• IFC Films and MPI Media Group gave Fango the first look at cover art for their DVD release of PONTYPOOL (pictured), the acclaimed and unusual zombie thriller starring Stephen McHattie. Also coming this winter from the two companies is another well-received genre film, the Argentinean ghost story THE APPEARED.

Directed by Bruce McDonald and scripted by Tony Burgess from his book, PONTYPOOL (streeting January 26; see our review here) casts McHattie as a shock jock who, one cold early winter morning, starts receiving mysterious reports from outside about violent and frightening acts committed by the local townspeople. It turns out that they’re infected with a spreading plague that is transmitted via speech and turns them into bloodthirsty killers. In THE APPEARED (a.k.a. APARECIDOS, out January 12), writer/director Paco Cabezas spins the tale of a brother and sister who discover a diary documenting horrific murder and torture 20 years before. When they witness similar acts occurring right before their eyes, their attempts to deduce the truth behind the events leads them to uncover the region’s shocking history. Specs and special features have yet to be confirmed for both titles, each of which retails for $19.98.

• Well Go USA passed on the DVDetails for a trio of genre titles arriving in January. HARD REVENGE MILLY: Hyper Violence Collection, out Jan. 26, combines Takanori Tsujimoto’s pair of short features (HARD REVENGE MILLY and HARD REVENGE MILLY: BLOODY BATTLE, totalling 130 minutes) following the titular heroine (Miki Mizuno) as she wreaks bloody vengeance on the criminals who killed her family and other villains—including a cyborg. The 16x9-enhanced widescreen transfers with Dolby 5.1 stereo sound (Japanese with English subtitles) are accompanied by a behind-the-scenes featurette and a photo gallery. Retail price is $19.98.

Also coming on the 26th is MADNESS, directed by Sonny Laguna from a script he wrote with producers David Liljebald and Tommy Wiklund (the trio also have onscreen roles). This one’s about a pair of road-tripping cheerleaders and a couple of guys they pick up who become the captives of a psychopath who loves to inflict pain. Andreas Vaehi, Yohanna Idha, Max Wallmo, Victoria Bloom, Anna Adolfsson and Anders Akerblom star; the movie is presented in 16x9 widescreen with Dolby Surround sound, plus:

• Behind-the-scenes material
• Bonus short film STRANGLEHOLD
• Photo gallery
• Theatrical and teaser trailers

Retail price on both of these is $19.98. Arriving on Jan. 19 is DURHAM COUNTY: Season One, containing the six uncut one-hour episodes of the Canadian TV series about a town plagued by serial murder and the local detective investigating them who’s got troubles of his own (see our review here). The show comes with a behind-the-scenes featurette and a photo gallery; retail price is $29.98.

• Over at the Classic Horror Film Board, filmmaker Larry Blamire revealed that his satirical fear features THE LOST SKELETON RETURNS AGAIN and DARK AND STORMY NIGHT have been picked up for DVD release by Shout! Factory. Fully loaded special editions of each will debut in July, and will be launched that month at the San Diego Comic-Con.

THE LOST SKELETON RETURNS AGAIN (see premiere pics here) is Blamire’s sequel to his 2001 homage to ’50s sci-fi thrillers, THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA. The ’30s-set DARK AND STORMY NIGHT similarly pays tribute to old-dark-house murder movies. Both films star Blamire himself, Fay Masterson, BUBBA HO-TEP’s Daniel Roebuck, Dan Conroy, Jennifer Blaire, Trish Geiger, Brian Howe, Andrew Parks, Susan McConnell, Alison Martin and H.M. Wynant; DARK AND STORMY also features HARPER’S ISLAND’s Jim Beaver and monster historian Bob Burns. There will also be theatrical releases of these two films plus Blamire’s TRAIL OF THE SCREAMING FOREHEAD starting next March; keep your eyes here for details.

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