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[tab title="Movie Review"]
That didn’t take long, Scream Factory. Thank you!
Hot on the heels of their first collection of off-kilter Naschy titles (which came out earlier this year) comes the second round of five titles from the legendary genre character actor. Turns out, with this release, newcomers to the Naschy tribe discover that he was much more than just an actor of the bizarre; his fingers are all over the writing and the production of these classic horror titles, no matter how loopy they are. The acting and producing theatrics of Naschy made him an unstoppable tidal wave of terror in the genre. Horror, as seen through the eyes of this legend, was quite expressive and always lurid.
With flicks like Hunchback of the Morgue and The Werewolf and The Yeti, it is all too easy to see why he was considered, among his many legions of fans, to be the Spanish version of Lon Chaney. He was never afraid to wear a mask, dip his hands in syrupy goo, and scare the living shit out of audiences with bizarre creatures. He went full dark quite often, without offering a single shred of humor in his creations. He was also, as the linear notes indicate, quite obsessed with Gilles de Rais, the mass murderer and military hero he based The Devil’s Possessed upon.
All five films included here – Hunchback of the Morgue, A Dragonfly for Each Corpse, The Devil’s Possessed, Exorcism, The Werewolf and The Yeti – peel back another layer of the mystique surrounding this quintessential figure of Spanish horror. The films range from classics to the more mundane of releases, yet their collective impact is the same; Naschy is a mad genius of the underground.
And now this recognizable mug of terror and tension, for the second time, gets primed for High Definition! Are you ready for the continuation of his detailed depravity? Is your stomach strong enough for the second helping of oozing blood from fresh wounds and all the torture that is bound to follow his moods and motifs? Proceed with caution, especially if this is your first time with this titan of terror.
These are exploitation films. That is their beating heart. Shave everything else from them and you are left with the fact that these are knockoffs of popular films, branding each new tale with an insignia of madness that certifies them as schlock and awe flicks selling sex and violence as cheaply as they can. And, considering the legacy of Naschy’s turn as a hunchback and a werewolf, they absolutely work to deliver the morbidly prepared message that horror was transcontinental.
It is time to open the second volume of the ongoing Paul Naschy Collection, courtesy of Scream Factory. Dance naked, Horror Hounds and Gore-Gore Girls, and rejoice for Naschy has returned!
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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - November 14, 2017
Subtitles: English
Audio: Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Five-disc set
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
Scream Factory proudly presents a bonus round of Paul Naschy titles. For individual titles, please see special features. Overall, the films – which vary in their aspect ratios – look finely detailed and are rippled with color and a new vibrancy to the picture. Sure, some elements of the source material are objectionable but that is to be expected. There are some dark, dark corners of each of the five productions included with this release. Yet, the crispness in the image cannot be overstated as the preparation for the HD transfer is quite superb. And the saturation – especially in the bright, bright outdoors – is especially engaging. Skin tones are solid and black levels plunge into the darkness with explicit directness. Some of the edges are lost in the all that blackness, though. Not everything, but a noticeable amount with both rooms and lighting are on the darker side of the spectrum. Yet, colors are pronounced and most of the dirt and debris seem cleared from the negative. Some pops and scratches appear.
Supplements:
Commentary:
-
See Special Features for individual disc breakdowns.
Special Features:
The five films and their supplemental material are detailed below.
HUNCHBACK OF THE MORGUE (EL JOROBADO DE LA MORGUE)
- In Castilian With English Subtitles And English Dub
- NEW Audio Commentary By Rod Barnett And Troy Guinn Of The Podcast, NaschyCast
- Theatrical Trailers (Spanish And English)
- Still Gallery
THE DEVIL'S POSSESSED (EL MARISCAL DEL INFIERNO)
- In Castilian With English Subtitles And English Dub
- Theatrical Trailers (Spanish And English)
THE WEREWOLF AND THE YETI (LA MALDICIÓN DE LA BESTIA)
- In Castilian With English Subtitles And English Dub
- Still Gallery
EXORCISM (EXORCISMO)
- In Castilian With English Subtitles And English Dub
- NEW Audio Commentary By Author Troy Howarth
- Alternate “Clothed” Versions Of The Nude Scenes For The Original Spanish Release
- Theatrical Trailers (Spanish And English)
- English Credit Sequence
- Still Gallery
A DRAGONFLY FOR EACH CORPSE (UNA LIBÉLULA PARA CADA MUERTO)
- In Castilian With English Subtitles And English Dub
- NEW Audio Commentary By Author Troy Howarth
- Still Gallery
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