Daredevils
(1979)/Ode To Gallantry
(1982/Eureka! Blu-ray*)/Hard
Wood: The Adult Features Of Ed Wood
(1962, 71, 72**)/Mask Of
Satan (1989/**both
Severin Blu-rays)/Monster
From The Ocean Floor
(1954/Film Masters Blu-ray)/Venom
4K (1981/Blue Underground
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray/*both MVD)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: B-/B-/B/B-/B Sound:
B-/C+/B-/C+/B- Extras: B-/B-/C+/C+/B- Films: C+ (Ocean
Floor:
C)
Here's
a wide and wacky group of genre works, some of which you would think
were made up and did not exist, but they do....
First
up are a pair of Shaw Brothers action comedies directed by Chang Cheh
with three actors often called 'the
three venoms': The
Daredevils
(1979) and Ode
To Gallantry
(1982) with the former involving Yang Ta-ying (Lo Mang) out to avenge
his fathers death and gets help, while the latter has a loner/fighter
known as 'Mongrel' who keeps getting in between gang fight and being
mistaken for other people marked for death, et al. They sound more
serious and action packed than they are from my descriptions than
they are and that fits the films being made. However, the comedy
kills their edge, so this set is for fans only.
On
the plus side, the cast melds well together and Cheh can obviously
direct, plus some of the costumes and sets are nice, but this is a
curio set for non-fans and you can see for yourself.
Extras
include a Limited Edition O-Card slipcase featuring new artwork by
Chris Malbon [2,000 copies]
Two
new commentaries by East Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian
Film Festival) and martial artist and filmmaker Michael Worth
Two
new commentaries by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne
Venema
Deadly
Venoms:
new interview with Hong Kong cinema scholar Wayne Wong on the Venom
Mob
and
a limited edition collector's booklet featuring new writing by
writer and critic James Oliver [2,000 copies].
Hard
Wood: The Adult Features Of Ed Wood
features four films by the man who was once considered the worst
filmmaker of all time, but boy how times have changed. And yes,
considering sex films (softcore or hardcore) as its own genre, Wood
failed at these too, though in fairness, they were all made before
Deep
Throat
(1972, reviewed elsewhere on this site) became the model
for decades in that now popular-but-fragmented industry.
Paraphrasing
the amusing press text on its release... Necromania
(in both hard and soft versions) stars Rene Bond and The Amazing
Criswell's coffin in a tale of weird love shot in two days by Ed
while wearing a pink babydoll outfit resulting in a film that is not
a straight-out sex film in the first place. Uschi Digard stars in
The
Only House In Town,
a softcore saga of nonsensical dialog and orgiastic depravity.
Wood's bizarre final film, the thought lost The
Young Marrieds,
is presented in hard and its never-before-seen soft versions. And
legitimate, great and legendary character actors J. Pat O'Malley and
William Schallert star in the Wood-penned hicksploitation rarity
Shotgun
Wedding,
which is as much a part of that genre and/or cycle as any sex film.
Yup,
they're that odd and now, they have been saved, preserved as much as
possible and you can compare to his other classics like Plan
9 From Outer Space.
None stuck with me, though many will actually know O'Malley and
Schallert from tons of work they did at the time. Now you can see
and compare for yourself.
Extras
include a feature length audio commentary with Ed Wood Summit Host
Greg Javer And Author Paul Apel (Softcore Version Only) on
Necromania,
feature length audio commentary with Javier and Spicy Goldman Of
Capri Show World and an Original Theatrical Trailer on Only
House In Town,
feature length audio commentary with Javer And Porn
Archeologist/Collector Dimitri Otis on Young
Marrieds
with a Softcore Version (59 mins), Sex Loops With Subtitles By Ed
Wood:
PLUS:
The
Incredibly Strange Film Show
Season 2, Episode 4: Ed Wood Jr.
Dana
Gould And Bobcat Goldthwait Talk Ed Wood's Twilight Era
The
Mad Genius Of Ed Wood:
Interview With Carl Abrahamsson, Author Of Inbetween The Lines:
Essays On Occulture, Magic, And Seductive Zombie Strippers
and
A
Brief Encounter With Ed:
Interview With Filmmaker Fred Olen Ray On His Ill-Fated Wood
Collaboration, BEACH BLANKET BLOODBATH.
Lamberto
Bava's The
Mask Of Satan
(1989) is a disappointing remake of Mario Bava's much beloved Black
Sunday
with a group of Euro-Skiers falling into a break in snow they are
having fun in when a sort of avalanche happens. There, they find a
dead female body, but it comes back to life and they find themselves
in a deadly supernatural otherworld followed by the title item that
can bring nothing
but death.
The
color can be good (see review below,) the skiing equipment they use
nice and cast not bad, but it is just not as convincing as other
films in the genre and just did not stay with me. Cheers to the cast
for trying, including Mary Sellers, Debora Caprioglio (as Debora
Kinski), Michele Soavi, Giovanni Guidelli, Eva Grimaldi, Stanko
Molnar, Allesandra Bonarota, Laura Devoti, Ron Williams and Stefano
Molinari. The make up effects are not bad, but the cast is the best
reason to watch this one, if that.
Extras
include The
Curse Of The Mask:
Interview With Director Lamberto Bava
Wyott
Ordung's
The
Monster From The Ocean Floor
(1954) is a B-movie that is cheap, not great, not memorable, made
MST3K
possible and yet, people still watch these films because they are a
time capsule, so bad they can at least have parts that are good, the
monster looked ridiculous back then let alone now and in this case,
has some underwater work (albeit in black and white) that does not
look that bad despite how obviously phony and 'in the tank' it is.
As
a result, there are lots of laughs here and if you like movies and
can enjoy this kind of genre thing, boring or not at times, then the
effort to save and preserve it will make you happy. Additionally,
Anne Kilmer, Stuart Wade, Dick Pinner and Jonathan Haze take it
seriously and play along the best they can, maybe hooping for an
unexpected hit. Even if that did not happen, they can be happy their
work is still being preserved and watched, wherever they may now be.
More good work from Film Masters that should be commended.
Extras
are interesting
and include Tom Weaver and The Weaver Players provide full-length
commentary, which includes archival contributions from Roger Corman;
liner notes by Weaver in a nicely illustrated booklet, Ballyhoo
Motion Pictures presents two new documentaries, Bob
Baker: From Monsters to Marionettes
and Roger
Corman: Becoming a B-Movie Maker;
a stills gallery, courtesy of Mike Barnum, an original 35mm
theatrical trailer and re-cut 2025 trailer.
Piers
Haggard's Venom
4K
(1981) should and could have been a decent thriller. Originally,
Tobe Hooper was attached, but he started having personal issues, left
the film and took Director of Photography Anthony B. Richmond with
him. Then the film cast both Oliver Reed (deep into alcoholism) and
Klaus Kinski (on a roll in movie spots, but increasingly difficult
and psychotic, which we know now more than ever) and it just could
not get on track.
The
fact that they also had Nicol Williamson, Susan George, Sarah Miles,
Sterling Hayden, Cornelia Sharpe, Michael Gough, Lance Holcolmb,
Edward Hardwicke and character actress Rita Webb would make you think
this could be good if all these names had signed on. But this tale
of a bunch of terrorists trying to kidnap a rich little boy, then
getting stuck in a building with a highly deadly killer snake is very
off, some found very laughable, but a little different for me.
Instead,
it is 90 minutes of good acting, bad acting, mixed results and so
many missed opportunities, it could make a killer snake die of
annoyance and boredom. The actors are professional enough to try and
make this work and they look good, but it is one of those films you
wait for it to pick up and get better at some point. Instead, you
almost root for the snake to bite and attack the film projector (or
4K/Blu-ray player) and make it stop!
Extras
with a nice slipcase
packaging include:
Audio
Commentary #1 with Director Piers Haggard
NEW!
Audio Commentary #2 with Film Historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel
Thompson and Eugenio Ercolani
NEW!
Fangs
For The Memories:
Interview with Editor/Second Unit Director Michael Bradsell
NEW!
A
Slithery Story:
Interview with Makeup Artist Nick Dudman
NEW!
Mamba
Memories:
Interview with Author & Critic Kim Newman
NEW!
Pick
Your Poison:
Interview with The Dark Side's Allan Bryce
Trailers
TV
Spots
NEWLY
EXPANDED! Poster & Still Gallery
and
a collectible booklet with essay by Michael Gingold.
Now
for a playback performance. The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 1.85 X 1, Dolby
Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition
image on Venom
4K
has some impressive color and shots, but there are also shots with
some noise from the original camera negative (micro brown spots in
the sky) that apparently could not be removed. The 1080p Blu-ray is
not bad either, but it cannot match the warmer 4K disc with better
color.
It shows its age as expected, but the camera work by Director of
Photography Gilbert Taylor, B.S.C. (The
Omen,
Dr.
Strangelove)
with extra shots by Denys M. Coop B.S.C. (Bunny
Lake Is Missing,
Inserts,
Vault
Of Horror,
Asylum)
creates a decent look per the genre with some atmosphere.
In
both formats, the three lossless sound mixes, Dolby Atmos,
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 and DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Stereo,
the 5.1 is the best and all from the original analog A-type Dolby
System noise reduction-issued film sound.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image transfers on Daredevils
and Gallantry
are a little soft due to the older anamorphic lenses (under the
ShawScope banner) but have fine color and have been well restored,
while the Mandarin PCM 2.0 Mono options are limited sonically, the
English dub versions are not good and worse and also show the age of
the film. The Mandarin and image combos are the ones that work best
and I doubt the films will ever sound better than either Mandarin
versions here.
The
1080p 1.33 X 1 black & white and color 1.85 X 1 digital High
Definition image transfers on Hard
Wood
can definitely show the age of the materials used, along with their
low budgets, but can look a little better than expected and speaks to
the work to save them. That extends to the soundtracks, here in PCM
2.0 Mono, but they are old, rough, boxy and reflect the low budgets
even more, with the newer films sounding very slightly better. Like
other films by Wood, you expect flaws and issues, no matter how fixed
up and once again, we get that too.
The
1080p 1.66 X 1 digital High Definition image on Mask
Of Satan
is the second-best looking release here with fine color, detail,
depth and its own warmth for the kind of genre film it is. Color,
detail and depth are fine, while both the Spanish and Italian PCM 2.0
Mono are not bad and as good as the film will ever sound. Most films
were at least stereo by this point, but here is one that was not.
The
1080p 1.33 X 1 black & white digital High Definition image
transfer on Ocean
Floor
can obviously show the age of the materials used, but we do get some
surprisingly nice shots in between soft ones and in this, detail and
depth can surprise thanks to a 4K scan of the original 35mm camera
negative. That claim is more than believable enough here. The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono lossless mix is as low budget as
the Ed Wood film with the same kind of sonic limits, boxiness and
dated fidelity, so you know what to expect. Doubt this will ever
sound better, just the same, thanks to some hard work resorting it.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
