Dr. Terror's House of Horrors [Blu-ray]

I have to say, right off the bat, that this wonderful film used to be one of the Holy Grails for many horror film fans. By that, I mean that it was almost impossible to find, in any format. And, furthermore, it was almost impossible to even SEE IT (!), unless you lived in certain television broadcasting regions. I'm going to be revealing my age by saying that there was once a time -- even before VHS tapes (!!) -- when you had to actually WAIT for something to show up on TV, in order to see it. Now, I had read about this film in various cinema books and horror magazines, but had found it impossible to actually view the movie. The TV stations, in the area where I lived, NEVER showed this film. I guess this was due to licensing or broadcasting restrictions (or costs), or maybe due to ongoing lawsuits. Whatever the case, it was intensely frustrating to keep reading about what a great film this was, but still never be able to see it. Even when VHS tape technology finally did become available, which for me was in about 1981, you still couldn't record Dr. Terror off the TV, because the TV never showed it !! Even our local Creature Features program, on KTVU channel 2 out of Oakland, Calif., would never play it ! Finally, I had a friend, in Colorado, who had one of those ancient, primitive satellite dishes. (You have to be of a certain age to even know what I'm talking about.) These early-1980's dishes were HUGE (about 8 feet wide), sat on on your front lawn, and cost about two or three thousand dollars -- and that was in early-1980's dollars ! (Way back when the minimum wage was about four dollars an hour.) So... anyway, I paid this guy forty bucks to record Dr. Terror's House Of Horrors off of his giant satellite dish in Denver, and then mail (!) the VHS tape to me in California. Jeesh. What a pain in the neck. But... it was totally worth it, because I could now finally see a film that was unbelievably rare. And I loved every minute of it, even though it was grainy and so dark that it was hard to make out what was happening. Then, in about 1988, the film came out in a commercial VHS tape -- but it was still pretty murky and dark. Later on, in maybe 1992, I was able to find a clearer, higher quality, videotape at our local swap meet. I guess it must have actually been a bootleg from some TV station somewhere in another state. And so... thirty years later, to FINALLY get a crystal clear, well-lit, beautifully rendered DVD (or even Blu ray) of this movie feels like a miracle. Even though, as other reviewers have noted, there are certainly no frills on this Olive Films DVD, it is still a revelation to see this true horror classic as it was meant to be seen. Kudos to Amazon for this opportunity. And, through all the recorded iterations over the decades -- and gradually getting to see better and better versions of the film -- I still love everything about this movie. The score, by Elizabeth Lutyens, is creepy and haunting; the cinematography, by Alan Hume, is dark and menacing; the direction, by Freddie Francis, is absolutely first rate; and, wow, what a cast ! You've got Peter Cushing AND Christopher Lee; Donald Sutherland AND Michael Gough; and a brilliant host of others. This movie certainly checks all the boxes for a highly memorable, moody, and quite chilling masterwork of fright. And, it must be said, screenwriter Milton Subotsky shows plenty of flair in enlivening five haunting tales of werewolves, vampires, killer vines, voodoo, and vengeance from beyond the grave. The performances, the spooky atmosphere, the tense editing, and the surprise twists all blend together to make a landmark horror film that would go on to influence terror cinema for decades to come. I am, after all those many years of frustration and disappointment, so delighted and so gratified to finally have the opportunity to view a first class version of this film. And after having first read about the film in the 1970's, it is pure pleasure to actually own this excellent edition of the movie, in all of its spooky glory.

I am updating my earlier review of the film, now including the actual review of the DVD itself. This is a Blu-Ray release by Olive Films. The film was produced in 1964, in color, running 98 minutes long, in a 2:35:1 aspect ratio. It is NR. The quality of the image transfer is decent enough, but I was disappointed in that there are no extras whatsoever: no closed captions for the hearing impaired nor commentary. And it is a Region 1 DVD which will play on US Blu-Ray DVD players. That is about it. Below is a review of the film itself, one of my favorite classic horror anthologies.This Amicus portmanteau film, presents five stories within a framed story. The story begins with five gentlemen boarding a train, and all find themselves in the same carriage. Then the five men are joined by the last passenger, a rather strange man who introduces himself as Dr. Schreck (you'll have to look closely to figure out that it is horror icon Peter Cushing, wearing a beard and fake eyebrows). Interestingly, 'shreck' also means 'terror' in German, and the five passengers discover soon enough the terror that awaits them all. Shreck presents a deck of Tarot cards and each passenger picks one and in successive turns gets his fortune told.The first story was my favorite, centering on a young architect, Jim Dawson (Neil McCallum) who finds himself being sent by his boss to the Scottish Hebrides islands to oversee some remodeling project in his old ancestral home, now occupied by a widow, Mrs. Biddulph (Ursula Howells). Jim senses something is afoot by the sinister looks that pass between the old caretaker and his young granddaughter, and also the strange sounds of a wolf howling nearby. Jim discovers much later (and to his horror) that his very life is at stake. The atmosphere and the old manor house that is the setting for this story make this segment of the anthology engaging and creepy.The second story centers around Bill Rogers (Alan Freeman) who returns with his wife and young daughter after a family vacation only to find that there is a vine that has taken root outside their home. This vine is no ordinary plant, and seems to have murderous instincts! The third story revolves around jazz musician Biff Bailey (Roy Castle) who commits the fatal mistake of stealing a voodoo chant and adapting it for a music performance, not realizing that this blasphemous act has angered a voodoo god.The fourth story is about ruthless art critic Franklyn Marsh (Christopher Lee) who drives a painter to commit suicide, and later finds himself being haunted by one of the man's body parts. The last story is about Dr. Bob Carroll (Donald Sutherland) who returns from the Continent with a lovely young bride. Soon after they make themselves at home, Carroll and his partner, Dr. Blake (Max Adrian) find a young patient who shows evidence of being the victim of a vampire, and Blake later persuades Carroll to not only believe in vampires, but that it is Carroll's own bride who is a vampire!The main frame basically ties in all the stories with the question - How do these five men prevent their ultimate fate? Is there a chance for escape? I thought the effects toward the end were rather cheesy and a bit of a let down (not to mention predictable), but the individual stories are actually quite watchable, though I would recommend this strictly for fans of classic and atmospheric horror (those who are only familiar with and fans of modern day horror movies will find these tales slow, lacking gore, and boring). As a fan of classic horror though, I enjoyed it!

日本語字幕入りVTRを所持していますが、あまりの画質の悪さに悩んでいました。この度購入したブルーレイは字幕は有りませんが、画面が鮮明で大いに満足しています。国内版ブルーレイが発売される日を待ちたいです。何せハマープロの傑作ですので・・・。

日本ではVHSのみの発売で、画質が良くなかったので買ってみたが、画質はほぼ良好。字幕は当然のごとくありません。ただなぜか一旦再生を停止して、また再生すると初めから再生になるので不便。

One of the outstanding horror fantasies from the 1960s, this brings together Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Donald Sutherland, the DJ Alan Freeman and the musician Roy Castle in a bit of hokum surrounding a deck of Tarot cards. My only beef about this, and it has cost the movie one of a potential five stars, is that every single one of the 30 cards dealt in the action was from the major arcana, which accounts for 22 of the 78 cards in a Tarot deck. In a truly random deal the odds against that happening in real life are immense! But hey, who said this film had anything to do with real life? It offered five highly inventive ways to scare the pants off the audience (though I hope not literally!) in five sub stories as the train they were travelling on steamed (yes, steamed, this was the 1960s) through the night. But was that destination/destiny where it was intended to go or a horrific train crash? If you want the answer to that you'll have to invest in the DVD or Blu-Ray!

This movie is very enjoyable to the horror buff and there's nothing to complain about in the mastering for this release so far as I could tell. One caveat: there are no special features on this release so if you are comparing, keep that in mind if features are important to you.

While the DVD was sent out immediately, the post office took their dear sweet time delivering it. When it came dangerously close to the deadline by which I needed it, Mike at Roundmedia offered to expedite a second copy. Turns out it wasn't necessary, but I truly appreciated the offer. Thanks!!