5.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
A college student unexpectedly finds that she has inherited a derelict house. Accompanied by a group of friends, she goes there to clear it of heir-looms before the structure is demolished. Almost immediately, she and her friends are targeted by a powerful warlock who is very interested in her bloodline.
Starring: Bruce Payne, Ashley Laurence, Boti Bliss, Paul Francis (II), Rick HearstHorror | 100% |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Note: This film is available as part of the Warlock
Collection.
Like many a good American kid raised on endless afternoon reruns seen after getting home from school, I’m pretty sure the first time I heard the
term “warlock” was a reference to a male character on Bewitched, where it
was
shorn of any nefarious (let alone Satanic) subtext. The Warlock franchise posits a titular (and otherwise unnamed) character who is
hardly in
that “kinder, gentler” context of a mid-sixties sitcom, even if there are manifest differences between the stories revolving around him in the three
Warlock films. Like a lot of ostensible horror franchises, Warlock starts out at least relatively winningly, but then offers what
some
may perceive as an example of the law of diminishing returns. The first film at least presents a time traveling tale that is a kind of odd combo
platter
of elements from The Terminator, Highlander, Time After Time
and
Witchfinder General, though the two sequels also included in this
set
have little if anything to do with that original setup, instead merely porting over the Warlock branding into what are essentially standalone
stories.
Warlock III: The End of Innocence is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films' Vestron Video imprint with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. While I'm rating this at the same 3.5 level as I rated the second Warlock feature, this film's transfer is at least arguably a bit better, with less of the variability I discussed in my review of the second film's video presentation. The palette here looks slightly muted, never really popping with much immediacy, though detail levels in close-ups are quite good (some of the excellent make-up effects in the latter part of this film may induce a bit of queasiness in some). This exhibits some of the same age related issues as the second film, and while not as prevalent as in the second film, there are occasional resolution hurdles that are encountered in terms of grain reproduction.
As with the two other films in this set, Warlock III: The End of Innocence features a nice sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. This film has a few less over the top sound effects, and so sounds a bit more reserved than the two previous films. There's some good ambient atmosphere in the echo laden halls of the mansion, as well as the interstitial 17th century forest vignettes. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly on this problem free track.
This is pretty standard direct to video fare, seeking to cash in on what was perceived as a marketable franchise title while having absolutely nothing to do with either of the previous films bearing that franchise title. There are moments of creepiness in the film, but it's a generally slow moving and predictable effort. Video is on a par with the second film (and perhaps a bit better), while audio is fine. This has the fewest supplements of the three films in the set, but what's here is enjoyable.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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