6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Mrs Golden is a seductive matron living in Miami with her wheelchair-bound, wealthy husband. Frustrated, she cheats with a young author and foots the bill for his wanton drug parties. The gravy train abruptly derails when her husband finds out, and murder ensues.
Starring: Rita Hayworth, Steve Oliver, Fay Spain, Ford Rainey, Joe E. RossDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Note: This film is available as part of He Came from the Swamp: The William Grefé Collection.
Anyone who thought Arrow Video had already released the mother lode of Florida based exploitation fare with their gigantic The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast set
from a few years ago had best be prepared to realize that the intrepid folks at this label known for catering to (cinematic) cultists of various stripes
may have in fact only been offering an appetizer of sorts. It’s kind of amazing in a way to hear Herschell Gordon Lewis himself singing the praises of
William Grefé in the feature length documentary They Came From the Swamp included in this new set devoted to Grefé’s work, but Lewis
actually makes a point of stating that he was the interloper on territory Grefé had already staked out, and that Grefé couldn’t have been
more gracious in welcoming Lewis to the far south fold, so to speak. It may be a little odd, then, that for at least some fans of exploitation cinema
Herschell Gordon Lewis’ name may be better remembered than that of William Grefé, something that may seem especially unexpected given the fact
that Grefé was at least occasionally able to muster A-list (or formerly A-list) talent like Rita Hayworth for some of his projects, an
accomplishment that probably never would have even occurred to Lewis to attempt.
The Naked Zoo is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's hardcover insert book has a full page devoted to the transfers of each of the films, starting with some generic overview verbiage and then some brief comments on each film:
All the films included in this collection have been restored from the best available materials. Whilst every effort has been made to offer up the best possible presentations, the results inevitably vary according to the condition of the source materials, some of which were in poor shape. We hope that this does not affect your enjoyment of the films.While there are definite and noticeable dropoffs in quality in some (relatively brief) interstitial material added to make this so-called "Director's Cut" (see above), The Naked Zoo has one of the stronger and more consistent looking transfers in this set. The opening and closing of this version are among its weaker moments, with really bad damage, extreme fading and some warping. Otherwise, though, the palette is rather lush at times, and a lot of the reds, purples and blues resonate extremely well. Some of the (hilariously) "mod" costuming also offers good opportunities for fine detail on both patterns and textures of fabrics. Clarity is a bit variable, some of which is due to what looks like diffusion filters used to shoot Hayworth. Grain resolves naturally for the most part (some of the interstitial additions are occasionally a bit on the ragged looking side in terms of grain).
Sting of Death was scanned from its original 35mm negative. The audio was sourced from a 35mm optical track negative.
Death Curse of Tartu was scanned from a 16mm print. The audio was also sourced from this print. The 16mm print - presumably a TV print - was found to have been trimmed for gore, so these missing shots were sourced from a lesser copy 35mm print and reinstated.
The Hooked Generation was scanned from a 16mm internegative. The audio was sourced from a 16mm optical track negative.
The Psychedelic Priest (AKA Electric Shades of Grey ) was scanned from a 16mm Ektachrome release print. The audio was also sourced from this print.
The Naked Zoo was scanned from its original 35mm negative, which had been recut to the Barry Mahon version of the film. In order to recreate William Grefé 's original director's cut, the footage unique to that version was sourced from a badly faded and warped 35mm workprint. The audio was sourced from a 35mm double edged track print and a 35mm track negative.
Mako: Jaws of Death was scanned from two 16mm prints, which were composited for best quality sections of each. The audio was also sourced from these prints.
Whiskey Mountain was scanned from a 16mm scope print. The audio was also sourced from this print.
All materials used in these restorations were supplied William Grefé , Lisa Petrucci / Something Weird Video, Vinegar Syndrome, Ed Tucker, and AGFA (American Genre Film Archive).
The Naked Zoo features a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that has occasional slight signs of age related wear and tear, but which sounds surprisingly spry, all things considered. There are two actually pretty decent tunes in this version sung by Steve Alaimo which sound fine (the opening song has some slight problems due to the really problematic source, which is also more than evident in the video presentation). Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout, and optional English subtitles are available on the Director's Cut. Hilariously, you can hear the opening theme music actually slow down in the Barry Mahon version before the Alaimo vocals kick in, which I assume was done to make the lyric more intelligible. Also hilariously, the Canned Heat performance Mahon added to his cut features the band "unplugged", albeit still playing electric instruments, which reminded me of an old Brazilian television special featuring Sergio Mendes which had the keyboardist on a roof "playing" an unplugged Fender Rhodes, while the music on the soundtrack hilariously featured acoustic grand piano.
All of the films in this set save for Whiskey Mountain are presented two per disc, and so some supplements are more generalist in nature. This disc has the following supplements:
- Original Trailer (720p; 1:35) also has the "SWV" (Something Weird Video) watermark seen in some other trailers.
- Original Promo (720p; 10:24)
- CBS Promo (720p; 00:33)
- Behind the Scenes News Segment (720p; 2:09)
- The Naked Zoo (1080p; 2:00)
- Mako: Jaws of Death (1080p; 8:10)
Oliver is actually quite good in this film as a kind of wastrel marauding his way through female "marks", but the film could have definitely used more focus. Its kind of "shocker" aspect toward the end just comes off as unintentionally hilarious. While the interstitials used to recreate the "Director's Cut" have some really bad damage, the bulk of this transfer looks rather nice, and audio is similarly generally good. As with the other films in this set, the supplements are great, for those who are considering a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1971
1968
1966
1977
1966
The Jaws of Death
1976
Teenage Psycho Killer
1975
1973
Forbidden Fruit: The Golden Age of the Exploitation Picture, Vol. 6
1949
1970
A Smell of Honey / Maneater
1966
Black Sister's Revenge
1976
Cindy | 4K Restoration | Slipcover in Original Pressing
1976
1976
The Shocking Truth / The Kiss That Kills
1933
1979
1968
1970
1975
1985