The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 16, 2014

Roger Corman's "The Tomb of Ligeia" (1964) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; audio commentary with the American director; audio commentary with actress Elizabeth Shepherd; new interviews with assistant director David Tringham, composer Kenneth V. Jones, and clapper loader Bob Jordan; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Lady Rowena Trevanion

The Tomb of Ligeia is part of Arrow Video's Vincent Price in Six Gothic Tales by Edgar Allan Poe six-disc box set. It will also be available for purchase individually on February 23, 2015.

During a fox hunt, the beautiful Lady Rowena (Elizabeth Shepherd, Omen II) gets lost and enters a seemingly abandoned abbey where she encounters the wealthy widower Verden Fell (Vincent Price). He takes back to his home and bandages her injured ankle.

Intrigued by Verden Fell’s unusual appearance, personality and the place he calls home, Lady Rowena quickly falls in love with him. Verden Fell also becomes attracted to Lady Rowena, but something in his home complicates their relationship.

After a series of strange events, Lady Rowena eventually concludes that Verden Fell is still madly in love with his late wife, Ligeia, and that she might have possessed his soul. She attempts to escape and all hell breaks loose.

The Tomb of Ligeia was the second Edgar Allan Poe adaptation Roger Corman produced and shot in the United Kingdom. Its budget was fairly similar to those of Corman’s previous Poe films, but its style is drastically different.

Perhaps the biggest difference between The Tomb of Ligeia and the rest of the Poe films is the new atmosphere. Indeed, there is a shift from the straightforward gothic horror identity of the previous films to a more pronounced interest in the psychology of the different characters. As a result, in this film the treatment of light, shadow and color as well as the framing patterns are very different.

The film is divided into two contrasting sections. In the first the focus of attention is primarily on the relationship between the main characters and the environment in which they exist. There is an odd tension between them which Corman effectively uses to pre-arrange various conflicts. In other words, in this film the new atmosphere essentially takes over the role which the elaborate dialog has in the previous films.

The second section is more traditional. Corman and his team use familiar tricks to bring some of the traditional horror atmosphere back into the film. The visual effects at the end, in particular, are very similar to those seen in some of the previous Poe films.

The cast is good. As usual, Price looks very comfortable in front of the camera and his excellent facial expressions actually make a number of sequences look and feel far more atmospheric than they really are. Shepherd looks beautiful in her period dresses, but occasionally her reactions are notably overdone. Oliver Johnston is fantastic as the old servant.

The script for the film was written by Robert Towne. A decade later, Towne collaborated with Roman Polanksi on Chinatown and won an Oscar Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay.

The soundtrack was created by Kenneth V. Jones (Robert Aldrich’s Ten Seconds to Hell, Curtis Harrington’s Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?).

The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Roger Corman's The Tomb of Ligeia arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video.

The high-definition transfer has been struck from a pre-existing master and more often than not it shows. For example, there are traces of light fading and occasionally tiny specks and light scratches are quite easy to spot. There are some minor fluctuations in terms of color stability as well, though it has to be said that colors remain natural throughout the entire film. Generally speaking, detail and clarity are quite pleasing. There are parts of the film with some density fluctuations, but it is quite obvious that they are not a byproduct of poor digital work (see screencapture #18). There are no traces of compromising degraining or sharpening adjustments. Overall image stability is also good. To sum it all up, it is obvious that The Tomb of Ligeia could look better, but this is a pleasing organic presentation that makes it rather easy to enjoy the film. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. For the record, Arrow Video have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

Generally speaking, depth and clarity are very good. There are a couple of transitions with noticeable unevenness, but the effect never becomes distracting. (See the transition around the 00.20.09 mark). The dialog is stable and easy to follow. Some extremely mild background hiss occasionally makes its presence felt, but it does not affect clarity/sharpness. There are no digital distortions to report in this review.

The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Isolated Music & Effects Track - presented as LPCM 1.0.

• Trailer - original trailer for The Tomb of Ligeia. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Interviews -
  
  1. Paul Mayersberg - in this new video interview, Paul Mayersberg (assistant to the producer) discusses Roger Corman's legacy as a filmmaker and producer and his involvement with The Tomb of Ligeia, the film's unique atmosphere (and specifically the fact that this isn't a typical horror films), the casting process and how various sequences were shot, etc. The interview was conducted on September 30, 2014. In English, not subtitled. (25 min).
  
  2. David Tringham - in this new video interview, assistant director David Tringham recalls how he was invited to contribute to The Tomb of Ligeia and discusses Roger Corman's working methods. The interview was conducted on September 26, 2014. In English, not subtitled. (9 min).
  
  3. Bob Jordan - in this new video interview, clapper loader Bob Jordan discusses his contribution to The Tomb of Ligeia and the film's visual composition. The interview was conducted on October 7, 2014. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).
  
  4. Kenneth V. Jones - in this new video interview, composer Kenneth V. Jones discusses the scoring of The Tomb of Ligeia. The interview was conducted on March 11, 2014. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Commentaries -
  
  1. Roger Corman - in this audio commentary, Roger Corman discusses in great detail the visual style of The Tomb of Ligeia and the key differences between the previous Edgar Alan Poe adaptions/films he did and this film, the framing of different sequences, the art direction, the film's sound design, etc.
  
  2. Elizabeth Shepherd - actress Elizabeth Shepherd (The Lady Rowena Trevanion/The Lady Ligeia) discusses the shooting of different sequences from the film, the different costumes and outfits that were used, her interactions with Vincent Price during the production process, etc.

• Book - limited edition 200-page collector's book containing new writing on all films, an interview with Roger Corman, extracts from Vincent Price's autobiography and full reproductions of tie-in comic books for Tales of Terror, The Raven and The Tomb of Ligeia originally published in the sixties. (Please note that the book is included with Arrow Video's Vincent Price in Six Gothic Tales by Edgar Allan Poe box set. Pictures of the book are provided with this review).

The Tomb of Ligeia Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I like some of these early Roger Corman films because they are low-budget films with a certain atmosphere. They don't break any new boundaries and occasionally the acting in them could be a bit problematic, but almost without exception there is pure enthusiasm in them which together with the atmosphere mentioned above make them perfect to see very late at night. The Tomb of Ligeia is currently available in Arrow Video's Vincent Price in Six Gothic Tales by Edgar Allan Poe box set, but it will also be available for purchase individually in February. RECOMMENDED.