Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		2.5
Audio		2.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		1.5

The Ghastly Ones Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 5, 2021

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.

As it tended to with most Milligan outings, the lack of fulsome budget hampers Milligan's first color film, The Ghastly Ones, though there are some interesting elements at play that might in fact inspire some contemporary horror maestro to revisit the basic premise and try, try again (which, kinda hilariously, Milligan himself did with Legacy of Blood). The story exploits something at least a bit like the oft used "stay a night in a haunted mansion" trope, with three sisters called to their late father's abode, which is of course extremely spooky and isolated. They are tasked with staying there with their husbands for a few days (and nights) before dear old Dad's will can be read.

They're met by a couple of maids and a workman with some physical deformities (who is shown dispatching some folks in a pre-credits sequence), and of course a series of troublesome murders starts happening. The Ghastly Ones has a certain lunatic ambience which is perhaps best exemplified by the fact that as the body count keeps accruing, the survivors don't really seem overly worried about it all, and just carry on with their day to day activities.

The Ghastly Ones Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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.

The Ghastly Ones Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (HD; 2:01)


• Audio Commentaries

  With Actor Hal Borske and Filmmaker Frank Henenlotter

  
  

  With Cinefear.com's Keith Crocker

  
  

  With Filmmaker Fred Olen Ray (Partial)

• Blood Rites Alternate Title Sequence (SD; 1:07)


• Ghastly and Depraved (HD; 6:47) is a fun interview with "marketing whiz" Samuel M. Sherman. Kinda hilariously, the title for this is actually Depraved and Ghastly.


• Talk of the Trade (HD; 5:45) is an interview with Milligan actress Natalie Rogers.


• The Filthy Five (HD; 20:28) offers one reel from the German language version of a "lost" Milligan film. Optional English subtitles are available.


• Depraved! Trailer (HD; 1:54) is evidently all that's left of another lost Milligan film.

The Ghastly Ones Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.