6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A girl arrives from London to visit her estranged relatives in a remote castle for the reading of her father's will. After a while she discovers that they are all in fact dead and her decision to live with them turns into a nightmare. Unable to leave she's drawn into a macabre underworld through visions of nude satanic rituals and her own impending sacrifice...
Starring: Christina von Blanc, Britt Nichols, Rosa Palomar, Anne Libert, Howard VernonHorror | 100% |
Erotic | 27% |
Surreal | 7% |
Mystery | 2% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
French: LPCM Mono
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 16-bit)
BDInfo verified. French track is also (48kHz, 16-bit)
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
When low-budget horror and Euro-sleaze auteur Jesus "Jess" Franco died this past April, at age 82, he left behind an enormous body of work, with over 150 features to his credit in a career that spanned from 1959 until this year, when poor health left him unable to complete his final movie, Al Pereira vs. the Alligator Women. We can certainly use the word "prolific" to describe his output, but even the most ardent Franco fans will acknowledge that many—if not the vast majority—of his films are totally forgettable. In his creatively lean years, he churned out one X-rated grindhouse cheapie after another, paying the bills but disassociating himself from any real consideration as a serious filmmaker. (Or, at least, one to be taken seriously.) Still, inside this sea of sleaze, several films worthy of lasting appreciation have bobbed to the surface, notable for their unexpectedly buoyant mixture of deliberate artiness and low-brow voyeurism. Redemption Films and their distribution partner, Kino-Lorber, have been reissuing these more-successful Franco efforts in deluxe Blu-ray editions, and their latest batch of titles includes three films—The Awful Dr. Orlof, Nightmares Come at Night, and A Virgin Among the Living Dead—that find the director at his most visually compelling.
The Virgin
Like most Kino/Redemption collaborations, A Virgin Among the Living Dead is presented essentially "as-is," without any notable cleanup, digital or otherwise. On the one hand, this means the picture is covered from start to finish with white specks, small scratches, and bits of black debris—the opening title sequence is especially messy—but on the other, this kind of come-as-you-are presentation does give an impression of the history of the print. It's honest. Authentic. I may be in the minority here, but I think it works, and it's not unlike watching the film in some run-down grindhouse theater. (That's not to say I wouldn't like to see a miraculous frame-by-frame restoration of A Virgin Among the Living Dead someday, but I'm not holding my breath.) Print damage aside, this new 1080p/AVC-encoded Blu-ray is miles better than previous DVD editions, not to mention the various poorly-cut and dubiously transferred VHS versions, both official and bootlegged. The biggest leap, obviously, is in clarity. On a technical level, Franco was always a shabby, by-the-seat-of-his-pants filmmaker—working with low budgets and quick shoots—so you can't expect every shot to be tack sharp, or even in focus at all. That said, this new transfer gives a clear and natural-looking reproduction of what was captured on film, and when the image is sharp, fine details emerge that we could never make out in standard definition. Just as importantly, the film's grain structure is preserved, and there are no signs of edge enhancement or adverse compression issues. Color is keenly balanced for the most part as well—never oversaturated or flat— although there are some inevitable moments where detail is thoroughly crushed in the shadows. Overall, a worthwhile upgrade for Franco fans.
The disc includes two audio options, the default French track and an English mix, both in uncompressed Linear PCM 2.0 mono. I suppose the French track will be the purist's choice, but the English dub—like the one for The Awful Dr. Orlof—is actually quite good. (In his commentary track, Tim Lucas mentions his opinion that the English dialogue is more fittingly poetic.) So take your pick. Quality-wise, both have their age-related issues—a low, sometimes noticeable hiss, short pops and crackles—but nothing particularly distracting. Dialogue is always fairly clear and easily understood and, dynamically, the mix never sounds overly thin or brash. The highlight here is the absolutely haunting score from Bruno Nicolai (Caligula), which weds perfectly to Franco's otherworldly visuals. English subtitles are available for those who need or want them.
I'm admittedly not the biggest Francophile, but his moody original cut of A Virgin Among the Living Dead—while not what I might call a great film—is a bizarre and haunting experience, led more by emotional intuition than a conventional plot. This is Franco at his most thoughtful and personal, expressing his own grief and thoughts about death and family through the medium of film. If you're drawn to le fantastique and the more mid-brow Euro-sleaze movies of the 1970s, it's definitely a movie worth watching at least once. Kino and Redemption's new Blu-ray set is clearly the best way to set about doing this; the new high definition transfer is excellent, and the disc includes some extras that will be invaluable for a fuller understanding of Franco's intent.
Le viol du vampire | Indicator Series | Limited Edition
1968
Amanti d'oltretomba
1965
1976
The Hanging Woman / La orgía de los muertos
1973
La notte che Evelyn uscì dalla tomba
1971
2018
1959
The Devil's Playground
1973
1963
1971
Lèvres de sang | Limited Edition | Indicator Series
1975
Caged Virgins | Vierges et vampires | Limited Edition
1971-1973
La comtesse noire
1973
The Mask of Satan / La maschera del demonio | The Mario Bava Collection
1960
Special 2-Disc Limited Edition
1971
Nachts, wenn Dracula erwacht / + Cuadecuc, Vampir
1970
Evil Heritage
1976
La rebelión de las muertas
1973
1974
4K Restoration | Danza macabra
1964