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. 

 

EYEBALL (1975) (88 Films Blu-ray Review)

EYEBALL (1975) 

Dual-Format Blu-ray 

Label: 88 Films
Region Code: B
Rating: Cert.15
Duration: 92 Minutes
Audio: English and Italian, DTS-HD MA Dual Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Umberto Lenzi
Cast: Martine Brochard, John Richardson, Ines Pellegrini

Umberto Lenzi's madcap giallo Eyeball (1975) has the wonderful tag line "A Blinding Vision of Horror", a nicely tongue-in-cheek advert for a delightfully daft Italian whodunit that opens with a busload of American tourists travelling throughout Barcelona Spain on a tour-bus, taking in the sights, nevermind that an eye-plucking killer seem to be among them, killing off and stealing an eyeball from one victim after the other on almost every stop of the tour! As where a level-headed you or myself might just end our vacation after the first murder and count our blessing for our lives these hardcore vacationers push on despite the danger to themselves, never once thinking they should get off that damn bus.

While not as ultra-stylish as a Dario Argento whodunits Eyeball is still a wonderfully entertaining slice of eye-plucking insanity with fun set-pieces and some stylish lensing, plus a fun cast of characters that include a priest and a lesbian couple who are more nude than not throughout the whole movie. Lenzi seems to be having fun deviating from standard giallo tropes with a killer who is decked out in a red raincoat with red-gloves, not the typical black ensemble we've come to expect from the genre. 

As we follow our carefree bunch of travellers the bodies start piling up at each of the stops, each of the victims found stabbed to death with an eyeball missing, and the red-herrings are layed on nice and thick throughout. The could-be culprits could be any one of the tourist or guides, could it be the oddball leering tour guide? Maybe the secretive priest, or the tightly permed ginger-haired secretary (Martine Brochard, The Violent Professionals)? Or maybe  the secretaries boss/lover (John Richardson, Torso) who shows up out of the blue right after the first murder, hmm, but when suspicion begins to build on him we are thrown yet another red-fish, his mentally unstable wife complete with incrimiating flashbacks. The possible list of suspects is near endless, the film drops clues along the way, but when they reveal who it is and why you will not forget it, you might not believe it, but you definitely won't forget it!

I won't spoil the big reveal but the strangely oddball revelation was a startle, I was laughing so damn hard, the visual of it is absolutely unforgettable. I don't know if Lenzi intended this one to be as comedic as it is, but I have to think he did, it's just too lunatic from start to finish to be an accident. 

Trashy though it may be Eyeball offers oodles of odd dubbed dialogue, titillating gratuitous nudity and some stylish set-pieces, including a fun score from Bruno Nicolai (All the Colors of the Dark) which has a recurring theme that seems to pop-up every few minuted ad nauseam, which also enhances the humor if the film. 

Audio/Video: Lenzi's Eyeball (1975) arrives on region-free Blu-ray with a fresh new 2K transfer restored and regraded from the original camera negative, the 1080p HD image is framed in 2.35:1 widescreen. It looks solid on Blu-ray, the source looks solid with just some white speckling and a tiny few scratches you have to be looking for, grain is uniform and well-managed, skin tones look natural and the colors are nicely saturated with decent blacks. Audio comes by way of English or Italian dubbed DTS-HD MA Mono 2.0 with optional English subtitles. The audio is a bit flat and boxy as you would expect from a film made without live audio, everything has been dubbed afterward. Something I love about watching these Italian films is the recognition of voice actors who regularly dub these films they start sounding so familiar and recognizable once you start watching Italian cinema of this era, there should be a documentary about the voice actors who worked in this era, that would be awesome... or maybe not, but maybe yeah! Anyway, the score from Bruno Nicolai (All The Colors of The Dark) sounds great, even though the main theme seems to be repeated adnauseum throughout the film.  

Onto the extras we begin with a feature-length doc, 'All Eyes on Lenzi' which has interviews with the late director plus author/critics John Martin, Manlio Gomarasca and Rachael Nisbet, director Calum Waddell and actors Danilo Mattei and Giovanni Lombardo Radice, filmmaker Scooter McCrae and more. It's a loving tribute the the genre-hopping director covering all facets of his career, there's a lot of love here for the man, but not so much from actor Lombardo Radice who not only loathes the film he made with Lenzi, Cannibal Ferox, but the man himself, though Lenzi does go onto say that he got along with the actor very well during shooting and that this loathing seemed to manifest in the years since they worked together. 

We also get a new 2018 interview with the still-lovely star Martine Brochard who speaks about her career and working with Lenzi on the film, there's also a 2-min location extra comparing the locations then and how they are now. The last but certainly not least of the extras is an audio commentary from the Hysteria Lives! podcast crew who do the film justice. They actually have an episode of the podcast about the film (doubled with Argento's Deep Fred!), the commentary here is a bit more subdued with slightly less innuendo and double-entendres, but still funny and jam-packed with witty insight and observation, very well researched. This limited edition of 2000 version also comes with a DVD with the same extras   

The 2-disc DVD/Blu-ray combo comes housed in a clear oversized Blu-ray with a sleeve of reversible artwork and a limited edition sturdy slipcover. Opening it up you will find 4 original “Gatti rossi in un labirinto di vetro” lobby card reproductions, plus a massive limited edition booklet covering Umberto Lenzi's entire career penned by Dr. Calum Waddell, plus an interview with Lenzi and notes about the 88 Films restoration. 

Special Features: 
- Brand New 2K Transfer of the Film restored and regraded from original elements
- ALL EYES ON LENZI: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE ITALIAN EXPLOITATION TITAN - Brand new feature length documentary (80 minutes) detailing the work and legacy of Rome’s most prolific grindhouse nightmare-maker. Features never-before-seen interview footage with Lenzi himself and comments from critics John Martin, Manlio Gomarasca and Rachael Nisbet, academics Calum Waddell and Mikel Koven, actors Danilo Mattei and Giovanni Lombardo Radice and director and writer Scooter McCrae!!  (84 min)
- Eyeballs on Martine Brochard: 2018 Interview with Actress Martine Brochard (16 min)
- Eyeball Locations Featurette (2 min)
- Audio Commentary by the Hysteria Continues
- Eyeball Trailers (6 min)
- Reversible sleeve featuring alternative artwork
- 4 original “Gatti rossi in un labirinto di vetro” lobby card reproductions
-Limited edition booklet featuring All About Umberto: an extensive and intricate 6000 word look back at the work of an Italian genre-bending legend... by Calum Waddell
- Additional booklet copy - Cats and Eyeballs: An interview with Umberto Lenzi by Eugenio Ercolani

Eyeball (1975) is a stalk ‘n’ slash shocker from Umberto Lenzi that will please fans of the Italian whodunit and 80's slasher variety, while the gore is not overly visceral the off-beat stock characters characters and fun set-pieces are a blast, a fun giallo with loads of re-watch value. 88 Films really went all-out for this release with the A/V presentation and deluxe packaging, easily one of my favorite releases of 2018.

88 Films Pays Tribute to the Late Great Umberto Lenzi with a Mega-Edition of his All-Time Terror Classic EYEBALL (1975)!

EYEBALL (1975) 

Dual-Format Blu-ray 

Label: 99 Films
Region Code: B
Rating: Cert.15
Duration: 92 Minutes
Audio: English and Italian, DTS-HD MA Dual Mono with Optional English Subtitles 
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Umberto Lenzi 
Cast: Martine Brochard, John Richardson, Ines Pellegrini

On general release from August 27th but shipping from the 88 Films website SOON is one of the grand guignol greats of giallo horror!

Long since regarded as an underrated name among the top tier Italian terror directors, Umberto Lenzi sadly left us just one year ago. As such, we at 88 Films have been preparing the ultimate edition of what is widely regarded as his most mesmerising horror hit – the 1975 stalk ‘n’ slash shocker EYEBALL! In this eerie bout of blood-splashed brilliance, a tour bus visiting some especially scenic Spanish resorts encounters a series of gruesome goings-on when one-by-one various tourists begin to lose their peepers to a red-gloved (yes, not a black-gloved!) slaughterer. It is difficult to predict how this rollercoaster ride of knife-play plasma-spilling fear will conclude but one thing is for sure… no one has seen EYEBALL looking better than in this amazing new 2k scan which comes as a packed (and we mean PACKED) limited special edition.

Never before seen in the UK, this spectacular 88 Films debut of EYEBALL will surely, finally, give Lenzi his standing as one of the finest fright-makers to ever step on a sanguine-caked movie set. Priced at the frankly astonishing bargain price of £15.99, EYEBALL is available for pre-order from 88 Films NOW and comes accompanied by a new 85 minute long documentary, ALL EYES ON LENZI: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE ITALIAN EXPLOITATION TITAN – which contains not just unseen Lenzi interview footage and an entire breakdown of the late, great exploitation-helmer’s phenomenal celluloid musings but is an official selection of the SITGES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2018! In addition, this outrageously enthusiastic package includes and additional chat with the actress Martine Brochard whose credits include the likes of THE VIOLENT PROFESSIONALS and many other greats of the Rome-based gore-game. As well as original trailers and an audio commentary from Justin Kerswell and the Hysteria Continues team, fans can look forward to an extensive booklet that charts and horror highs and bullet-ridden police ballets of the one and only Umberto Lenzi!  

(Also live on the 88 Films site as of today are SURF NAZIS MUST DIE and the VHS-era masterpiece of creepy creature feature mayhem DEADTIME STORIES! Both attesting to the dedication that the label takes to resurrecting and revamping some of the most demanded exploitation and B-movie horror of yesteryear! We, as always, appreciate your support and encouragement!)

SPECIAL FEATURES
- Brand New 2K Transfer of the Film restored and regraded from original elements 
- ALL EYES ON LENZI: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE ITALIAN EXPLOITATION TITAN - Brand new feature length documentary (80 minutes) detailing the work and legacy of Rome’s most prolific grindhouse nightmare-maker. Features never-before-seen interview footage with Lenzi himself and comments from critics John Martin, Manlio Gomarasca and Rachael Nisbet, academics Calum Waddell and Mikel Koven, actors Danilo Mattei and Giovanni Lombardo Radice and director and writer Scooter McCrae!! 
- Eyeballs on Martine Brochard: 2018 Interview with Actress Martine Brochard 
- Eyeball Locations Featurette 
- Audio Commentary by the Hysteria Continues 
- Eyeball Trailers 
- Reversible sleeve featuring alternative artwork 
- 4 original “Gatti rossi in un labirinto di vetro” lobby card reproductions 
-Limited edition booklet featuring All About Umberto: an extensive and intricate 6000 word look back at the work of an Italian genre-bending legend... by Calum Waddell 
- Additional booklet copy - Cats and Eyeballs: An interview with Umberto Lenzi by Eugenio Ercolani