Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Castle Freak Blu-ray Movie Review

Freaks really do come out at night.

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf September 1, 2013

In the curious career of writer/director Stuart Gordon, his dedication to the work of author H.P. Lovecraft could never be called into question. With cult classics such as “Re-Animator” and “From Beyond,” the filmmaker has explored and cinematically transformed the celebrated writer’s fascination with depths of depravity and the hypnotic hold of terror, turning fandom into a personal quest. Picking a 1926 short story (“The Outsider”) as inspiration, Gordon returns to his Lovecraftian cravings with 1995’s “Castle Freak,” a bluntly titled genre exercise that provides the necessary amounts of lip-quaking panic and goopy gore, gifted a mildly gothic touch by the picture’s remote, forbidding setting. It’s a slim tale of redemption and survival, with excitable acting that practically transforms the effort into 3-D, but the macabre essentials are provided with skill by the helmer, who’s clearly enjoying this opportunity to romp around an empty castle, dreaming up way to repulse and creep-out the audience.

Receiving word that he’s inherited an Italian castle, John (Jeffrey Combs) is baffled by such a proposition, taking his estranged family, include wife Susan (Barbara Crampton) and blind daughter Rebecca (Jessica Dollarhide), overseas to inspect the estate and see what he can immediately sell. Burdened by memories of a tragic car accident caused by his alcoholism, John also views the trip as a chance for a fresh start, hoping to win back Susan, whose unforgiving attitude has paralyzed their marriage. Settling into the massive castle, John learns of its history, especially a sorrowful chapter involving the death of a young child named Giorgio, a loss the father feels a profound connection to. Struggling to make sense out of the inheritance, John is distracted by sounds emerging from the bowels of the building, with Rebecca particularly sensitive to noises, swearing there’s someone else in the castle. Soon, a monstrous threat stalks the estate, complicating John’s emotional downward spiral, with the skittish man hit by murder charges when a local prostitute goes missing, exposing the family to additional trauma as real evil steps out from the darkness.

The tone of “Castle Freak” emerges from its location. Granted access to an actual castle, Gordon summons a thunderclap mood of tension, pitting the dissolution of an American family against a gruesome cannibalistic force -- a twisted human being who’s been locked up inside a dungeon for most of his life, once subjected to meager food portions and daily whippings from his former caretaker. Without the budget to expand the drama, Gordon and screenwriter Dennis Paoli play the picture with surprising intimacy, concentrating on John’s unraveling as he tries to right some serious wrongs in his life, trusting the castle visit will help unite his family once again. The domestic disturbance angle is a solid foundation for “Castle Freak” to build on, electing to charge ahead with a sense of characterization over a genre head rush of macabre images, making the viewer feel something for John as the details of his downfall are gradually revealed. There’s some genuine drama to the feature that’s unexpected, helping to beef up a story that barely fills 90 minutes of screen time.

Just because Gordon’s interested in John’s internal strife doesn’t mean “Castle Freak” is light on gore. There’s plenty of squeamish material to survey, most connected to the monster’s prowl around the castle, tasting freedom for the first time after decades of imprisonment. Chewing off his own thumb to break out of his shackles, the beast enjoys touring the property, showing interest in young Rebecca. The ghoul also has a taste for prostitutes, biting off the breasts of one victim, while taking oral sex to a nightmarish extreme. The feature doesn’t dwell on violence, yet Gordon hopes to satisfy fans with a few grisly encounters, livening up “Castle Freak” with a dollop of shock value, while the make-up design on the titular threat is exceptional, giving the castrated, mutated figure real presence, helping the cast react with credible fear.

Although Gordon keeps “Castle Freak” cinematic with genre highlights, he allows the cast to treat the material as a theatrical production, with Combs trying to reach into the camera with his hyper- work. Method to a point of possible self-immolation in the name of emoting, Combs acts his way into a coma, heaving and wincing through John’s arc of self-awareness. Asked to play paranoid, terrified, and guilt-ridden, and Combs launches himself into orbit. Gordon doesn’t throttle the work in the least, permitting a stagey quality to hamper the purging. Equally big is Crampton, though limited screen time eases the volume of her performance.

Castle Freak Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.87:1 aspect ratio) presentation has a serious issue with crush. Black levels are suffocating, overwhelming the viewing experience, robbing make-up work and performances of the detail they require. It's hard to see to anything during the film when candles aren't lit, finding the cinematography's dark interests flattened and obscured. The image only finds life during daylight sequences, but even those moments feature solidified hair and dim background decoration. Print damage is present, along with rough reel changes and green edges on the right side of the frame during the finale. Grain is present, but not intrusive. Colors are minimal and unremarkable, showing limited life, while skintones are passable. Softness is apparent in a few sequences, but the image is crisp, with a few highlights of heated facial reactions offering texture.

Castle Freak Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 Dolby Digital sound mix doesn't carry any sort of true auditory power, but the basics of suspense and conversation are adequate. Dialogue exchanges are easily followed, with discernible emotional textures and clear accents. Surges in reaction remain contained, never hitting shrillness. Scoring is dulled but acceptable, giving as much support as possible for this type of limited endeavor. Atmospherics are goosed but welcome, with rainfall and dragging chains setting the mood. Hiss is minimal. There's a 5.1 Dolby Digital option as well, which circulates the mono mix in an uninspired manner, showing no evidence of inspired separation.

Castle Freak Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "Castle Speak" (6:05, HD) plops director Stuart Gordon down in the corner of a hotel room to discuss his approach to the picture, walking through his Lovecraftian inspiration, the actual haunted castle they shot the movie in, and his feelings on John's dramatic arc of heroism. An affable, soft-spoken guy, Gordon doesn't dig too deeply into the production experience, but there's a little taste of BTS information that's enjoyable.

• "Videozone: The Making of 'Castle Freak'" (9:26, SD) is an EPK featurette from the Full Moon vaults. Taking cameras to the Italian set, the "Castle Freak" shoot is exposed to a satisfying degree, with plenty of fly-on-the-wall footage of Gordon in action, directing actors and working out his shots. There's also an emphasis on the make-up work, turning actor Jonathan Fuller into a horrifying monster of a man. Interviews with Combs, Dollarhide, and Crampton add to the experience, sharing their thoughts on the themes of the movie, Gordon's genre touch, and the icky demands of special effects.

• "William Shatner Interview" (9:18, SD) slaps a tuxedo on the iconic actor and sits him down with Gordon, Combs, and Crampton to discuss their experiences with fear and ghostly encounters. Shatner being Shatner, he strives to be the star of the show, often interrupting his guests to an obnoxious degree. Unfortunately, there's no context provided here, leaving one to wonder why William Shatner would be involved with a horror interview program, especially one that requires formal wear.

• A Home Video Trailer (2:14, HD) has been included, grouped with other Full Moon advertisements.

Castle Freak Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Castle Freak" manages the basics with some degree of care, though any expectation for a more robust viewing experience won't be met, finding Gordon holding to dark spaces and a specific stone perimeter to extract his scares. Pacing isn't always up to snuff, yet the film scratches most of those B-movie itches, with enough bloodshed, nudity, and panicky performances to keep attention glued to onscreen actions.