Abandoned by Salvation

So, several years after Salvation told me that the film would be released "within a year," and three weeks without a response after I contacted them for an update on the film's status, I've concluded that the film has been abandoned by Salvation and will not see the light of day so long as they retain the distribution rights.

I'm frustrated and angered on many levels. For one, I feel as though I and everyone else who had been anticipating the film's release have been lied to. Salvation films told me, in no uncertain terms, that they were going to release the film, going so far as to give me an anticipated month and year. If something changed, they should have at the very least posted some sort of announcement on their site. Instead, they have completely ignored the issue, as they are now actively ignoring my inquiries into the film's status.

I'm also upset that, by purchasing the film and doing nothing with it, they are actively preventing anyone else from releasing it. Unless Salvation sells the rights, Girly is heretofore condemned to an eternity of sitting on a shelf, collecting dust. If they weren't going to release it, they shouldn't have bought the rights. The film still has a small albeit dedicated cult fan base, forty years after its release; they didn't deserve to be strung along with the promise of seeing one of their favorite films restored and reissued.

Initially I was perturbed when Salvation announced that the film would be a "bare bones" release without any special features, especially since some crew members volunteered to do commentary and help negotiate for a director/cast/writer commentary (the fact that Freddie Francis was still alive when it was announced this was coming to DVD shows how long we've all been led on). Instead of taking up the offer, Salvation ignored it. Fine; I'd have accepted the bare-bones DVD. But nothing?

That's just a slap in the face.