Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

The Man Who Finally Died Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 28, 2023

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Severin Films' Cushing Curiosities set.

Severin has celebrated arguably lesser known efforts featuring one of the more legendary horror actors often associated with Hammer Studios with both The Eurocrypt of Christopher Lee Collection and The Eurocrypt of Christopher Lee Collection 2. Now they're doing similar service for that other legendary horror actor often associated with Hammer Studios, and one who of course famously co-starred with Lee in any number of films. As the title of this collection may suggest, the offerings in Cushing Curiosities are a bit peculiar at times, but that perhaps only gives them added allure for a certain demographic. Severin has assembled an impressive array of supplements, including some excellent commentaries by Jonathan Rigby, who also contributes an incredibly thorough overview of Cushing's career in a perfect bound booklet included with this set. Adding to the allure here are some generally solid technical merits (with perhaps one notable exception).

This is another offering in the Cushing set where Cushing is most definitely a supporting player, albeit one who is a kind of lynchpin for certain plot dynamics in this particular case. The main story here revolves around a post-World War II Europe where pasts are shrouded and information may be decidedly hard to come by. Joe Newman (Stanley Baker) is an expat German ( and jazz pianist, to boot!) returning to Bavaria after having lived in England for many years, back "home" to try to track down his mysterious father, who disappeared either during World War II or shortly after hostilities ceased for reasons which are not instantly clear. His quest seems to be over pretty much as soon as it has begun, but without offering any spoilers (which turn out to be red herrings in any case), suffice it to say he becomes intrigued (and perhaps ensnared) by a a German doctor named Peter von Brecht (Peter Cushing), who may know more than he's initially willing to let on vis a vis what happened to Newman's father.

This ends up being another kind of nascent Cold War thriller that probably hints at a post-war paranoia even more than Suspect does, though it also gives in to certain hyperbolic tendencies in its last act in particular once Newman uncovers a probably over convoluted identity switch that of course plays back into his quest to find dear old Dad. Baker makes for a compelling lead here, and some of his scenes with Cushing really crackle with considerable energy.

The Man Who Finally Died Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Man Who Finally Died is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.34:1. Severin has packaged this film and Suspect on one disc, stating on the shared back cover that both films were "scanned in 2K from the original negatives by Studio Canal". This is one of only two 'Scope offerings in this set (the other is Cone of Silence), and it looks great for the most part, with typically excellent detail levels throughout, even with the understandable tendency on the part of director Quentin Lawrence and cinematographer Stephen Dade to utilize a lot of midrange framings in order to exploit the wider aspect ratio. Contrast is solid throughout, and grayscale offers some real nuance, especially given the fact that a lot of the film plays out in rather confined interior spaces. Grain resolves naturally throughout.

The Man Who Finally Died Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Man Who Finally Died features a nice sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. There is some attention paid to background ambient environmental effects, as in some of the location work which establishes Newman getting to a Bavarian village, but really this is another "talk fest" that doesn't even really exploit the supposed plot point of Newman playing jazz piano. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Man Who Finally Died Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Kim Newman, Author of Anno Dracula, and Barry Forshaw, Author of Brit Noir

The Man Who Finally Died Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Of all the films in this set, The Man Who Finally Died may offer one of the better showcases for Cushing while also surrounding him with a generally inventive (if over complicated) plot and some great co-stars. Technical merits are solid and the Kim Newman commentary very enjoyable. Recommended.