Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		2.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.0

Death Curse of Tartu Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 26, 2020

Note: This film is available as part of He Came from the Swamp: The William Grefé Collection.

Anyone who thought Arrow Video had already released the mother lode of Florida based exploitation fare with their gigantic The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast set from a few years ago had best be prepared to realize that the intrepid folks at this label known for catering to (cinematic) cultists of various stripes may have in fact only been offering an appetizer of sorts. It’s kind of amazing in a way to hear Herschell Gordon Lewis himself singing the praises of William Grefé in the feature length documentary They Came From the Swamp included in this new set devoted to Grefé’s work, but Lewis actually makes a point of stating that he was the interloper on territory Grefé had already staked out, and that Grefé couldn’t have been more gracious in welcoming Lewis to the far south fold, so to speak. It may be a little odd, then, that for at least some fans of exploitation cinema Herschell Gordon Lewis’ name may be better remembered than that of William Grefé, something that may seem especially unexpected given the fact that Grefé was at least occasionally able to muster A-list (or formerly A-list) talent like Rita Hayworth for some of his projects, an accomplishment that probably never would have even occurred to Lewis to attempt.

Part of what makes William Grefé's career so weirdly interesting is how he simply tried to have "product" for theaters, typically drive-ins, and in that regard, Death Curse of Tartu feels like a quickie knock-off made to fulfill some kind of pre-existing arrangement. As is discussed in some of the supplements in this set, Death Curse of Tartu was deliberately "designed" (that may be overstating any genuine thought or planning that went into making this effort) to play alongside Sting of Death . The two have a few things in common, including of course a Florida Everglades setting, as well as threats that come from that particular environment. In this case, however, there's not just one beast marauding through the jungle (and/or nearby swimming pools), there's a whole coterie of them courtesy of the fact that an ancient shamanic spirit (with a body) named Tartu (Douglas Hobart) rises from the (not quite?) dead to wreak havoc in a variety of forms, since he's magically able to morph into various creatures.

This is another relatively early Grefé effort which features a cast full of people whom few have probably heard of, and there's definitely a more amateurish feel to this outing than was even the case in Sting of Death. Grefé still manages to use his Florida locations surprisingly well, and there are some fun if goofy scenes involving various threats like snakes and alligators that almost seem lifted from one of those old Walt Disney True Life Adventures documentaries.

Death Curse of Tartu Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Death Curse of Tartu is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. Arrow's hardcover insert book has a full page devoted to the transfers of each of the films, starting with some generic overview verbiage and then some brief comments on each film:

All the films included in this collection have been restored from the best available materials. Whilst every effort has been made to offer up the best possible presentations, the results inevitably vary according to the condition of the source materials, some of which were in poor shape. We hope that this does not affect your enjoyment of the films.

Sting of Death was scanned from its original 35mm negative. The audio was sourced from a 35mm optical track negative.

Death Curse of Tartu was scanned from a 16mm print. The audio was also sourced from this print. The 16mm print - presumably a TV print - was found to have been trimmed for gore, so these missing shots were sourced from a lesser copy 35mm print and reinstated.

The Hooked Generation was scanned from a 16mm internegative. The audio was sourced from a 16mm optical track negative.

The Psychedelic Priest (AKA Electric Shades of Grey ) was scanned from a 16mm Ektachrome release print. The audio was also sourced from this print.

The Naked Zoo was scanned from its original 35mm negative, which had been recut to the Barry Mahon version of the film. In order to recreate William Grefé 's original director's cut, the footage unique to that version was sourced from a badly faded and warped 35mm workprint. The audio was sourced from a 35mm double edged track print and a 35mm track negative.

Mako: Jaws of Death was scanned from two 16mm prints, which were composited for best quality sections of each. The audio was also sourced from these prints.

Whiskey Mountain was scanned from a 16mm scope print. The audio was also sourced from this print.

All materials used in these restorations were supplied William Grefé , Lisa Petrucci / Something Weird Video, Vinegar Syndrome, Ed Tucker, and AGFA (American Genre Film Archive).

There is a definite drop off in quality between Sting of Death and this film, not necessarily due just to the differing sizes of the formats used for the transfers. Death Curse of Tartu's source element is in noticeably worse shape overall, with pretty rampant fading, lots of scratches and other damage, and a kind of overly worn appearance that may in fact make some older drive-in attendees a bit nostalgic. Flesh tones tend toward brown a lot of the time, and even relatively brightly lit outdoor material never really pops with much authority. Some of the "nature photography" almost looks like it was sourced from stock footage (I don't think it was, I'm just saying it looks like it), with sometimes even less detail and color saturation than the bulk of the presentation. There are wholescale changes in overall color temperature throughout this presentation, quite often within extant scenes (i.e., no edits, the color changes as the scene progresses).

Death Curse of Tartu Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Death Curse of Tartu features an LPCM Mono track which is, like the video component, hobbled by some age related wear and tear, including hiss, pops and cracks which recur pretty regularly throughout. There are some brief skips here which might be attributable to shoddy sound editing (they typically happen at video edit points), and some of the sound effects, like the insane drumming that appears interstitially throughout the film, come off as boxy and shallow. Dialogue is rendered clearly for the most part. Optional English subtitles are available.

Death Curse of Tartu Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

All of the films in this set save for Whiskey Mountain are presented two per disc, and so some supplements are more generalist in nature. This disc has the following supplements:

• Beyond the Movie: Monsters a Go Go (1080p; 11:43) is a fun piece by C. Courtney Joyner exploring the intersection of monsters with rock 'n' roll in various films.


• The Curious Case of Dr. Traboh: Spook Show Extraordinaire (1080p; 10:50) is a fun piece with Doug Hobart, who plays Tartu (Traboh is his name spelled backwards, in case that wasn't noticed) reliving his early days where he attended live "spook shows".


• Trailers

  Sting of Death (1080p; 2:06) has a watermark that says "SWV", which I'm assuming does not stand for Sisters With Voices.

  
  

  Death Curse of Tartu (1080p; 1:34)

• Archival Audio Commentaries for both films on this disc are provided by William Grefé and filmmaker Frank Henenlotter.


• Introduction to Sting of Death by William Grefé (1080p; 2:51) can be accessed under the Play Menu for that film. This is authored to move directly on to the feature after it plays.


• Introduction to Death of Tartu by William Grefé (1080p; 3:13) can be accessed under the Play Menu for that film. This is authored to move directly on to the feature after it plays.

Death Curse of Tartu Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This "second feature" knock off is undeniably goofy, but it does offer some good location photography and some relatively decent menace from all sorts of natural critters. Both video and audio have issues, but the supplements are very enjoyable, for those considering a purchase.