Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 11, 2021

Note: This film is available as part of Inner Sanctum Mysteries: The Complete Film Series.

There may be two schools of thought with regard to those who make horror films, with one group opting for graphic, on screen representations of whatever traumas characters experience, and with another group thinking that it’s best not to show every jot and tittle of various nefarious behaviors, in the belief that the audience’s imagination can make things even scarier than any overt offerings can. In that regard, it’s interesting to think about some of the old radio shows that frequently featured mystery, thriller or horror elements, since it probably goes without saying that a broadcast without a video element necessarily requires the active participation of a listener’s imagination in order to make everything “click”. There were any number of “spooky” radio programs back in the day, including such well remembered efforts as Suspense (which kind of amazingly managed to last until 1962), though Inner Sanctum owed its genesis to another medium that requires an active imagination — namely, reading. Simon and Schuster launched an imprint called Inner Sanctum in 1930 which did traffic in mystery and thriller novels, but which kind of humorously also offered other genres, including romance.

In 1941, the radio edition premiered in January and became a staple of the American broadcast landscape, with a licensing deal with Simon and Schuster that required regular advertising of whatever the latest Inner Sanctum book was. A little bit over two years later, Universal did another licensing deal with Simon and Schuster to use the Inner Sanctum title, though as the commentary on Calling Dr. Death gets into, Universal was kind of aggressively circumscribed by both the publishing house and the radio version in that the film company could not use the radio sound effect of a creaking door (which memorably opened and closed each episode), and was also prohibited from actually adapting any of the Simon and Schuster books (which may seem like a kind of odd requirement). Universal ended up making six titles under their Inner Sanctum imprint, with all of them offering Lon Chaney, Jr. a chance to do something other than grow hair (The Wolf Man), get wrapped in ragged bandages (The Mummy's Tomb) or attempt to maraud around in Boris Karloff's oversized boots (The Ghost of Frankenstein). With regard to the two "schools" of horror mentioned above, for reasons probably related as much to the production era as to any deliberate stylistic choice, things can be somewhat discursive in terms of on screen horror.

Those with jaded senses of humor may find the title Pillow of Death kind of comically reminiscent of the "comfy chair" that plays into the famous Spanish Inquisition sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus, in that a nice, soft, and, well, comfy pillow would hardly seem to be a threatening "device". This final Inner Sanctum film seems to want to eschew some of went before (including the "crystal ball head" introductions), and has a somewhat humorous undertone itself, making it a kind of semi-sibling to other "spooky comedies" like The Ghost Breakers.

Lawyer Wayne Fletcher (Lon Chaney, Jr.) is involved in an unhappy marriage but has "backup romantic interest" available courtesy of secretary Donna Kincaid (Brenda Joyce). When Mrs. Fletcher ends up suffocated, Wayne is of course the prime suspect, but a "mentalist" along the lines of the character Chaney himself played in The Frozen Ghost , a guy with the unusual name of Julian Julian (J. Edgar Bromberg) who had a history with Mrs. Fletcher, claims he can get to the bottom of what actually happened. Donna's harridan aunts (the hilarious Rosalind Ivan and Clara Blandick) are also involved, as is a man named Bruce Malone (Bernard B. Thomas), who has a thing for Donna.

Despite being filled with red herrings galore, Pillow of Death has some genuine surprises in store, at least for those who have seen some of the previous Inner Sanctum mysteries and guessed the "twists" from virtually the outset. As with several of the Inner Sanctum films, this one is probably too rushed to fully hit the bullseye, but it has a nice balance between angst and a kind of sly sense of humor, and the wrap up is genuinely well done.

Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Pillow of Death is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka! Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. This is clearly the outlier in terms of overall quality in the Inner Sanctum set, with a noticeably more "dupey" look that has a coarser grain field, shallower contrast and kind of overall fuzzier appearance than many of the rest of the films offered in the collection. (It's interesting to note in this regard that this film still bears a "Universal presents", rather than RealArt, as was the case in another "dupey" looking transfer in this set, The Frozen Ghost.) These aspects are probably only further exacerbated by the glut of almost completely dark scenes, as well as quite a few optical dissolves, some of which look even rougher than the rest of the presentation. There's still decent detail to be had, especially in some of the more brightly lit close-ups, but this is arguably the least pleasing transfer in the set.

Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Unlike the video element, which is noticeably more ragged than the other films in this set, this film's LPCM 2.0 Mono track is very much in keeping with the other audio presentations in the collection. While there's a bit of background noise at times, dialogue comes through without any major problems, and scoring is also secure. Optional English subtitles are available.

Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Eureka! has packaged this set on two discs, with both film specific and more generalist supplements on each disc. Here is a list of all the contents, including supplements, on both discs.

Disc One

• Films

  Calling Dr. Death

  Audio Commentary by C. Courtney Joyner and Regina Le Borg can be accessed under Calling Dr. Death on the Main Menu.

  
  

  Trailer (HD; 1:07) can be accessed under Calling Dr. Death on the Main Menu.

Weird Woman

Audio Commentary by Justin Humphreys and Del Howison can be accessed under Weird Woman on the Main Menu.




Trailer (HD; 1:22) can be accessed under Weird Woman on the Main Menu.

Dead Man's Eyes

Trailer (HD; 1:05) can be accessed under Dead Man's Eyes on the Main Menu.

• Kim Newman on the Inner Sanctum Mysteries (HD; 26:56) is another enjoyable interview with the typically affable and informative Newman.


• This is The Inner Sanctum (HD; 31:47) is another interesting overview of the series, which time spent on each film.


• Radio Episodes

  The Amazing Death of Mrs. Putnam (25:15)

  
  

  The Black Seagull (28:46)

  
  

  The Skull That Walked (29:42)

Disc Two

• Films

  The Frozen Ghost

  Trailer (HD; 1:11) can be accessed under The Frozen Ghost on the Main Menu.

Strange Confession

Audio Commentary by Peter Atkins and C. Courtney Joyner can be accessed under Strange Confession on the Main Menu.

Pillow of Death

• The Creaking Door: Inside the Inner Sanctum (HD; 17:37) focuses on the radio broadcast.


• Martin Kosleck Interview (HD; 11:00) begins with Kosleck insisting there are no small parts, or at least none that he ever took.


• Radio Episodes

  Skeleton Bay (29:44)

  
  

  The Man Who Couldn't Die (29:22)

  
  

  Death of a Doll (25:08)

Pillow of Death Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

You can sense a certain entropy creeping into the Inner Sanctum series by this point, but it's also obvious that Universal wasn't averse to maybe injecting a hint of humor into the proceedings. This may not be overly memorable, but it's enjoyable on its own small scale level. Video is definitely improvable, but audio is fine, for those who are considering a purchase.