Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 7, 2019

Note: This film is available either as a standalone release or as part of The Blood Island Collection.

H.G. Wells’ chilling 1896 novel about a mad scientist creating human-animal hybrids on an isolated blip in the ocean has been adapted for films several times, with manifestly different results. 1932’s Island of Lost Souls, 1977’s The Island of Dr. Moreau and 1996’s The Island of Dr. Moreau are probably the three most widely known adaptations, but there have been others, as mentioned in my The Twilight People Blu-ray review (The Twilight People being among them). There are a number of interesting connections between The Twilight People and at least three of the four films Severin has assembled in its Blood Island Collection, including star John Ashley, director Eddie Romero and a Philippines location. All of the Blood Island films, like The Twilight People, also obviously owe their genesis to Wells’ original conception, though none of the films actually credit him. While the inherent quality of any and/or all of the Blood Island films may be questionable (and of course up to individual tastes), Severin has assembled a really interesting package here that includes some excellent supplements which may provide further allure for the “franchise”’s fan base while also perhaps offering a bit of a selling point for those who may not know of or especially like any of the outings. Hemisphere Films "marketing consultant" Samuel M. Sherman's commentaries for some of the films are among those supplements, and Sherman makes it clear that no one associated with these productions had any illusions about making "Art", these were all churned out as drive-in fare, with an emphasis on sex and gore that had proven to be a winning combination for largely teen audiences.

Terror is a Man featured a kind of William Castle-esque gimmick of a bell ringing in order to warn squeamish viewers to cover their eyes lest they see a surgery in process, and another Castle-esque conceit serves as a prelude to Mad Doctor of Blood Island, with an “oath” (evidently written and even filmed by commentator Samuel M. Sherman) where viewers supposedly drank the “green blood” that is part of the film’s underlying plot mechanics (see screenshot 14), though in this case the liquid is evidently meant to be some kind of a precautionary antidote against ever turning into this film's "horrifying" creature. The fact that this opening vignette also shows a series of teens engaged in pretty “enthusiastic” making out may have provided a bit of a subliminal hint as to what the filmmakers “really” expected their viewers to be engaging in as the film unspooled at drive- ins.

Kind of hilariously, Mad Doctor of Blood Island might be thought of as more “PETA-friendly” than its predecessors by having the human hybrid in this case be part plant (with chlorophyll blood, hence the “green” opening sequence). While not really a sequel in any true sense of the word, there are certain holdovers from Brides of Blood, including a crusading doctor named Bill Foster (John Ashley) who is investigating a quasi-radiation like disease on a tropical isle. And of course there's a marauding human hybrid who seems to be intent on pursuing the local native girls.

This is for my money the best of the Blood Island films, both in terms of its absolutely overt sexuality (the very first shot is of a totally naked native girl running through the forest), as well as its overall riff on the general Wells premise. The film is well plotted within a hyperbolic and admittedly predictable drive-in fare, with “personal” stories involving this film’s (in this case unmarried) sexpot, Sheila Willard (Angelique Pettyjohn), who of course catches the eye of both Bill and the beast. The “reveal” about who the beast “really” is will not surprise anyone, nor will the villainy of Dr. Lorca (Eddie Garcia) deceive anyone, even if it takes Bill a while to catch on.

Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mad Doctor of Blood Island is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. The back cover of this release states "scanned in 4K from a recently discovered camera negative and presented totally uncut for the first time ever". This is to my eyes easily the most consistent and pleasing looking transfer in the Blood Island Collection. While there are some minor variances in color temperature and densities, on the whole this really nicely reproduces the wide gamut of colors on display. There are numerous standout examples, including the great pops of purple on Sheila's dress as she runs panicked through the jungle, or some of the nicely deep blue tropical skies. There are a couple of moments where things might tip slightly toward purple, in somewhat the same way as seen in Brides of Blood, but not as extreme. Grain resolves organically throughout the presentation.

Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mad Doctor of Blood Island features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono mix that exhibits some of the same slightly muffled upper end as Brides of Blood. That may actually help with regard to some of the more strident cues in Tito Alevaro's score since, as I mention below, there are some noticeable intonation issues, especially with regard to some of the brass. There's a lot of (sometimes kind of funny) screaming in this film, and there is a similar slightly masked sound to some of the higher frequency effects. It's a bit difficult to hear dialogue at times in this track, but there are optional subtitles in that regard.

Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Tombs of the Dead: Interview with Pete Tombs, Co-Author of "Immoral Tales" (1080p; 8:40) offers more of Tombs' thoughts on the franchise, culled from interviews for the Mark Hartley documentary Machete Maidens Unleashed!.


• A Taste of Blood: Interview with Critic Mark Holcomb (1080p; 12:11) is more analysis by Holcomb, also coming from the interviews Hartley conducted for his piece.


• The Mad Director of Blood Island: Archival Interview with Co-Director Eddie Romero (1080p; 6:38) offers more sit down time with the ebullient Romero.


• Mad Doctor of Blood Island Trailer (1080p; 2:53)


• Chiller Carnival of Blood Trailer (1080p; 2:04)


• Poster and Stills Gallery (1080p; 5:43)


• Audio Commentary with Horror Film Historians Nathaniel Thompson and Howard S. Berger is accessible under the Audio Menu.


• Audio Commentary with Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman is accessible under the Audio Menu.

Additionally a Soundtrack CD is included offering Tito Alevaro's rather interesting score. A lot of the cues should appeal to fans of the late 50s "Exotica" movement, since many sound a lot like Lex Barker or even some of Dominic Frontiere's work in the idiom, but many are hampered by some pretty poor intonation on the part of brass and winds, something that's of course also evident in the film. There are quite a few bonus tracks of alternate takes and the like with what I assume is Alevaro giving direction or calling slates.

Mad Doctor of Blood Island Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This is my personal favorite of the Blood Island films. From the first "blood oath" sequence with amorous teens, to the the overt sexuality on display throughout the feature, it seems obvious to me that Hemisphere felt they had figured out what was on the target demographic's mind when they came to a drive-in. This features the best video presentation in the Blood Island Collection, but audio has a few issues. The supplementary package is very enjoyable.