Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

The Nude Vampire 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 2, 2024

Jean Rollin's "The Nude Vampire" (1970) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by critics Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby; archival interviews with cast members; archival programs with Jean Rollin; vitange promotional materials; and more. In French or English, with optional English and English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

If you do not feel the pull of the strange place where the young woman is chased during the opening ten or so minutes, stop Jean Rollin’s The Nude Vampire and choose another film to finish your night with. From there, The Nude Vampire gets weirder -- a lot weirder.

The young woman is chased by several men wearing bizarre masks of the kind that members of a cult would use in a ritual. She nervously exits a lavish mansion and then tries to disappear into the thick shadows of the night. Moments later, while the men with the bizarre masks begin surrounding her, she encounters a handsome stranger who is instantly overwhelmed by her beauty. She gently touches his face, as if to make sure he is not like the men with the bizarre masks, grabs his hand, and pulls him forward. But it is too late. The two are cornered, the man with the spookiest mask fires a gun, and she drops dead, right next to the handsome stranger. Having just witnessed a most surreal murder, the handsome stranger somehow manages to get away.

In the days ahead, the handsome stranger accidentally discovers that the beautiful girl is held captive by his father, who together with various other wealthy men and women organizes secret seances to unlock the secret to immortality. The beautiful girl, who is apparently a living vampire, is regularly treated as a guinea pig in an office where her blood is drawn, studied, and prepared for use during the seances.

Rollin creates such a heavy atmosphere that the construction of the narrative and the supposedly important relationships at the center of it quickly become irrelevant. This is why viewing The Nude Vampire very much feels like an unexpected dive into an uncharacteristically large mental asylum where a motley crew of characters has staged an ambitious play. The beginning and end of this play are trivial, but while it lasts, it oozes a heavy atmosphere that is quite remarkable.

Obviously, a film that is this fluid cannot appeal to everyone. The atmosphere, for instance, is created with a stylization that is reflective of Rollin’s very particular definitions of beauty, erotica, surrealism, suspense, etc. Also, the use of unique locations is of crucial importance, but often some aspects of their attractiveness remain visible only to Rollin. Again, this could produce interesting surprises -- particularly in films where Rollin shoots in or around ancient castles or historic areas -- but sometimes genuinely puzzling material as well.

While not the most lavish Rollin film, The Nude Vampire is unquestionably one of his most stylish films. Rollin shot the overwhelming majority of it at the stunning Castle of Rochefort-en-Yvelines, which provides the type of grand visuals that emerge in Alain Resnais’ classic mind-bender Last Year at Marienbad. A small segment was done at the naturally very beautiful area Plage de Pourville, where the huge cliffs and the ocean are featured in equally impressive visuals.

Rollin used the services of cinematographer Jean-Jacques Renon, who lensed a lot of explicit genre and hardcore films, arguably the biggest of which was Caligula and Messalina. After The Nude Vampire, which was their first collaboration, Rollin and Renon shot several other films together.

Indicator/Powerhouse Films’ release presents an exclusive new 4K restoration of The Nude Vampire that was sourced from the film’s original camera negative. Also, it presents two versions of the film, French and English, which are identical. The French version features the original French audio track that was recorded during the production process. The English version uses an English dub track. However, in the past, both versions of the film have been presented on home video releases at the same time.

The Nude Vampire 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Indicator/Powerhouse Films' 4K Blu-ray release of The Nude Vampire does not have a standard Blu-ray copy of the film. If you need one, you must pick up the standard Blu-ray release.

The release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of the film, which can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I viewed it in its entirety with Dolby Vision grade and quickly sampled a few areas with the HDR grade. I also spent some time with the 1080p presentation, which will be addressed in a different article.

Please note that all screencaptures that are included with this article are taken from the Blu-ray. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the content on the 4K Blu-ray, including the actual color values of this content.

I like the new 4K makeover a lot. I have the Redemption label's original release of The Nude Vampire, which was very nice, but had some obvious limitations that are now effectively eliminated. For example, some darker areas used to look a bit flat and anemic. On the native 4K presentation, they have a rather impressive dynamic range with noticeably better color balance. In fact, delineation, clarity, depth, and color balance are better everywhere, but darker areas reveal the best improvements. Grain exposure is a lot healthier as well. Some fluctuations exist, but they are introduced by the original cinematography. Image stability is excellent. I did some comparisons with the 1080p presentation of the new 4K makeover as well. I think that the 1080p presentation is a pretty dramatic upgrade in quality, too. The Dolby Vision grade adds slightly more depth and richness to the visuals, but the 1080p presentation is just as convincing.

The Nude Vampire 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0. Optional English and English SDH subtitles are provided.

The French track is the original audio track for The Nude Vampire. However, the English track, which is a dub, has always been made available with it. It is not bad. It is rather nicely done and is effective. However, I would recommend that you view the film with the French track, which is more natural. I did not encounter any anomalies on it to report in our review.

The Nude Vampire 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Introduction - presented here is an archival introduction to the film by Jean Rollin. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

• Le Passage - in this program, actors Natalie Perrey, Jean-Noël Delamarre, and Jean-Pierre Bouyxou recall their work with Jean Rollin and initial impressions of The Nude Vampire. In French, with English subtitles. (9 min).

• Jean Rollin: Fragment d'un dialogue - presented here are extracts from archival interviews with Jean Rollin conducted by Gouyette between 1998 and 2003. In English, not subtitled. (20 min).

• Lucas Balbo: An Anarchist Vampire in Paris - in this program, archivist Lucas Balbo addresses Jean Rollin's relationship with the anarchist movement, which his father was involved with as well. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

• Virginie Selavy: Countercultural Gothic - in this program, critic Virginie Selavy discusses The Nude Vampire. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Trailer One - presented here is a remastered English language trailer for The Nude Vampire. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Trailer Two - presented here is a remastered French language trailer for The Nude Vampire. In French, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• Image Galleries -
  
  1. Original Promotional Material
  2. Behind the Scenes
  3. Additional Photography

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby.

• Book - 80-page book with a selection of new and archival writing including a new essay by David Jenkins, an archival introduction by director Jean Rollin, an archival interview with Rollin, and technical credits.

The Nude Vampire 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Nude Vampire and Last Year at Marienbad are extremely similar films. It is true that one of them is far better directed, acted, and lensed, but the undeniable flaws of the other are what make it intriguing. Obviously, these films are genuine mind-benders with unique atmosphere that not every viewer will appreciate, so they need to be approached with caution. I have always liked The Nude Vampire a bit more than I should, so it is great that the new 4K makeover Indicator/Powerhouse Films prepared for it turned out so well. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.