Every child of the 80s will remember going to the video store and trying to find a movie to rent. Back before the days of Blu-ray and On Demand, selecting a movie usually meant finding the flick with the coolest box art. Like modern posters, classic VHS art has been lost but thanks to the Internet there are countless reminders of these cool creations. This column will be dedicated to bringing you reminders of a bygone era and a look at how cool some of these movies looked on store shelves.
BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW
There are some British horror films that are harder to find than others and this is one that you may have trouble tracking down. A period film with a horror bend, BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW is one of my personal favorites from the early 1970s. Check out the trippy box art, man. Click here to purchase on Blu-ray/DVD.
ROLLING THUNDER
A great exploitation film from TAXI DRIVER writer Paul Schrader, this is the movie that inspired the name of Quentin Tarantino's specialty film re-release company. A cross between FIRST BLOOD and STRAW DOGS, this is a damn cool movie with a badass William Devane and an early performance from Tommy Lee Jones. Click here to purchase on Blu-ray/DVD.
CALIGULA
Often billed as the "most controversial film of all time", CALIGULA doesn't show much on the cover of any version of the film aside from the memorable Roman coin with bloody tears. Still, naked Helen Mirren should entice you enough to check it out. Click here to purchase on Blu-ray/DVD.
OUTLAND
It is a pretty good scifi movie in it's own right, but when you have a poster featuring the one and only Sean Connery as a space cop wielding a shotgun, what more do you need? Click here to purchase on Blu-ray/DVD.
DEATH WISH 3
Like RAMBO III, the third DEATH WISH film forgets about narrative, continuity, or logic and just becomes an orgy of violence. Charles Bronson using a bazooka should be enough for you. Hell, that should have been the film's title! Click here to purchase on Blu-ray/DVD.
FIRST BLOOD
A classic film for Sylvester Stallone fans, war fans, exploitation fans, action fans, and drama fans. This is not RAMBO, this is FIRST BLOOD. Stallone knocks this one out of the park. Every variation of the box art is awesome. Click here to purchase on Blu-Ray/DVD.
Feel free to pop us your favorite VHS box art and come back for each future column. You can send your finds or photos of your own VHS tapes to alexmaidy@joblo.com