Due to the recent frequency regarding major studios releasing many of their classic cult movie titles as MOD (made on demand) DVDs, DVD Drive-In will now devote this space to capsule-sized reviews of such releases. Here, we will try to cover as many of these MOD DVDs as our time and pockets will allow, and you can also expect to see many turn up as regular reviews (as they have been in the past). Keep checking this space regularly for new additions!
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COOL
BREEZE (1972) Director: Barry Pollack, Warner Archive Collection.
After being released from prison, Sidney Lord Jones (Thalmaus Rasulula, BUCKTOWN)
organizes a diamond heist by drawing together a group of professional thieves.
They range from loyal to useless snitches. Naturally, the heist doesn't go as
planned and the team find themselves in a series of "accidents" and
double-crosses. This film is nothing more than a updated version of the classic
THE ASPHALT JUNGLE and is the first of four movies produced by Gene Corman for
MGM (the others being PRIVATE PARTS, whose review can be viewed on 
the
site, HIT MAN, which is a remake of GET CARTER, and the Jim Brown prison drama
THE SLAMS). The supporting cast also includes Raymond St. Jacques, Jim Watkins
(McQ), Judy Pace (FROGS), and Pam Grier in one of her earliest roles. Never
before available on home video, Warner presents COOL BREEZE as part of its Archive
Collection and features the film in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic
enhancement. The print looks good for the most part with the usual grain considering
this was a low-budget production. The original trailer, presented full frame,
is included as an extra. No chapter selections here, but chapter stops are provided
every ten minutes. (Kyle McElravy)
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A
SMALL TOWN IN TEXAS (1976) Director: Jack Starrett, MGM Limited Edition
Collection. Ex-con Poke Jackson (Timothy Bottoms, THE LAST PICTURE SHOW)
returns home after serving a five-year prison sentence after being framed for
drug possession. He's anxious to rekindle his relationship with his long-suffering
wife Mary Lee (Susan George, STRAW DOGS) and their five-year-old son Kevin (Mark
Silva) and plans to take them to live out in California, but he discovers that
Sheriff Duke (Bo Hopkins, TENTACLES) has been sleeping with Mary Lee and Poke's
out for revenge. A subplot has the town's richest man C.J. Crane (Morgan Woodward,
TV's Dallas) having a Mexican politician run for town mayor, but it turns out
to be a murder plot as Duke shoots him at an annual picnic. Poke witnesses it
and manages to steal the money that Duke was supposed to obtain from the lifeless
mayor. Duke then puts out an "all points bulletin" and it becomes
a frantic and dangerous car-chasing rampage between Poke and Duke. The talented
supporting cast also includes John Karlen (HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS) as Duke's
hard-nosed deputy and Art Hindle (BLACK CHRISTMAS) as Poke's loyal friend who
meets an untimely demise because of Duke's unorthodox ways of beating information
out of people. There's also enough car-chase action to keep the viewer wanting
more, especially the finale that has a souped-up Chevy pick-up outrunning a
fleet of police cars.
Originally
released on VHS by Vestron Video in the 1980s in a rather horrid pan-and-scan
transfer and again by MGM in 2001 as part of their Amazon.com exclusive program.
It's finally available on DVD as part of their Limited Edition Collection. Opening
with the Orion logo, the film is presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio
with anamorphic enhancement and the picture holds up well with nice colors and
minor grain, The mono audio, obviously remastered in stereo, comes through nice.
One more thing to remember, even though the back cover lists with an R rating,
it's still the PG-rated theatrical cut, so anyone expecting additional footage
will not find anything different in this presentation. No trailer or chapter
selections are included, but you can jump through the movie every ten minutes.
(Kyle McElravy)
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VIGILANTE
FORCE (1976) Director: George Armitage, MGM Limited Edition Collection.
Residents of a small California town are being terrorized by unruly oil workers,
so they call in embittered Vietnam veteran Aaron Arnold (Kris Kristofferson,
ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE) and his crew to rid the town. At the same time,
Aaron is reunited with his younger brother Ben (Jan-Michael Vincent, WHITE LINE
FEVER), who's trying to live a peaceful life with his daughter, despite the
chaos. Aaron and his cronies are later deputized by the local sheriff to break
up the illegal goings-on (they even end a cockfight in a rather gruesome fashion),
but Ben soon discovers that Aaron and his deputies are taking over the town
themselves. The climatic scene consists of a lengthy shootout and some over-the-top
explosions. The supporting cast also has Victoria Principal (EARTHQUAKE), Bernadette
Peters (THE JERK) and Charles Cyphers (HALLOWEEN) as one of 
Aaron's
friends. Never available on home video in the U.S., except in the UK when it
was released on VHS by Warner Home Video in the early 1980s, MGM's Limited Edition
Collection releases it on DVD in a 1.85:1 anamorphically enhanced transfer.
It looks good for the most part with the occasional grain and the mono audio
is in nice condition. The original full frame theatrical trailer is also included,
but no narration (provided by Ernie Anderson) is heard at all and it opens with
the 1994 United Artists logo, weirdly enough. Chapter stops are included every
ten minutes. (Kyle McElravy)
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HIT
MAN (1972) Director: George Armitage, Warner Archive Collection.
When his brother is simply gunned down, Tyrone Tackett (Bernie Casey, CLEOPATRA
JONES) tries to piece together the crime and hunt down the people responsible.
He later teams up with a skin-flick star (Pam Grier, COFFY) as sort of a sidekick.
The search takes Tackett from the Watts district to L.A, to porno parlors to
high rises, motels and even a wildlife preserve, where Grier gets mauled by
a tiger in a gruesome scene. This film is also a remake of the classic 
GET
CARTER, much like COOL BREEZE, which was a remake of the classic THE ASPHALT
JUNGLE. This was the second of four films that Gene Corman produced for MGM
and Gene was more of a hands-on producer, unlike his brother Roger who was known
for cheap budgets. Another title never before available on DVD until now, Warner
Archive presents HIT MAN in an anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer. It looks good and
clear with occasional grain and some blemishes and the audio is in nice condition.
No trailer is included, except for a static Play Movie menu screen. However,
chapter stops are provided every ten minutes. (Kyle
McElravy)
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THE
SLAMS (1973) Director: Jonathan Kaplan, Warner Archive Collection.
Professional thief Curtis Hook (Jim Brown, SLAUGHTER) stashes $1.5 million dollars
in a secret hiding place at an oil refinery. After a brief car chase, Hook's
getaway vehicle overturns and he is sent to prison. He does his best to blend
in with the tough guys and the nuts overpopulating the place, but later Hook
discovers his secret hiding place will be demolished unless he gets to it. He's
forced to go over the wall, but it won't be an easy task thanks to the prisoners
and guards. This was the final of four films that Gene Corman produced for MGM
and it least it goes out with a bang, even though the film's slow-moving at
times. Judy Pace and Paul Harris (ACROSS 110TH STREET) give nice supporting
parts. For its home video debut, Warner Archive presents the film in its original
1.85:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic enhancement. This "remastered"
edition has some grain and some print blemishes, but the transfer looks clean
and the mono audio is in nice condition. The full frame theatrical trailer is
included and chapter stops are provided every ten minutes. (Kyle
McElravy)
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HOT
STUFF (1979) Director: Dom DeLuise, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Two Miami detectives, Ernie Fortunato (Dom DeLuise, HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART
I) and Doug Von Horne (Jerry Reed, SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT), uncover a ring of
stolen property and they decide to set themselves up as fences to catch the
thieves. Helping them is fellow policewoman Louise Webster (Suzanne Pleshette),
but things start to go bad for the team and they find themselves on the run
from the thieves and even their own police force. Since DeLuise performs both
acting and directing duties, the film comes off as very enjoyable, though very
silly at times. DeLuise's real life wife Carol Arthur appears as his wife, as
well as their sons 
David,
Michael and Peter. Out of all three, David is perhaps best known as Jerry Russo
on WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE. Also appearing in supporting roles are Ossie Davis,
Marc Lawrence, Pat McCormick and Alfie Wise. Sony presents this long-awaited
film on DVD as part of their MOD series. Presented anamorphically at a 1.85:1
ratio, the transfer is good with the usual grain and speckling and the mono
audio is in good condition. No extras or even a menu screen are included, but
chapter stops are provided every ten minutes using your DVD remote. (Kyle
McElravy)
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OUTLAW
BLUES (1977) Director: Richard T. Heffron. Warner Archive Collection.
Ex-con-turned-singer Bobby Ogden (Peter Fonda, DIRTY MARY, XRAZY LARRY) and
his backup-singer girlfriend Tina (Susan Saint James, LOVE AT FIRST BITE) are
out for revenge when fellow rival Garland Dupree (James Callahan, TV's "Charles
In Charge") steals Bobby's song and takes the credit for it. After a scuffle
between him and Garland, the latter ends up getting a gunshot wound to the leg
and is rushed to the hospital. Bobby, with the help of Tina, manages to steal
back the song and it becomes an instant hit on the charts, but now the local
police are after Bobby and Tina and the two decide to make a break for Mexico.
The film is enjoyable and Fonda performs all of the songs he sings in the movie
himself with a few decent chase scenes involving cars, motorcycles, and there's
even a harrowing boat chase at the film's conclusion. The supporting cast also
includes John Crawford (THE ENFORCER) as a police chief and Michael Lerner (HARLEM
NIGHTS) as a sleazy promoter. Warner finally presents this film as part of its
popular Archive Collection, presenting it in the original 1.85:1 ratio with
anamorphic enhancement. The transfer seems to be taken from the original negative,
as it opens with the classic Warner Bros. big "W" logo, but the picture
is still filled with grain, blemishes, and some debris, but it's still quite
sharp looking and the mono audio is in excellent condition. The only extra is
a promo for other titles in the Archive Collection. (Kyle
McElravy)
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REPORT
TO THE COMMISSIONER (1975) Director: Milton Katselas, MGM Limited Edition
Collection. Set in New York City, young, naive detective Beauregard "Bo"
Lockley (Michael Moriarty, BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY) is assigned to track down the
police commissioner's daughter Patty "Chiclet" Butler (Susan Blakely,
CAPONE), who is an undercover policewoman. Aided with his helpful partner Richard
"Crunch" Blackstone (Yaphet Kotto, MIDNIGHT RUN), Bo's search turns
out to be nothing more than a wild goose chase to cover up the shady dealings
involving fellow detectives and the higher ranks of the law enforcement community.
Filmed on location in New York City, REPORT TO THE COMMISSIONER is a fun, but
rather dark suspense film. It's heavy on
talk and light on action, but there is an exciting foot chase between Moriarty
and Tony King, who plays a drug dealer, for the film's climax. The talented
supporting cast also includes Hector Elizondo (THE TAKING OF PELHAM 123), Bob
Balaban, and in his first film, a very 
young
Richard Gere as underworld pimp Billy. Ironically Gere and Elizondo would co-star
together many years later in PRETTY WOMAN. Originally released on VHS by MGM/UA
in the late 1980s, long after Gere became a big star, MGM has now released this
on their Limited Edition Collection label. The film is presented in its original
1.85:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic enhancement. The print is in flawless shape
with only minor grain and blemishes and the audio is clear as a bell. The original
theatrical trailer, also in anamorphic widescreen, is also included as an extra.
No chapter selections are included, but the viewer can move ahead at ten-minute
intervals. (Kyle
McElravy)
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THE
SUPER COPS (1974) Director: Gordon Parks, Warner Archive Collection.
This film is probably the most outrageous comedy caper of all, since it's based
on the real-life crime-fighting adventures of NYC policemen David Greenberg
and Robert Hantz, whose unorthodox methods made them city-wide heroes. Ron Liebman
and David Selby (THE LADY IN BLUE) portray the cops. By unorthodox, I mean the
duo hiding in a dumpster and having trash dumped on them or using a wrecking
ball to destroy someone's hideout. Of course, their superior officer (Pat Hingle,
MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE) doesn't approve of their actions. It seems Liebman tends
to overact throughout the film, usually having him scream his head off when
arresting people, but there's nothing more to complain about here. The real-life
Greenberg and 
Hantz
served as technical advisors for the movie. Never before on home video, except
for several bootleg DVD releases, mostly sourced from edited TV prints, Warner
presents the fully uncut version as part of their popular Archive Collection.
Presented anamorphic at a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the print suffers from a fair
share of grain and debris and some blurriness, but the latter only occurs during
the MGM logo and the opening interview footage featuring Greenberg and Hantz.
However, colors are bold and the print has excellent detail. A full frame theatrical
trailer can be found as an extra, but alas no chapter stops are included.
(Kyle
McElravy)
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THE
SAVAGE WILD (1970) Director: Gordon Eastman, MGM Limited Edition Collection.
Somewhere in the Yukon, nature lover and filmmaker Gordon Eastman captures three
baby wolves and raises them while observing their everyday habits and interactions
with humans at the same time. His young, fearless daughter Maria makes two visits
to his camp during the long-term duration, and she too gets close to the wild
animals, feeding and handling them side by side with dad. One of the females
of the pack gets gangrene in her leg (after it's presumably shot by a big game
hunter) and has to have it removed, but fortunately has no trouble adapting
to the permanent handicap. This “docudrama” has Eastman directing,
producing, partially photographing, partially writing and fully narrating (which
makes up most of the dialog). The film starts off awkward with some unconvincing
improvising and the introduction of a redneck named Red (an overacting Carl
Spore) who with his perennially drunk sidekick, make a living shooting wolves
for their hides from the safety of a private airplane. The staged “conflict”
arising from the character causes one of the wolves to fall victim to the aforementioned
gunshot wound, but Red is soon forgotten about when he's left for dead. Once
the film decides it wants to be a nature documentary concentrating on Gordon,
his friends, his daughter and their interaction with the wolves, the film is
quite captivating and well photographed in Scope and Technicolor. American International
Pictures (AIP), here straying from the usual drive-in fare, but still advertising
the film with the usual exploitive ballyhoo, released it with a G rating. It’s
quite family friendly, despite a climatic bit where the wolves ambush and devour
a Caribou (which is shown mostly in long shots). That’s nature. The narration
was written largely by Earl E. Smith, who wrote the screenplays for a number
of 
motion
pictures, including THE LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK and THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN.
The appropriate Disney-like score is by Jaime Mendoza-Nava, who worked on most
of Charles Pierce’s directorial efforts. MGM has released THE SAVAGE WILD
as an MOD DVD as part of its Limited Edition Collection, presenting it in the
original 2.35:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic enhancement. MGM obviously went
back to the original negative for the transfer, because it looks scrumptious
in every way. Recommended for documentary film lovers and AIP completists. (George
R. Reis)
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DETECTIVE
SCHOOL DROPOUTS (1986), Director: Flippo Ottoni, MGM Limited Edition
Collection. In New York City, (the back cover's summary incorrectly refers
to it as Los Angeles) meek, nerdy Donald Wilson (David Landsberg) is so fixtated
on detective novels, it causes him to lose a string of jobs. One day, he stumbles
across a sign on a phone booth for Miller Detective Agency, which is nothing
more than a hoax, since its owner Paul Miller (Lorin Dreyfuss) is trying to
keep it from foreclosing. It seems that Paul has owed money to many people and
some will stop at nothing to get it. When Donald enrolls into the school, the
two soon get mixed up in a kidnapping plot involving two mafia families. The
two young lovers, from opposite families, Carlo (Christian De Sica) and Catherina
(Valeria Golino, HOT SHOTS!) are set to be married. The two families, of course,
are not happy about it and the leader orders trigger-happy hitman Bruno (George
Eastman, ANTHROPOPHAGUS) to go to New York and kidnap Catherina, who is also
in New York visiting her mafia-tied uncle, and take her back to Italy and have
Carlo in another arranged marriage, much to his dismay. The two inept detectives
then go to Italy to stop the marriage, reunite Carlo and Catherina, and put
an end to the long-time feud between the two families.
DETECTIVE
SCHOOL DROPOUTS may not be the greatest comedy ever made, but it never fails
to deliver endless sight gags and laughs. Having been a cable favorite for many
years (particularly Comedy Central), MGM has finally released this classic on
DVD as part of their Limited Edition Collection. Presented full frame (1.33:
1), the print suffers a lot from grain, speckling, and occasional picture jumps
(Note the disclaimer at the beginning saying it was made with the greatest souce
material available). The reason for this is it was sourced from a theatrical
print (see the MPAA rating card at the end of the movie for proof), but it looks
a lot better than the VHS copies out there. The mono audio is in near-perfect
condition. There is no trailer for the film or chapter stops, but the viewer
can move ahead at ten-minute intervals. (Kyle
McElravy)
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EYE
OF THE DEVIL (1966) Director: J. Lee Thompson, Warner Archive Collection.
In France, vineyard owner marquis Philippe de Montfaucon (David Niven) is called
back to his ancestral home, the massive castle Bellenac, after it’s reported
that the crops are failing. Philippe’s adoring wife Catherine (Deborah
Kerr) wants very much to accompany him, as do his two small children, but he
insists on going alone. The family eventually catches up with him at the castle,
and that turns out to be a big mistake, as they are surrounded by wicked and
shifty characters, as well as what appears to be pagan rituals enacted by a
sect in black hoods. This black & white occult thriller was made by an independent
British company called Filmways Pictures (also responsible for Roman Polanski’s
THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS) and released by MGM. The casting of Deborah Kerr
(a replacement for Kim Novak) somewhat evokes the far superior THE INNOCENTS
and the film is beautifully shot (mostly on location at the Château de
Hautefort in France) but the story is rather uninvolving and the zoom-ridden
direction by J. Lee Thompson (THE GUNS OF NAVARONE, CONQUEST OF and BATTLE FOR
THE PLANET OF THE APES) is mostly dull (except for a tense scene on the castle
top and several abstract nightmare 
sequences).
Although she had already worked in front of the cameras, the film “introduces”
the beautiful and talented Sharon Tate (her short-lived movie career of course
ended with that infamous 1969 tragedy) and an up-and-coming David Hemmings plays
her equally malevolent blond brother, who has a nasty habit of piercing white
doves with his bow and arrow. The supporting cast is exceptional (Donald Pleasence,
Flora Robson, Edward Mulhare), though it’s difficult to accept so many
English accents being passed off as French characters. Based on the novel, Day
of the Arrow, EYE OF THE DEVIL has never before been available on home
video in the U.S., and Warner premieres it on DVD as part of their Warner Archive
Collection. The black and white transfer on this “remastered edition”
looks quite sharp, with deep black levels, though there is some scattered dirt
and debris, especially during the opening credits. It’s been presented
widescreen (1.78:1) with anamorphic enhancement, and carries an adequate mono
English track. The original title, 13, can be seen on the brief end credits.
It’s really too bad Warner didn’t include the trailer or the vintage
featurette for this film entitled “All Eyes on Sharon Tate”: it
was present on the old laserdisc for THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS and TCM still
airs it in between movies. For more information on this title, click HERE.
(George
R. Reis)
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MACABRE
(1958) Director: William Castle. Warner Archive Collection. Director
William Castle had been directing various B programmers since the 1940s, but
MACABRE marked his first foray into horror, and also marked his first attempt
at using a marketing gimmick to entice theatergoers. Local physician Dr. Barrett
(William Prince) is facing the consequences of the suspicious death of his wife,
and the more recent death of his sister-in-law, as very few patients ever come
to visit. One day his office nurse gets an anonymous phone call saying that
Barrett’s young daughter has been buried alive in a small coffin, and
a frantic search in a graveyard, as well as a funeral parlor, commences, with
only a few hours to spare. Lots of characters and flashbacks come into play,
and the film also stars Jim Backus (“Gilligan’s Island”),
Christine White, Jacqueline Scott, Susan Morrow, Philip Tonge and Ellen Corby
(“The Waltons”). The gimmick here was a $1000 insurance policy (from
Lloyds of London) for anyone who “died of fright” during the screening,
and although Castle doesn’t appear on screen (as he would in subsequent
gimmick films) we are constantly reminded of this by a wall clock. The initial
film that Castle wanted to scare the pants of America with was inspired his
the influential French thriller, DIABOLIQUE, and the script was by frequent
Castle collaborator Robb White, based on The Marble Forest by Theo
Durrant (which was actually written chapter by chapter by members of the Mystery
Writers of America). Made in just a little over a week on a budget of $90,000,
Allied Artists had a huge hit with the film, and this lead to Castle’s
next production, THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, which was even bigger. The film
is dead serious, that is until the wonderful animated end credits, which include
cartoon
renderings of Castle, White and some of the cast. Les Baxter did the music shortly
before his tenure at AIP. Never available on home video, this rarely seen effort
has been given a handsome MOD DVD presentation from the Warner Archive Collection,
with a widescreen (1.78:1) anamorphic transfer. The black and white film looks
excellent, with only some scattered debris and grain, and the mono English audio,
aside from the occasional pop, is adequate. Too bad the great trailer wasn’t
included. For more information on this title, click HERE.
(George
R. Reis)
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THE
HYPNOTIC EYE (1960) Director: George Blair. Warner Archive Collection.
Beautiful young women are being self-mutilated in their homes in the most bizarre
sting of accidents (one washes her face in a sink full of acid, one sticks her
head over a lit burner, etc.). Detective Steve Kennedy (Joe Patridge) is baffled,
but after a friend (Merry Anders, THE TIME TRAVELERS) of his girlfriend Marcia
(Marcia Henderson) becomes one of the victims without any reasonable explanation,
a local performing hypnotist becomes the prime suspect. Celebrated stage hypnotist/magician
Desmond (Jacques Bergerac) and his glamorous assistant Justine (Allison Hayes)
pick the most lovely women from the audience to volunteer as part of his act;
he performs a stunt on them which involves a trance, makes them look into the
hypnotic eye (an annoying blinking electric device in the palm of his hand)
and they go home only to perform a sadistic tragedy on themselves that sometimes
ends in death. Marcia acts as a decoy, as one of Desmond’s on-stage volunteers,
and then goes out on the town with the heavy-accented scoundrel, with boyfriend
Steve never far behind. THE HYPNOTIC EYE is a fun, and rather sleazy Allied
Artists cheapie which used a (non) gimmick in “Hypnomagic” to try
and lure audiences in (this came out shortly after HORRORS OF THE BLACK MUSEUM,
which also 
capitalized
on the suggestive powers of hypnosis). Basically, this involved Bergerac appearing
to hypnotize the attending movie theater audience as he does the same to the
audience in the film (this probably didn’t work well at all at drive-ins)
in stunts involving them stamping their feet, extending their arms and believing
that the “hypnotic eye” balloon on their lap is as heavy as a sack
of led. The alluring Allison Hayes doesn’t seem to have much to do at
first, but her beautiful assistant character is instrumental as to why all the
sickening violence is occurring, and the climax is pretty terrific. There’s
a great scene in a beatnik coffee den (with Lawrence Lipton as the “King
of the Beatniks” performing a poem about a fanatical film lover) and Guy
Prescott (as Dr. Philip Hecht) warns the audience of the dangers of hypnotism,
in a winking sort of way, before the end credits pop up. Never before available
on home video, and rarely seen since TNT aired it back in the early 1990s, the
Warner Archive Collection brings THE HYPNOTIC EYE to us as an MOD DVD which
looks terrific. The black and white image has been anamorphically enhanced (1.78:1)
and the mono audio is clear. Aside from some minor speckling, the print source
is in excellent shape. No extras or trailer, and just a standard “Play
Movie” menu, but the presentation and cover art are indeed handsome for
this long-awaited cult favorite. For more information on this title, click HERE.
(George R. Reis)
***************
THE
DISEMBODIED (1957) Director: Walter Grauman. Warner Archive Collection.
Before her landmark role in ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN and some of her other,
more popular horror films, Allison Hayes starred in this jungle-bound voodoo
thriller, one of several she did for B movie producer Ben Schwalb (THE HYPNOTIC
EYE, TICKLE ME). Hayes plays native woman and secret jungle priestess Tonda,
who’s bored with her much older doctor husband (John Wengraf) and is constantly
attempting to end his life with her little voodoo dolls (which she ties string
around the necks off, or sticks pins in). In comes “white man” Tom
Maxwell (Paul Burke, THE PSYCHIC KILLER) who needs the aid of the good doc when
one of his expedition companions is injured. When leggy Tonda isn’t teasing
just about every other man in the village, she’s seducing Tom and pleading
with him to assist her in the extinction of her husband, and although she’s
almost impossible to resist, Tom’s good conscious wins in the end. This
rather confusing 66-minute Z level thriller (which played on a double bill with
FROM HELL IT CAME, also available from the Warner Archive Collection) is 
recommended
to 1950s horror film completists and the many Allison Hayes fans out there,
but all others might want to skip it. With her amazing (and I mean amazing!)
figure, Hayes does an exotic dance in a two-piece native outfit, and she plays
a sexy bitch like no one else! Dean Fredericks, star of THE PHANTOM PLANET,
plays a native with a little circle on his forehead (what this represents, who
knows?). The Warner Archive Collection’s MOD presentation of THE DISEMBODIED
has more than its fair share of speckling and dirt and debris, but the black
and white, anamorphic widescreen (1.78:1) transfer still looks quite sharp and
the mono English audio doesn’t have any noticeable problems. No extras
or trailer, and just a standard “Play Movie” menu. For more information
on this title, click HERE.
(George
R. Reis)
THE
SOUL OF A MONSTER (1944) Director: Will Jason. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Kindly surgeon, George Winson (George Macready, THE ALLIGATOR PEOPLE) lies on
his deathbed after contracting an illness from one of his patients and his wife
Ann (Jeanne Bates) calls on unknown powers to save him. A strange woman named
Lilyan (Rose Hobart) appears from nowhere and in a scene very reminiscent of
Val Lewton, she walks though the town. She avoids getting run over by a car,
electrocution by live power-lines, etc. Could this woman be sent by the Devil
himself? George recovers, but he's dominated by Lilyan, and leaves his wife.
When the evil woman tempts him into letting his best friend Roger (Jim Bannon)
die, the good doctor realizes that Lilyan wants his soul in exchange for the
chance to continue living. But as we all know, the age-old saying is, "a
life for a life, a soul for a soul". The film's title sequence is very
reminiscent of 
RETURN
OF THE VAMPIRE, made the same year, and would make a good double bill over the
Halloween season. The full frame, black and white image quality is fine, as
is the mono sound. The box art is very good indeed and I only hope Sony continues
with original poster art for their MOD DVDs and not the generic blue covers.
The disc is made on the purple dye DVD-R discs, where as Retromedia's MOD disc
of DESTROY ALL PLANETS is a silver disc and looks a lot more professional all
around. The prices are very high on all on these MOD discs and one has to ask
is it worth a purchase? In this case, I was happy, however, that is the film
buff in me talking. When one thinks that a Sony "Icon" set costs less
and has much more content, it's a bit of a cheat. For more information on this
title, click HERE.
(Kevin
W. Wardle)
***************
A
STUDY IN TERROR (1965) Director: James Hill. Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment. In late 19th century London, Jack the Ripper is viciously
murdering prostitutes on the streets of Whitechapel, and Inspector Lestrade
(Frank Finlay) is baffled. Detective Sherlock Holmes (John Neville) and his
chubby companion Dr. Watson (Donald Houston, Hammer’s MANIAC) read about
the murders in the newspapers, and are drawn into an investigation, as Holmes
firmly believes The Ripper will continue his madness. The sleuthing duo’s
investigation brings them to the estate of an Aristocratic feuding family, a
pawn shop, a whore-infested pub and a soup kitchen. The latter place is where
they hope to find the whereabouts of their main suspect; a missing young man
disowned by his father (a Lord) due to his intent on being a surgeon. Compton,
a British sexploitation film company co-founded by Tony Tenser (later to form
Tigon) produced this inevitable “Holmes VS. Jack the Ripper” opus
under their banner, and it was executive p
roduced
by the great Herman Cohen (HORRORS OF BLACK MUSEUM, BERSERK, etc.). With an
original story by Donald and Derek Ford (which apparently was subject to at
least one re-write), it’s a handsomely produced British horror entry (shot
on location and at Shepperton Studios) with an awesome cast and a confident,
rather physical Holmes in Neville. Despite mixed reviews and mediocre box office
business at the time of its release, it’s become something of a fan favorite,
and deservedly so. The solid story allows for a number of engaging characters
and builds a puzzling case for our detectives, and the film is a rather classy
affair that’s not afraid to show a welcomed 1960s sleazy slide with several
gory murders and a fair share of bosomy streetwalkers (played by the likes of
Hammer starlet Edina Ronay and “Carry On” perennial Barbara Windsor)
to slice and dice. The fine cast includes John Fraser, Adrienne Corri, Anthony
Quayle, Cecil Parker, Georgia Brown, Barry Jones, Terry Downes (THE FEARLESS
VAMPIRE KILLERS) and "Special Guest Star" Robert Morley as Sherlock’s
brother Mycroft. An impossibly young Judi Dench plays Sally Young, who operates
the soup kitchen.
When
Columbia Pictures released the film in the U.S. in 1966, the ads jumped on Batman-mania,
with the tagline, “Here comes the original caped crusader!” with
such expressions as “POW”, “BIFF” and “BANG”
surrounding the sketched image of the Baker Street sleuth (see the DVD cover
above). Neville's Holmes does take part in several fights (with cinematographer
Desmond Dickinson using the "Dutch" angle at least once), so the comparisons
are actually somewhat justified. One of the last major Holmes films not released
as a legit U.S. DVD, it was hoped that A STUDY IN TERROR would get some kind
of special treatment to cash in on the recent Robert Downey Jr. Hollywood re-imagining
of Holmes, but alas, it now arrives from Sony as an MOD release. Not to worry;
despite not having a menu or any extras, the disc is a visual treat, presenting
the film in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic enhancement. The
newly remastered presentation has vivid colors and crisp detail, putting the
old VHS and laserdisc transfers to shame, and the mono audio is clear with no
noticeable flaws. Highly recommended, especially to Sherlock Holmes and British
Horror Cinema completists. For more information on this title, click HERE.
(George
R. Reis)
***************
THE
MAN WHO TURNED TO STONE (1957) Director: László
Kardos. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. In a women’s reformatory
center, a number of inmates are dying in what’s being reported as random
heart attacks. After another inmate is found hanged in her quarters while everyone
else is attending a movie, suspicions arise and a concerned social worker (Charlotte
Austin, FRANKENSTEIN 1970) teams up with the incoming psychiatrist William Hudson
(ATTACK OF THE 50-FOOT WOMAN) to get to the bottom of things. The culprits of
these sudden deaths are the reformatory’s keepers: a group of 18th-century
European scientists, led by Dr. Murdock (Victory Jory, CAT-WOMEN OF THE MOON),
who have been able to remain immortal for ages by sucking 
energy
out of young women who are soaked in a bath of chemicals during the process.
The title of the film pretty much refers to Dr. Murdock’s mute, too-tall
lackey Eric (Friedrich von Ledebur in underwhelming skull-face make-up), who’s
always on a stone-turning verge, making him a lumbering Frankenstein-like monster
who is often seen carrying off pretty girls. Jean Willes (as inmate Tracy) was
in a handful of Three Stooges shorts, as well as numerous TV shows and movies.
A typical Sam Katzman Grade Z production scripted by Bernard Gordon, THE MAN
WHO TURNED TO STONE (which was originally released on a Columbia Pictures double
bill with ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU) has a familiar cast of character actors and is
recommended to any collector of cheap, black and white, 1950s monster flicks.
This really should have been included on Sony’s must-have set, “Icons
of Horror Collection: Sam Katzman” (released in 2007), but it has been
made available standalone as a MOD DVD. Despite the lackluster packaging (which
uses a generic stock photo rather than colorful poster art), the transfer is
quite good, presenting the film in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio with anamorphic
enhancement. The black and white image has crisp detail, with only some scatterings
of film dirt, and though some night-time scenes are a bit dark, this is the
best this film has ever looked and the first time it’s ever been available
on home video. The mono audio is actually clear as a bell. As it looks to be
the trend with these Sony MOD discs, there's no menu (or trailer), but you can't
go wrong with the quality here. For more information on this title, click HERE.
(George R. Reis)
***************