Vinegar Syndrome has announced its April batch of releases. They are: Mutant (1984), Escape from Death (1989), Faces of Death (1978), Ténèbres Françaises (1970-1977), and Eurocrime Rarities: Volume 1 (1977-1980).
After getting into a scuffle and finding themselves stranded in a remote southern town, brothers Mike and Josh discover that they're in the midst of a much deeper problem. That night, Mike is attacked by someone — or something — and the following morning, everything about the sleepy town seems to have changed, as many of the locals appear sick and begin exhibiting increasingly unhinged and violent behavior. With the help of some equally concerned townsfolk, the brothers soon discover that forces beyond their control are slowly transforming the citizens into a horrifying form of the living dead…
A late-stage drive-in chiller which harkens back to the nuclear horror sci-fi favorites of decades past with an environmentally conscious update, stuntman-turned-director John 'Bud' Cardos' (Kingdom of the Spiders) MUTANT stars character actor legend Wings Hauser (Vice Squad), Bo Hopkins (American Graffiti, The Wild Bunch), Lee Montgomery (Ben, Burnt Offerings), and many more. Produced by the notorious Film Ventures International (Grizzly, Beyond the Door, Great White), and offering plenty of monstrous makeup effects and ludicrous twists, Vinegar Syndrome finally brings this 1980s cult favorite to 4K Blu-ray, featuring an exclusive new restoration of its 35mm original negative along with a plentiful assortment of new and archival extras.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
TWO-DISC (4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY) COMBO PACK RELEASE
NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
Archival commentary track with director John 'Bud' Cardos, producer Igo Kantor, and actor Lee Montgomery
New commentary track with film historians Howard S. Berger and Steve Mitchell
"A Real Country Boy" (17 min) - an interview with Cali Lili Hauser, widow of Wings Hauser
"Mutant Report" (7 min) - writer Anthony Everitt reflects on his father's coverage of Mutant
Archival interview with actor Bo Hopkins (11 min)
Archival interview with actor Lee Montgomery (16 min)
When Ann, the wealthy yet mentally unstable wife of accomplished author Larry, claims to have found her husband brutally murdered in her stables, her psychiatrist, Dr. Marc, and Larry's secretary, Mary, are skeptical — not least because there is no body to be found. What's more, Dr. Marc finds a note from Larry saying he's going away for a while to clear his head. A year later, Larry returns to the house, but Ann is adamant that this man is not her husband, despite the protests of Dr. Marc and Mary to the contrary. To add to her mounting turmoil, Ann starts to experience gruesome hallucinations and receives phone calls from someone claiming to be the real Larry, contacting her from beyond the grave. As those around her start being dispatched in various grisly ways, is Ann losing her grip on sanity, or could something even more diabolical be afoot?
Helmed by Enzo Milioni, director of giallo favorite The Sister of Ursula (1978), and starring Euro-horror regular Zora Kerova (Cannibal Ferox, The New York Ripper), ESCAPE FROM DEATH (aka Luna di sangue) was produced as part of a series of direct-to-video and television films released under the banner of "Lucio Fulci presents", which also includes Fulci's own Touch of Death and Umberto Lenzi's Hell's Gate. A twisty-turny giallo punctuated by moments of shocking and unexpected gore, Vinegar Syndrome is thrilled to unveil ESCAPE FROM DEATH in its world 4K Blu-ray premiere, restored in 4K from its original 16mm negative and loaded with a selection of newly-produced bonus features.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
TWO-DISC (4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY) COMBO PACK RELEASE
NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
Commentary track with film historians Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth
Zora, the Escapee (18 min) - an interview with actress Zora Kerova
Victim of Circumstance (16 min) - an interview with actor Alessandro Freyberger
Bloody Sonata (19 min) - an interview with composer Paolo Gatti
Exhuming Lucio (13 min) - an interview with film critic Pier Maria Bocchi
Escape from Death, Enter the Showbiz (30 min) - an interview with film historian Eugenio Ercolani
What question has plagued mankind more than the mystery—and terror—of death? This forbidden pursuit has driven Dr. Frances B. Gröss to the brink of madness, but in his obsession, he has amassed a uniquely comprehensive collection of films that depict life in its final, grueling moments. From the savagery of cold-blooded murder to the perverse realities of war, tragic accidents, and the everyday lives of those who collect, dissect, and bury the dead, this descent into morbidity lays bare a truth that all of us will one day face.
One of the most banned, censored, controversial, and notorious films ever made, FACES OF DEATH (1979) changed cinema forever. A surprise home video blockbuster that spawned three sequels, the film was immediately met with praise and condemnation, along with legions of fans and hordes of protestors. Skillfully combining grueling imagery depicting the stark reality of mortality, blended with cleverly staged, ultra-gory re-enactments of murders, suicides, executions, and more too horrible to imagine, Vinegar Syndrome Archive is excited to at last bring FACES OF DEATH to 4K Blu-ray newly restored from its long-lost camera original, and fully uncut for the very first time ever on disc; still as shocking now as it was nearly 50 years ago...
Special Features and Technical Specs:
TWO-DISC (4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY) COMBO PACK RELEASE
NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
Commentary with director Conan Le Cilaire, moderated by Michael Felsher
The world of French cinema is vast and multi-layered, as likely to veer into genre film as it is to pursue more arty, even absurdist notions. In terms of embracing dark moods and themes, be it in the form of murderous urges, aberrant sexual leanings, self-destructive machinations, or outright neuroses, the Gallic lens is perfectly adept. Here we present four varied approaches to the thriller à la française.
LES COUSINES (THE COUSINS)
Lucile, paralyzed and mute from a childhood trauma, lives with her sister Josine and their cousin Elisa. While the mother of Lucile and Josine frets over increasing costs and the complications of Lucile reaching legal age, Josine and Elisa live reckless lives of sexual abandon while mentally and physically torturing Lucile, their powerless victim. Playing their cruel games, getting high, and seducing men aren't enough for these two; they're in search of darker sadistic kicks. Also released as From Ear to Ear, this shocker of modernity and liberated morals was directed by veteran cinematographer Louis Soulanes (La Pointe Courte) and features Solange Pradel (World on a Wire), Alain Doutey (The Big Red One), and Katia Tchenko (The Bishop's Bedroom).
QUI? (WHO?)
An arguing couple gets into a car on the Brittany coast where, driving erratically, it suddenly launches off a cliff and crashes into the waters below. The man Claude disappears into the sea, while the woman Marina manages to escape, and soon comes under questioning by the police as well as Claude's brother Serge. Serge soon falls in love with Marina, despite her hazy, suspicious recollection of the accident. Returning to Paris, the two begin to retrace the crash and realize how inscrutable Claude was, amid coping with Marina's fractured memory and heightened nerves. Claude's body never turns up, and it becomes trickier to find out what, and moreover who is to blame for the accident. A giallo-esque thriller from Léonard Keigel (A Woman One Day) awash in a gorgeous score from jazz legend Claude Bolling (Flic Story), it stars Romy Schneider (The Swimming Pool), Maurice Ronet (Bloodline), and Gabriele Tinti (Mystère).
LE SECRET (THE SECRET)
Author Thomas and his wife Julia enjoy a quiet life isolated in the French countryside until one day when David, on the run and anxious, wanders onto their land. Sensing a man in need as well as a potential adventure, Thomas commits to help him, but Julia has her suspicions. As pressure mounts and a manhunt ensues, the trio hit the road, while David's story of escape and persecution sounds increasingly neurotic, even unlikely. What is the secret behind David's incarceration and escape, the burden he carries but refuses to share? How far will the couple go to help a man who may be mentally unstable evade capture? This taut conspiracy thriller was directed by Robert Enrico (The Old Gun) and stars Jean-Louis Trintignant (The Great Silence), Marlène Jobert (Rider on the Rain) and Philippe Noiret (Cinema Paradiso).
NUIT D'OR (GOLDEN NIGHT)
Michel Fournier is back, seemingly from the dead, and vows to exact revenge on all who wronged him, particularly his family. Menacingly issuing each of them a voodoo doll, his threats and intentions get increasingly obtuse as the world around him proves nightmarish and warped. From encountering a death cult to conducting a kidnapping, to trashing an underground casino, Fournier's anxious, infernal rage is at the center of this quixotic and noir-infused exercise. Pairing lush yet unnerving visuals with a score by Chabrol regular Pierre Jansen (The Butcher), the film features the singular Klaus Kinski (Paganini) as Fournier, along with Marie Dubois (Jules and Jim), Maurice Ronet (The Champagne Murders), and Anny Duperey (Two or Three Things I Know About Her), under direction by the multi-talented writer/director/journalist Serge Moati (writer of The Nude Vampire).
Special Features and Technical Specs:
TWO-DISC SET
NEWLY RESTORED by VS from studio-supplied masters
LE SECRET: Video interview with director Robert Enrico and actors Marlène Jobert, Philippe Noiret and Jean-Louis Trintignant on location in the Landes region
LE SECRET: Video interview with director Robert Enrico and actors Marlène Jobert, Philippe Noiret and Jean-Louis Trintignant on location in the Ardèche region
LE SECRET: Video interview with director Robert Enrico and actress Marlène Jobert for French TV
LE SECRET: Video featurette with Robert Enrico unveiling Le secret for Belgian TV
NUIT D'OR: Video interview with director Serge Moati and actress Marie Dubois for Belgian TV
LES COUSINES: Video interview with film historian Christophe Bier
The Eurocrime film, or poliziottesco, went through many of the same phases as other trends in Italian cinema. By virtue of necessity, stretching its boundaries or tooling with the genre was inevitable. Perhaps equally inevitably, given the sheer number of films produced, quite a few fell through the cracks over time. Three rare, distinct features late in the genre's cycle, each retaining the big names associated with it, are collected here.
IL GIORNO DEL COBRA (THE DAY OF THE COBRA)
Larry Stanziani is a bottom-of-the-barrel private eye in San Francisco, quietly scraping by to make ends meet. But in a former life, Stanziani (Franco Nero) was The Cobra, one of the most capable and deadly secret agents the world had ever seen. Called back into action in Italy after a narcotics agent is killed, Larry uncovers a syndicate that'll attempt every dirty trick in the book to finish him off. But they don't know that The Cobra always stays one step ahead of any double-cross ever invented. Directed by Italo-action legend Enzo G. Castellari (The Big Racket) as a showcase for Nero's range, this cheeky Eurocrime/gumshoe hybrid also stars Sybil Danning (Howling II: Your Sister Is a Werewolf), Mario Maranzana (Behind Convent Walls), Mickey Knox (Cemetery Man), and Romano Puppo (The Big Gundown).
Special Features and Techncial Specs:
NEW 2K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
Commentary track with film historians Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth, and Nathaniel Thompson
"The Director Who Looked Like a Stuntman" (24 min) - an interview with director/writer Enzo G. Castellari
"Henchman with a Heart of Gold" (22 min) - an interview with actor/stuntman Massimo Vanni
Reversible sleeve artwork
Newly translated English subtitles
REIGON-FREE
LA BANDA DEL TRUCIDO (THE RASCAL'S GANG aka DIRTY GANG)
Naples is being crippled by crime, and now an important police leader has been assassinated. The grizzled Commissario Ghini (Luc Merenda) is tough enough to tackle the crime wave and is the only one to fill his shoes. Meanwhile, Monnezza (Tomas Milian) has his hands full, too: he's running his cheeky trattoria while also teaching a new batch of hapless schemers at his low-rent school for thieves. Balancing Milian's popular comedic chops as a loveable rogue and Merenda's hard-as-nails, stunt-driven performance, director Stelvio Massi (Arabella: Black Angel) pulls out all the stops for this wildly entertaining ride. Also starring Elio Zamuto (Violent Naples), Katia Christine (Designated Victim), and Massimo Vanni (1990: The Bronx Warriors).
Special Features and Techncial Specs:
NEW 2K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
Commentary track with film historians Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth
"The Nonviolent Professional" (20 min) - an interview with actor Luc Merenda
"A Beautiful Ugly Face" (24 min) - an interview with actor Corrado Solari
Reversible sleeve artwork
Newly translated English subtitles
REIGON-FREE
IL COMMISSARIO DI FERRO (THE IRON COMMISSIONER)
Commissario Mariani (Maurizio Merli) has been taking down crooks for years, and these days the weight of it shows. He's divorced, his son thinks of him more as a friend than a father, his superiors are critical of him, and even the children of people he put away are coming after him. But he's not the Iron Commissioner for nothing, and however seasoned, he's not afraid to knock around a few hoods to get the job done. When a kidnapping occurs too close to home, Mariani doesn't hesitate to spring into action. A remarkably efficient and realistic feature from technical journeyman Stelvio Massi (Five Women for the Killer), showing plenty of tricks up his sleeve, it also stars Janet Agren (Bakterion), Ettore Mani (A.A.A. Masseuse, Good-Looking, Offers Her Services), and Chris Avram (Obscene Desire).
Special Features and Techncial Specs:
NEW 2K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
Commentary track with film historians Eugenio Ercolani and Nanni Cobretti
"Free Hand for a Tough DOP" (23 min) - an interview with cinematographer Sergio Rubini
"The Purest Form of Poliziesco" (20 min) - an interview with assistant director Danilo Massi