Does anyone have any suggestions for getting this commercially released on DVD? Amazon does not even have it listed, so we can't sign up to be notified when it becomes available. I believe that is one way that interest in a particular movie is judged.
"Mediocre Marx Brothers is better than no Marx Brothers!"
I'm pretty sure The Twonky is in public domain, which means anybody could put out a DVD. It probably hasn't been released yet because it's such an obscure film. If it is p.d., it would look to be a likely candidate for release by an outfit like Alpha Video. Their print wouldn't be the greatest, but probably no worse than what was shown on TCM, and it would only cost $7.99 or so. Maybe contacting them and asking if they could put it out would be one way of getting a DVD. Of course, a better quality print from Fox (which through MGM controls much of the UA library, and The Twonky was originally a United Artists release) would be preferable.
Though I think the movie is pretty poor, I'd also like to see it get a DVD release. I'd even buy it.
The acting is pathetic, the directing is terrible, the editing even worse. The film does have a certain charm to it though. An odd little movie I really like.
"Mediocre Marx Brothers is better than no Marx Brothers!"
Well, as you know, I didn't much like it, but just for its uniqueness I'd like to see it out among the other DVDs...although, maybe, such a disc would start to control our lives. Like making it impossible to watch things like Citizen Kane, Bicycle Thieves, Seven Samurai...now there's an idea for a sequel!
sharePerhaps they could combine those three with "The Twonky" and release a 4 DVD set! :)
There is another movie I consider similar to "The Twonky" (in more ways than one) called "The Monitors". In this case the watchful eye is being kept on humans by an alien race instead of an over-zealous living room appliance.
"Mediocre Marx Brothers is better than no Marx Brothers!"
I like your idea for a box set...especially if the other three DVDs arrived blank.
I know of The Monitors but have never seen it. From your description it sounds a somewhat more plausible means of control than mere twonkery.
You will NOT see this title published by ALPHA-DVD, nor by any of the other public domain groups. Someone has a grip on this title, and has held it for many years.
I was able to buy this film on VHS, from HellFire Video in NYC, --many, many years ago.
HellFire published an odd assortment of old films-- many which you might think were P.D., but were NOT published by anyone else. Once HellFire folded, most of their exclusive titles, --including "Twonky"-- simply dropped out of sight.
I was very surprised to see this film on TCM. They have access to a wide range of films, but some titles seem to be beyond their grasp. I've found that once a film appears on TCM --especially something that has been "hidden" for years-- it usually surfaces on the home video market.
--D.--
Does your VHS version show more scenes than the version shown on TCM? If so, what was cut? Or is the IMDB movie time simply wrong?
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