6.8 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Five men trapped in the basement vault of an office building share visions with each other of their demise. Stories revolve around vampires, bodily dismemberment, east Indian mysticism, an insurance scam, and an artist who kills by painting his victims' deaths...
Starring: Dawn Addams, Tom Baker (I), Michael Craig (I), Denholm Elliott, Glynis JohnsHorror | 100% |
Comic book | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS 2.0 Mono
1509 kbps
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Note: This film is currently available as part of the double feature Tales From the Crypt / Vault of Horror.
That “usual gang of idiots” at the iconic Mad Magazine probably relished in the unintended irony that the company that published the
self described “rag” had originally been called Educational Comics. For millions of Baby Boomers, Mad was indeed a major source of a
certain kind of “education,” though by the time EC started making Mad its main focus, the “E” in its title had already been changed to
represent “Entertaining” rather than “Educational.” That change was prompted at least in part by the company’s previous emphasis on
typically whimsical horror outings like Tales from the Crypt and The Vault of Horror, brainchildren of William Gaines, the son of
EC’s founder Max Gaines. The strictures of the early Eisenhower era ultimately brought the censor’s hammer down rather hard on EC and
some of its publishing kin for supposedly contributing to the perceived delinquency of minors, which is when EC decided to promote
delinquency in a different way by concentrating on Mad. But for kids who had at least a few years relishing in the delights of
EC’s horror magazines, indelible impressions were made, and, later, when a new generation sought out old issues in a wave of kitsch
collecting, early EC magazines attained a new (and at times considerably lucrative) luster. Another vaunted name in the annals of
international horror, Amicus Productions, brought out two films in 1972 and 1973 which capitalized on the increasing fame of those early
fifties’ comic books. Tales from the Crypt is undoubtedly a more generally entertaining film than its follow up The Vault of
Horror, even if some might argue that the second film more adequately captures the sly combination of gross out gore and bizarre humor
that made those early EC efforts so memorable.
Note: The "main" disc of this two disc set features Tales from the Crypt and the uncut anamorphic widescreen version of Vault
of Horror. A bonus Blu-ray disc presents an anamorphic widescreen theatrical cut as well as an open matte uncut version. Screenshots 1-5
are from the widescreen uncut version, 6-10 from the widescreen theatrical version, and 11-14 from the open matte uncut version.
The Vault of Horror is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer
in 1.85:1. The elements here are in similar shape to those found in the film's sibling Tales from the Crypt, though the overall look of this
transfer is slightly less satisfactory from a sharpness and color space standpoint. While brightly lit scenes provide decent clarity and detail, there
are recurrent issues with less than optimal shadow detail at times. The voodoo sequence has a couple of minor compression artifacts in the
darkest scenes.
The theatrical widescreen version is similar though not identical in appearance to the uncut widescreen version. Colors are nominally more faded,
and contrast is a bit less precise. The uncut open matte version is the most problematic from a color perspective, with a somewhat blanched
appearance that lacks really vivid hues (compare even the yellows of the credits sequence between the three versions for example). All three
versions retain an organic looking grain field and none appear to have been aggressively digitally tweaked.
Somewhat oddly, the uncut versions of The Vault of Horror (i.e., both the widescreen and open matte presentations) feature DTS 2.0 mono audio, while the widescreen theatrical version features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono. That said, there is frankly not a huge difference on display between the two options, other than a slightly punchier sound in some of the music cues in the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 iteration. Otherwise, dialogue and effects are very cleanly presented and well prioritized.
The Vault of Horror doesn't quite have the momentum of Tales from the Crypt, but it does have perhaps a bit more of the sly EC combination of humor and horror. The cast is a lot of fun even if some of the storytelling is a bit rote. Technical merits aren't quite at the level seen in Tales from the Crypt, but are very good nonetheless. Recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1972
1971
Slipcover in Original Pressing
1965
1971
1963
1972
1972
1973
1972
AIP Cut | 60th Anniversary
1963
1968
The Mask of Satan / La maschera del demonio | The Mario Bava Collection
1960
Amanti d'oltretomba
1965
2013
Also Includes = I Eat Your Skin and Blue Sextet
1970
Collector's Edition
1970
1971
1967
2019
1955