Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 16, 2022

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Gothic Fantastico: Four Italian Tales of Terror.

This is the time of year when spookiness is almost literally in the air, but it may also be an appropriate time to consult any number of experts prone to helping identify genres, at least for those who may be interested in battening down exactly what this or that generic term might refer to. The recently reviewed megaset from Severin All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror spent a good deal of time in both an accompanying documentary as well as several commentary tracks trying to define exactly what "folk horror" might or might not be, with some fairly divergent opinions emerging, but perhaps thankfully, there seems to be at least a bit more consensus about what constitutes so-called "gothic horror". In that regard, Mark Thompson Ashworth provides introductions for the four films Arrow has aggregated for the Gothic Fantastico set, and in one of them he cites Touchstones of Gothic Horror, a book by David Huckvale which lists tropes like staircases, storms, ruins, heaving cleavage and ornate coffins, most of which at least are on display in this quartet at various times.

Lady Morgan's Vengeance kind of toes a somewhat odd line between relatively "standard" melodrama and more supernaturally tinged horror elements. If the result is something of a mishmash, there's still an increasingly spooky ambience to the story, which involves a young woman named Susan (Barbara Nelli), who is planning on marrying Pierre (Michel Forain), though the machinations of the smarmy Harold Morgan (Paul Muller) interfere, with the result being Pierre is presumed dead, and Susan's family urges her to marry Harold instead. It turns out, none too surprisingly, that Harold has ulterior motives, and with the help of a scheming maid named Lillian (Erika Blanc), Susan is soon driven more or less mad, which when things really start to cascade into unexpected territory.

Some of the supplements included with this release understandably make connections to the great old Gaslight, but that comparison only goes so far, in that Gaslight offered a hounded heroine who has to fight back against the nefarious force of her evil husband, while Lady Morgan's Vengeance, in approaching the same general underlying plot conceit, takes a completely "ghostly" tack in getting there, so to speak. This is a somewhat slow moving drama, though it does pick up energy as it moves along, and there is of course the delicious aspect of seeing various evil types getting their comeuppance, maybe or maybe not from "the beyond".

Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Lady Morgan's Vengeance is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow has lumped all four films together in terms of its verbiage on the transfers included in the insert booklet which accompanies this set:

The Blancheville Monster (Horror), The Third Eye (Il terzo occhio) and The Witch (La strega in amore) are presented in their original aspect ratios of 1.85:1 with Italian and English mono audio. Lady Morgan's Vengeance (La vendetta di Lady Morgan) is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with Italian mono audio.

The original 35mm camera negatives for The Blancheville Monster, The Third Eye and The Witch were scanned and restored in 2K resolution at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. The films were graded at R3Store Studios, London. The mono Italian and English language tracks were remastered from the optical sound negatives by L'Immagine Ritrovata and Bad Princess Productions, London.

The original 35mm camera negative for Lady Morgan's Vengeance was scanned in 2K resolution at Cinema Communications Services, Rome. Grading and restoration were completed at R3Store Studios, London. The mono Italian language track was remastered from the optical sound negative by Bad Princess Productions, London. The audio synch for all three films will appear slightly loose against the picture, due to the fact that the dialogue was recorded entirely in post production, as per the production standards of the period.

All original materials used for the restorations of The Blancheville Monster, The Third and Eye and The Witch were made available from Movietime.

All original materials used for the restoration of Lady Morgan's Vengeance were made available from Variety.

Lady Morgan's Vengeance is arguably the least pleasing looking transfer in this set, though that's not to suggest there's anything too concerning about the presentation. This source element has more consistently noticeable damage than the other films in the collection, and it also utilizes stock footage to a greater degree (that I was able to notice, anyway), and that can aspect can look decidedly rough at times, as in some establishing footage of an ocean voyage that goes horribly, horribly awry. Contrast is just slightly anemic looking when compared to the other films in this set, though, again, that is not to suggest there's anything overly problematic on display. Detail levels are generally quite good throughout, and fine detail on some of the luxe fabrics that various characters wear can be very appealing. Grain looks natural and I noticed no compression issues.

Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Lady Morgan's Vengeance features an LPCM Mono track in the original Italian. All of the original language tracks in this set have some of the same sonic qualities, including the somewhat boxy sound that seems to accompany the post looped efforts from this general era. Pierre Umilani's nicely evocative score sounds full bodied. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas


• Vengeance from Beyond (HD; 4:38) is an introduction by Mark Thompson Ashworth.


• The Grudge (HD; 21:29) is a visual essay by author and producer Kat Ellinger.


• When We Were Vampires (HD; 24:04) is an interview with actress Erika Blanc. Subtitled in English.


• Born to Be a Villain (HD; 20:03) is an interview with actor Paul Muller. Subtitled in English.


• The Pupillo Tapes (HD; 20:16) is an audio interview with director Massimo Pupillo, described as "newly edited". Subtitled in English.


• Original Cineromanzo (HD) offers a reproduction of the original Suspense publication from April 1971 as a quasi photo gallery.


• Trailer (HD; 2:24)


• Image Gallery (HD)

Lady Morgan's Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Lady Morgan's Vengeance may be more interesting in how it departs from the Gaslight mold rather than how it hews to it. The film takes a while to establish its forward momentum, but it has some fun twists and turns along the way. Technical merits are generally solid, and as usual Arrow has assembled an impressive array of supplements, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.