Thursday, February 21, 2019

THE VENGEANCE OF SHE (1967) (Scream Factory Blu-ray Review)


THE VENGEANCE OF SHE (1967) 

Label: Scream Factory
Region Code: A
Duration: 1010 Minutes 
Rating: G
Audio: English DTS-HD MA Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.66:1) 
Director: Cliff Owen
Cast: John Richardson, Olinka Berova, Edward Judd, Noel Willman, Colin Blakely


Synopsis: A young beautiful woman named Carol (Olinka Berova) is plagued by hallucinatory voices calling her "Ayesha" and is drawn by a mysterious force toward the east. During her voyage, she meets Dr. Philip Smith (Edward Judd) who decides to accompany Carol to her unknown destination. Eventually the two reach the lost city of Kuma where Carol is greeted as the reincarnation of Queen Ayesha, the beloved of King Killikrates (John Richardson). Philip is imprisoned and meets Za-Tor (Noel Willman) who tells him of the high priest's deceitful plan to obtain the secret of immortality by bringing back Ayesha to King Killikrates. Will Philip escape in time to reveal the truth and save Carol from destruction?



More Hammer from Scream Factory will always be a welcome thing, even when it's the somewhat lacklustre sequel to She (1965). Goddess Ursula Andrews does not return for the sequel, in her place we have the rather stunning Scandinavian Olinka Berova as Carol, a mysterious blond beauty who is being drawn through means of magic to the ancient lost city of Kuma by King Killikrates (John Richardson, Torso) and his mystical magi Men-Hari (Derek Godfrey, Hands of the Ripper) who believe her to be the reincarnation of Killikrates former lover. I've always found this one a bit on the dry side, Berova as the wide-eyed and mysterious Carol is just fine, she seems a bit lost in the role, which suits the strange film's tone, and her character's lost in a fog mystique. 


The film starts off on a lascivious note when a truck driver tries to rape the disoriented woman, only to be run over by his own delivery truck! Eventually she hops aboard a pleasure yacht owned by a wealthy lush, which gets her on her way to Africa towards the city of Kuma where immortality and blue flames await her. Along the way she is joined by psychiatrist Dr. Phillip Smith (Edward Judd, First Men on the Moon) who falls in love with her and attempts to thwart the magical mind-control of the ancient magi. 


The story is both underwritten and overcooked, there's a lot happening but not a lot of it was all that pulse-pounding for me. I enjoyed the vintage special effects and old school camera tricks, but the story was a real snore, finding this to be of value as a Hammer curiosity more than anything else. Though we do get the value-added attraction of the gorgeous Olinka Berova throughout, she's very easy on the eyes, and made this slow-burning blue flame slice of Hammer fantasy slightly more tolerable than it would have been otherwise. 


Audio/Video: The Vengeance of She (1968) arrives on Blu-ray from Scream Factory with a new 2K scan of the film, presented in 1080p HD and framed in 1.66:1. It's a handsome looking film and the presentation is solid throughout, colors are a bit on the soft side, particularly during the optical shots,  but grain is well-managed and it looks filmic. The DTS-HD MA Mono sounds good, clean and well-balanced, the score from Mario Nascimbene (One Million Years B.C.) sounds terrific, optional English subtitles are provided. 


Extras on this include a group commentary from The Monster Party Podcast Hosts Matt Weinhold, Shawn Sheridan, Larry Strothe, And James Gonis, which is a bit of a MST3K-styled comedy commentary. There;'s also new interviews with Assistant Director Terence Clegg, Visual Effects Artist Joy Cuff and Clapper/Loader Trevor Coop which add up to about 18-min, plus we get a trailer, TV spots and and image gallery of movie posters, lobby cards and publicity shots for the film. 


The single disc release comes housed in a standard Blu-ray keepcase with a 2-sided sleeve of artwork, the reverse side featuring a landscape framed image of another original movie poster. The disc features an excerpt of the same key art used on the cover. 


Special Features: 
- NEW 2K Scan Of The Original Film Elements
- NEW Interview With Assistant Director Terence Clegg (3 min) 
- NEW Interview With Visual Effects Artist Joy Cuff (8 min) 
- NEW Interview With Clapper/Loader Trevor Coop (6 min) 
- NEW Audio Commentary By The Monster Party Podcast Hosts Matt Weinhold, Shawn Sheridan, Larry Strothe, And James Gonis
- World Of Hammer – Lands Before Time (24 min) 
- Theatrical Trailer (2 min) 
- TV Spots (1 min) 
- Still Gallery (5 min)


I'll always be pleased to have more Hammer titles on Blu-ray, even this one which I didn't find all that awesome. This does have some decent fatasty elements throughout, but as a cohesive film I found it a bit of a a slog, but the new 2K scan and extras are fantastic.