6.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 1.5 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
Three married couples are forced to spend the night in a Victorian-era house where they start getting killed off by a deranged psycho who's bent on claiming an inheritance they are all entitled to.
Starring: Carol Vogel, Richard Romanus, Veronica Radburn, Maggie Rogers, Hal BorskeHorror | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.38:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
BDInfo
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 2.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
Note: This film is available as part of
The Dungeon of Andy Milligan.
Lovers of what might be charitably termed Grade Z Cinema have had a number of outstanding releases by a variety of labels over the past few
years.
Arrow has offered fans surprisingly deluxe-ified (that's a word, I insist) editions of The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast and Weird Wisconsin: The Bill Rebane Collection, among others, while Severin Films has gotten
into
exploring this decidedly
odd nook and/or cranny with releases like
Al Adamson: The Masterpiece Collection. Severin's back with more, um, "masterpieces" with this inventively packaged homage to the
late Andy Milligan, a kinda sorta auteur whose professional life had more than its fair share of hurdles, and whose personal life
unfortunately
ended up not being much better. The 14 films (with one bonus film in HD, Toga Party) aggregated in this set are exploitation outings at
their "finest" (?), which means those with more
patrician tastes are probably well advised to steer completely clear of this release. Those with grittier sensibilities will find some at times oddly
entertaining
movies and Severin's usual supply of appealing supplements.
The Ghastly Ones is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.38:1. Severin's booklet included with this release has the following information on the transfer:
The Ghastly Ones has been scanned and restored in 2K from a 35mm release print. All pre-print elements are believed lost or destroyed.Considering this a blow up from a 16mm source, there's decent clarity and generally okay if not mind blowing detail levels in evidence throughout this presentation. The palette looks just a little aged, but actually pops surprisingly well, all things considered, albeit arguably slightly skewed toward brown. As with many of the presentations in this set, there's some pretty bad damage at times, including quite a few major (and often green) scratches, and other nicks and blemishes. Also as with some of the other Milligan films in this set, some perceived softness at various moments may actually be due at least in part to ineffective focus pulling.
The Ghastly Ones features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track which is, like many of the tracks in the overall Milligan set, kind of brashly thin and strident in the upper registers. Also as with many of Milligan's films, amplitude ebbs and flows almost comically at times, meaning dialogue clarity can be variable. Background hiss is evident in some of the quieter moments. Optional English subtitles make traversing these challenges perhaps a bit easier.
- With Actor Hal Borske and Filmmaker Frank Henenlotter
- With Cinefear.com's Keith Crocker
- With Filmmaker Fred Olen Ray (Partial)
This is in some ways the perfect way to start your "adventure" with Milligan's films, if you're not a previous "convert" (?), since this low budget affair offers a lot of what Milligan fans have come to expect, including hyperbolic performances, incompetent framings and at times incoherent story telling. Many of the films in this set can't completely overcome the technical limitations of the source elements utilized for the transfers, but within the context of this set as a whole, The Ghastly Ones looks surprisingly good despite some manifest problems. The soundtrack may be too harshly bright in the higher registers to be a comfortable listen for some. This disc has some of the most enjoyable supplements in the set, for those who are considering making a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
Legacy of Horror | Theatrical and TV Cuts
1978
1984
Garu, the Mad Monk
1970
1970
1974
1972
1970
1970
1972
1968
Pelvis
1977
1970
1965
Slipcover Edition Limited to 2,500 | SOLD OUT
1973
1942
Director's Cut
1963
1945
1939
The Hanging Woman / La orgía de los muertos
1973
Slipcover in Original Pressing
1990