in the lighter scenes, thanks to the brighter image bringing out details that would be lost in the more contrast-heavy producer's cut. A good example of this can be seen in the subtitle comparison, note that Patrick Kilpatrick's black shirt and Suzanne Savoy's eye-region seem to show much more in the director's cut. The later cellar scenes and nighttime shots do really look better on the producer's cut. Either way, this is another great job from the folks at Vinegar Syndrome.

Both the producers and director's cuts of the film feature the sound in DTS-HD Master audio 2.0 stereo. With the troubled production/post-production covered in the extra features, the music of the film changed hands, with the music on the director's cut being thanks to Will Sumner, while the producers cut features stranger, more rock-heavy music from Josh Kaplan, Harry Maslin, Donovan Stark, Dave Borden and Pat Rettig. This producer's cut does sound more polished, presumably due to a lot of post-production tinkering that wasn't on Tenney's lab print. There are optional English SDH subtitles (on both versions of the film) on this Region 'Free' Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.

Director Kevin Tenney puts it best in the introduction to his cut of the film where he states that you would have to be pretty masochistic to watch the producers cut rather than his preferred version. He also notes that he and Patrick Kilpatrick and Suzanne Savoy roast the film in the producer's cut commentary, which is a fun listen if you have the time. Also of interest is that the director and two stars did a completely different commentary track for the director's cut. Listening to both is a riot, yet if you don't have the time, I would recommend watching the only other extra on this Blu-ray, the making-of documentary. “From Chicken Shit to Chicken Salad, Unearthing the Lost Cellar” - a brand new extended making-of documentary featuring interviews with the cast and crew. Director Kevin Tenney describes how he rushed out of pre-production for "Witchtrap'' after the director of "The Cellar" was fired 5 days into the shoot. Tenney has a great sense of humor about the whole thing, even going so far as to say that he believes he was the only one involved with the making of "The Cellar'' that didn't think it was 'Citizen Kane' or 'Gone With the Wind'. Even Tenney had his cut taken away from him at the last moment, which is something this behind-the-scenes documentary covers later on (along with his brother's score being scrapped in post production). Actor Patrick Kilpatrick is also forthcoming regarding his time on set playing the role of Mance. Kilpatrick, at one point half-jokingly stating that this was one of those rare moments in his career where he was NOT asked to play a serial killer. Actress Suzanne Savoy ('Emily'), producer Steve Berman, creature creator Kevin Brennan, and (original) composer Dennis Tenney eventually make appearances discussing their work on the film. Many topics are then covered over the 46-minute piece, including scripting, casting, the (troubled) production, the lost version of the film, etc. This is much more fun to be had here than in your standard glossy behind-the-scenes, thanks mostly to the participants' willingness to be very open about their time in "The Cellar".

"The Cellar'' is a prime example of how producers can tinker with a film a little too much. Thankfully Vinegar Syndrome has gone the extra mile here and transferred the director's cut. Both of these 2K scanned Blu-ray restorations look quite decent. The making-of documentary explains the pure chaos that was behind the production of the film, with the commentaries adding some nice reminiscences from the director and cast. Director Tenney at one point learns that even the producer's cut has its fans, so no matter which way you prefer it, Vinegar Syndrome has got you covered.

Colin Zavitz