SCHOOL OF DEATH (1974)
Label: Mondo Macabro
Duration: 90 minutes
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Video: 1080p Full Frame (1.37:1)
Audio: English and Spanish DTS-HD MA Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Director: Pedro L. Ramirez
Cast: Dean Selmier, Sandra Mozarowsky, Norma Kastel, Carlos Mendy, Victoria Vera
The Spanish production School of Death (1974) is set in 1899 London, where the St. Elizabeth’s Refuge for girls in Victorian London seems like a respectable school where young orphaned and unwanted girls are trained to be good servants for future employment in the homes of upper-class elites. The school is run by director Mr. Granfield (Tito García, Night of the Werewolf) the stern headmistress Miss Wilkins (Norma Kastel, Tender and Perverse Emanuelle) and her assistant Miss Colton, who seem to delight in punishing and whipping the young women for seemingly minor infractions.
One by one the girls are sent out into the world, never to be seen again, presumably engaged in a life of servitude, but when Sylvia (Victoria Vera, Monster Dog) leaves the school she winds up dead her friend Lenore (Sandra Mozarowsky, Night of the Seagulls) vows to find out what happened to her, with the help of the seemingly compassionate Dr. Krueger (Dean Selmier, The Blood Spattered Bride), discovering a twisted Gothic labyrinth of evil surgeons, wicked women and young women being lobotomized to be sold off as sex-slaves!
School of Death has a decent set-up and a lurid premise that promises titillating. But sadly fails to deliver; the mystery of what's happening plays out with some decent tension, but it lacks any sort of edge or atmosphere despite being very well shot with some solid Gothic set pieces. Its the sort of film that I want to love but never it quite gets a satisfying boil going, seemingly content to simmer, but that doesn't make for a great watch. There is a "shock" reveal at the end that should be jarring but its executed rather poorly and falls flat, disappointingly.
The women in the film are all uniformly good though, Kastel as the wicked headmistress does good work and has a sour-face that suits the role. Likewise Vera and Mozarowsky as orphaned innocents preyed upon by a nefarious and scarred-face surgeon are sympathetic character. Unfortunately Selmier seems tuned out as Dr. Krueger, his refinance is lifeless and bland, if he'd been up to the challenge I think it would have elevated the film as a whole considerably, and a bit of nudity and bloodshed wouldn't have hurt either, it's pretty dry in those areas.
School of Death (1974) is not quite a gem in my estimation but an interesting Gothic period thriller that mashes up a few genres that was made during the Franco-era, which perhaps explains the tame execution of what should have been a much more enjoyable film.
Audio/Video: School of Death (1974) arrives on 1080p HD framed in 1.37:1 full frame, sourced from a new 2K scan of the film negative. Its a very pleasing image with a natural looking layer of film grain, colors are well-saturated and black levels thar are deep and inky. The period costuming looks great with nice texturing and fine detail, the omnipresent shroud of fog is nicely resolved and primaries look terrific. Audio comes by way of English and Spanish DTS-HD MA mono with optional English subtitles, both languages sounds good and are clean sounding, to my ears the English is more dynamic overall.
Extras are pretty slim here, but don't discount the Audio commentary from Kat Ellinger, its pretty great. She gets into how rare a film this has been previously, only seen via didn't bootlegs, and how unappreciated it is. She touches on the director's career, his style. The Gothic elements of it and the themes throughout. Its not a film I'd seen previously and not one I knew much about so I appreciated her sharing her knowledge and views on the film. There's also the updated 14-min Mondo Macabro promo reel, which I've seen a bunch but always watch till the end, promising myself to watch each and every film in it! The single disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a sleeve of reversible artwork.
Special Features:
- Brand New 4K Transfer from Film Negative.
- Audio Commentary from Kat Ellinger.
- English/Spanish audio choice with optional subtitles.
- Mondo Macabro Previews (14 min)
Screenshots from the Mondo Macabro Blu-ray:
