Synapse Films has already done some of the most impressive home media work of the 2010s with their stunning 4K restoration of Dario Argento's Suspiria, which was released on Blu-ray last year following its theatrical release. And they're not done yet, as they're releasing their 4K restoration of the film on 4K Ultra HD this November.
Exclusively announced by Rue Morgue, Suspiria will be released on 4K Ultra HD on November 19th. Here's what President of Synapse Films, Don May, Jr. told Rue Morgue's Michael Gingold about the latest version of their phenomenal restoration:
“Suspiria is the ultimate genre film to make the jump to Uhd. With the beautiful color palette and directional audio, there was no better candidate to set the standard for older catalog titles for this new 4K format. We went back to the original 4K files and basically started over, reconfiguring the theatrical Dci-P3 color...
Exclusively announced by Rue Morgue, Suspiria will be released on 4K Ultra HD on November 19th. Here's what President of Synapse Films, Don May, Jr. told Rue Morgue's Michael Gingold about the latest version of their phenomenal restoration:
“Suspiria is the ultimate genre film to make the jump to Uhd. With the beautiful color palette and directional audio, there was no better candidate to set the standard for older catalog titles for this new 4K format. We went back to the original 4K files and basically started over, reconfiguring the theatrical Dci-P3 color...
- 9/12/2019
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Synapse Films preserved horror history and dazzled viewers with their theatrical screenings and SteelBook Blu-ray release of their Suspiria 4K restoration, but if you missed out on the limited edition SteelBook of Dario Argento's classic horror film, Synapse has you covered this March with two versions of a wide-release Suspiria Blu-ray, along with other March Blu-ray releases that may have you marking your calendar in anticipation.
As reported by Rue Morgue, on March 13th, Synapse Films will release both a two-disc and single-disc Blu-ray of their Suspiria 4K release, as well as Blu-ray releases for the Pet Sematary documentary Unearthed and Untold and the animated samurai movie Path of Blood.
You can view the full lists of special features and cover art for all four Blu-ray releases below. Will you be adding them to your home media collections this March?
Suspiria Two-Disc Blu-ray Special Edition: "Synapse Films Brings Their...
As reported by Rue Morgue, on March 13th, Synapse Films will release both a two-disc and single-disc Blu-ray of their Suspiria 4K release, as well as Blu-ray releases for the Pet Sematary documentary Unearthed and Untold and the animated samurai movie Path of Blood.
You can view the full lists of special features and cover art for all four Blu-ray releases below. Will you be adding them to your home media collections this March?
Suspiria Two-Disc Blu-ray Special Edition: "Synapse Films Brings Their...
- 1/25/2018
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
With Christmas now only a week away, there’s a big day of genre-related home entertainment releases to look forward to in the meantime, just in case you were in need of some last-minute gift ideas (or if you were looking to spoil yourself, which is totally cool). Easily my most anticipated Blu-ray release for all of 2017, Synapse Films' stunning 4K restoration of Suspiria gets the royal treatment via an incredible three-disc limited edition Steelbook set this Tuesday, and Severin Films is also keeping busy with their HD upgrade of The Amicus Collection, which includes Asylum, And Now The Screaming Starts, and The Beast Must Die.
Other notable Blu-ray and DVD releases for December 19th include American Gothic, Leatherface, mother!, and the limited edition Steelbook for Donnie Darko.
American Gothic (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
A new tale of terror from the director of The Legend of Hell House and The Incubus.
Other notable Blu-ray and DVD releases for December 19th include American Gothic, Leatherface, mother!, and the limited edition Steelbook for Donnie Darko.
American Gothic (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
A new tale of terror from the director of The Legend of Hell House and The Incubus.
- 12/19/2017
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
*Updated with the reported release date* "Do you know anything about witches?" Having been shaken to my core by the Goblin score while watching the 4K restoration of Suspiria at this year's Flashback Weekend in Chicago, I highly recommend you seek out the remastered screening if it plays anywhere near you (or several states away—it's that good). If you can't make it to one of the screenings, though, it's coming out on a collectible SteelBook Blu-ray from Synapse Films, and DiabolikDVD.com has revealed the official release date.
According to multiple sources, including DiabolikDVD, the Suspiria Blu-ray SteelBook is slated for a December 19th release from Synapse Films. We have a look at the previously announced special features below, and keep an eye on DiabolikDVD, Amazon, and Synapse Films' official website for more information. In case you missed it, check out Heather Wixson's review of the dazzling 4K restoration.
According to multiple sources, including DiabolikDVD, the Suspiria Blu-ray SteelBook is slated for a December 19th release from Synapse Films. We have a look at the previously announced special features below, and keep an eye on DiabolikDVD, Amazon, and Synapse Films' official website for more information. In case you missed it, check out Heather Wixson's review of the dazzling 4K restoration.
- 11/24/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
This week’s list of horror-themed home entertainment releases is almost exhausting, as we have well over 30 titles coming our way on September 12th. For those who may have missed them in theaters earlier this year, you can now finally catch up with both The Mummy (2017) and It Comes At Night, as they’re both headed home on multiple formats.
Cult film fans should keep an eye out for an array of releases this Tuesday, including The Fox With A Velvet Tail, The Resurrected, the standard two-disc Blu-ray for Dario Argento’s Phenomena, The Creep Behind the Camera, Spider, and Don Coscarelli’s entire Phantasm series comes home in a five-disc DVD set from Well Go USA.
Other notable releases for September 12th include The Ghoul, Dead Again in Tombstone, The Hatred, Ruby, Tobor the Great, and Night Gallery: The Complete Series.
The Fox With A Velvet Tail (Mondo Macabro,...
Cult film fans should keep an eye out for an array of releases this Tuesday, including The Fox With A Velvet Tail, The Resurrected, the standard two-disc Blu-ray for Dario Argento’s Phenomena, The Creep Behind the Camera, Spider, and Don Coscarelli’s entire Phantasm series comes home in a five-disc DVD set from Well Go USA.
Other notable releases for September 12th include The Ghoul, Dead Again in Tombstone, The Hatred, Ruby, Tobor the Great, and Night Gallery: The Complete Series.
The Fox With A Velvet Tail (Mondo Macabro,...
- 9/12/2017
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Synapse Films made many viewers happy last year with their Collector's Edition Steelbook Blu-ray release of Dario Argento's Phenomena, aka Creepers, and if you didn't pick up the Steelbook, you'll soon have a chance to purchase the film in a standard (but still extraordinary) two-disc Blu-ray this September, along with The Creep Behind the Camera.
Featuring three separate cuts of the film, the Phenomena Blu-ray will be released on September 12th, the same day of Synapse Films' Blu-ray and DVD release of The Creep Behind the Camera, which explores the stranger than fiction story of the making of The Creeping Terror (which is included in the special features with a new 2K scan). Below, we have official press releases with full details, as well as a look at the cover art for both films.
Press Release: One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking...
Featuring three separate cuts of the film, the Phenomena Blu-ray will be released on September 12th, the same day of Synapse Films' Blu-ray and DVD release of The Creep Behind the Camera, which explores the stranger than fiction story of the making of The Creeping Terror (which is included in the special features with a new 2K scan). Below, we have official press releases with full details, as well as a look at the cover art for both films.
Press Release: One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking...
- 6/20/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
“Why don’t you call your Insects! Go On! Call! Call!”
Hi-Def Ninja is proud to present Phenomena in their 2nd Black Label Horror Line Series. In conjunction with Synapse Films; Hi-Def Ninja has created special packaging to house the Blu-ray SteelBook Edition that includes a Blu-ray Slipbox that features art from modern illustrators Quiltface Studios and The Dark Inker as well as Screen Printed Art Cards and a bonus collector’s coin.
Hi-Def Ninja’s site can be found Here
http://www.hidefninja.com/
Hi-Def Ninja’s store can be found Here
https://shop.hidefninja.com/
One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking and fantastic films is finally available on Blu-ray in the U.S. in an amazing new release from Synapse Films! Released in the U.S. as Creepers by New Line Cinema, 1985’s Phenomena is has long been one of Argento’s...
Hi-Def Ninja is proud to present Phenomena in their 2nd Black Label Horror Line Series. In conjunction with Synapse Films; Hi-Def Ninja has created special packaging to house the Blu-ray SteelBook Edition that includes a Blu-ray Slipbox that features art from modern illustrators Quiltface Studios and The Dark Inker as well as Screen Printed Art Cards and a bonus collector’s coin.
Hi-Def Ninja’s site can be found Here
http://www.hidefninja.com/
Hi-Def Ninja’s store can be found Here
https://shop.hidefninja.com/
One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking and fantastic films is finally available on Blu-ray in the U.S. in an amazing new release from Synapse Films! Released in the U.S. as Creepers by New Line Cinema, 1985’s Phenomena is has long been one of Argento’s...
- 2/1/2017
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Welcome back for Day 8 of Daily Dead’s fourth annual Holiday Gift Guide, readers! Once again, our goal is to help you navigate through the horrors of the 2016 shopping season with our tips on unique gift ideas, and we’ll hopefully help you save a few bucks over the next few weeks, too. For today’s edition of the gift guide, we’ll be highlighting a new collection of art from Matthew Therrien featuring many of our favorite final girls and survivors in horror, the steelbook edition of Dario Argento’s Phenomena, the Never Sleep Again book, Terror Threads, Creep Case, and a whole lot more.
This year’s Holiday Gift Guide is sponsored by several amazing companies, including Mondo, Anchor Bay Entertainment, DC Entertainment, and Magnolia Home Entertainment, who have all donated an assortment of goodies to help get you into the spirit of the season. Daily Dead also...
This year’s Holiday Gift Guide is sponsored by several amazing companies, including Mondo, Anchor Bay Entertainment, DC Entertainment, and Magnolia Home Entertainment, who have all donated an assortment of goodies to help get you into the spirit of the season. Daily Dead also...
- 12/5/2016
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Well, genre fans, November 15th is a rather quiet week on the home entertainment front, as there are only a few releases coming our way this Tuesday. Scream Factory has put together a stellar Collector’s Edition Blu-ray for David Cronenberg’s Dead Ringers, and Synapse Films is releasing their Collector's Edition steelbook of Dario Argento's Phenomena.
The sixth season of Game of Thrones makes its way home this week, too, and Star Wars fans can finally enjoy The Force Awakens in 3D from the comfort of their couches with a brand new set that arrives on Tuesday.
Dead Ringers: Collector’s Edition (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Claire Niveau (Genevieve Bujold) is in love with handsome Beverly. Or does she love Elliot? It’s uncertain because brothers Beverly and Elliot Mantle are identical twins sharing the same medical practice, apartment and women: including unsuspecting Claire.
In portrayals that...
The sixth season of Game of Thrones makes its way home this week, too, and Star Wars fans can finally enjoy The Force Awakens in 3D from the comfort of their couches with a brand new set that arrives on Tuesday.
Dead Ringers: Collector’s Edition (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Claire Niveau (Genevieve Bujold) is in love with handsome Beverly. Or does she love Elliot? It’s uncertain because brothers Beverly and Elliot Mantle are identical twins sharing the same medical practice, apartment and women: including unsuspecting Claire.
In portrayals that...
- 11/15/2016
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
In Dario Argento's Phenomena (1985), a serial killer is murdering students at the all-girls Swiss boarding school where Jenifer (Jennifer Connelly) attends. Possessing the unique ability to communicate with insects, Jenifer uses her power to help find the killer. Previously released in the U.S. as Creepers, the Italian horror film is now available to purchase in a Limited Collector's Edition Blu-ray Steelbook courtesy of Synapse Films.
Press Release: One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking and fantastic films is finally available on Blu-ray in the U.S. in an amazing new release from Synapse Films! Released in the U.S. as Creepers by New Line Cinema, 1985’s Phenomena has long been one of Argento’s most discussed and debated films by fans and scholars, and now it’s available in a definitive 3-disc Steelbook® that will make it a must-have release for Argento fans all over the world!
Press Release: One of legendary filmmaker Dario Argento’s most shocking and fantastic films is finally available on Blu-ray in the U.S. in an amazing new release from Synapse Films! Released in the U.S. as Creepers by New Line Cinema, 1985’s Phenomena has long been one of Argento’s most discussed and debated films by fans and scholars, and now it’s available in a definitive 3-disc Steelbook® that will make it a must-have release for Argento fans all over the world!
- 10/7/2016
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
Ivan Tors and Curt Siodmak 'borrow' nine minutes of dynamite special effects from an obscure-because-suppressed German sci-fi picture, write a new script, and come up with an eccentric thriller where atom scientists behave like G-Men crossed with Albert Einstein. The challenge? How to make a faceless unstable atomic isotope into a worthy science fiction 'monster.' The Magnetic Monster Blu-ray Kl Studio Classics 1953 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 76 min. / Street Date June 14, 2016 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95 Starring Richard Carlson, King Donovan, Jean Byron, Leonard Mudie, Byron Foulger, Michael Fox, Frank Gerstle, Charles Williams, Kathleen Freeman, Strother Martin, Jarma Lewis. Cinematography Charles Van Enger Supervising Film Editor Herbert L. Strock Original Music Blaine Sanford Written by Curt Siodmak, Ivan Tors Produced by Ivan Tors Directed by Curt Siodmak
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
How did we ever survive without an "Office of Scientific Investigation?" In the early 1950s, producer Ivan Tors launched himself with a trio of science fiction movies based on that non-existent government entity, sort of an FBI for strange scientific phenomena. As of this writing, Kino has released a terrific 3-D Blu-ray of the third entry, 1954's Gog. The second Tors Osi mini-epic is the interesting, if scientifically scrambled Riders to the Stars, which shows up from time to time on TCM but has yet to find its way to home video in any format. The first of the series, 1953's The Magnetic Monster is considered the most scientifically interesting, although it mainly promotes its own laundry list of goofy notions about physics and chemistry. As it pretends that it is based on scientific ideas instead of rubber-suited monsters, Tors' abstract threat is more than just another 'thing' trying to abduct the leading lady. Exploiting the common fear of radiation, a force little understood by the general public, The Magnetic Monster invents a whole new secret government bureau dedicated to solving 'dangerous scientific problems' -- the inference being, of course, that there's always something threatening about science. Actually, producer Tors was probably inspired by his partner Curt Siodmak to take advantage of a fantastic special effects opportunity that a small show like Magnetic could normally never afford. More on that later. The script plays like an episode of Dragnet, substituting scientific detectives for L.A.P.D. gumshoes. Top-kick nuclear troubleshooter Dr. Jeff Stewart (Richard Carlson) can't afford to buy a tract home for his pregnant wife Connie (beautiful Jean Byron, later of The Patty Duke Show). He is one of just a few dauntless Osi operatives standing between us and scientific disaster. When local cops route a weird distress call to the Osi office, Jeff and his Phd. sidekick Dan Forbes (King Donovan) discover that someone has been tampering with an unstable isotope in a room above a housewares store on Lincoln Blvd.: every metallic object in the store has become magnetized. The agents trace the explosive element to one Dr. Serny (Michael Fox), whose "lone wolf" experiments have created a new monster element, a Unipolar watchamacallit sometimes referred to as Serranium. If not 'fed' huge amounts of energy this new element will implode, expand, and explode again on a predictable timetable. Local efforts to neutralize the element fail, and an entire lab building is destroyed. Dan and Jeff rush the now-larger isotope to a fantastic Canadian "Deltatron" constructed in a super-scientific complex deep under the ocean off Nova Scotia. The plan is to bombard the stuff with so much energy that it will disintegrate harmlessly. But does the Deltatron have enough juice to do the job? Its Canadian supervisor tries to halt the procedure just as the time limit to the next implosion is coming due! Sincere, likeable and quaint, The Magnetic Monster is nevertheless a prime candidate for chuckles, thanks to a screenplay with a high clunk factor. Big cheese scientist Jeff Stewart interrupts his experimental bombardment of metals in his atom smasher to go out on blind neighborhood calls, dispensing atom know-how like a pizza deliveryman. He takes time out to make fat jokes at the expense of the lab's switchboard operator, the charming Kathleen Freeman. The Osi's super-computer provides instant answers to various mysteries. Its name in this show is the acronym M.A.N.I.A.C.. Was naming differential analyzers some kind of a fetish with early computer men? Quick, which '50s Sci-fi gem has a computer named S.U.S.I.E.? The strange isotope harnesses a vague amalgam of nuclear and magnetic forces. It might seem logical to small kids just learning about the invisible wonder of magnetism -- and that understand none of it. All the silverware at the store sticks together. It is odd, but not enough to cause the sexy blonde saleswoman (Elizabeth Root) to scream and jump as if goosed by Our Friend the Atom. When a call comes in that a taxi's engine has become magnetized, our agents are slow to catch on. Gee, could that crazy event be related to our mystery element? When the culprit scientist is finally tracked down, and pulled off an airliner, he's already near death from overexposure to his own creation. We admire Dr. Serny, who after all managed to create a new element on his own, without benefit of a billion dollar physics lab. He also must be a prize dope for not realizing that the resulting radiation would kill him. The Osi troubleshooters deliver a stern lesson that all of us need to remember: "In nuclear research there is no place for lone wolves." If you think about it, the agency's function is to protect us from science itself, with blame leveled at individual, free-thinking, 'rogue' brainiacs. (Sarcasm alert.) The danger in nuclear research comes not from mad militarists trying to make bigger and more awful bombs; the villains are those crackpots cooking up end-of-the-world scenarios in their home workshops. Dr. Serny probably didn't even have a security clearance! The Magnetic Monster has a delightful gaffe in every scene. When a dangerous isotope is said to be 'on the loose,' a police radio order is broadcast to Shoot To Kill ... Shoot what exactly, they don't say. This line could very well have been invented in the film's audio mix, if producer Tors thought the scene needed an extra jolt. Despite the fact that writer-director Curt Siodmak cooked up the brilliant concept of Donovan's Brain and personally invented a bona fide classic monster mythology, his '50s sci-fi efforts strain credibility in all directions. As I explain in the Gold review, Siodmak may have been the one to come up with the idea of repurposing the climax of the old film. He was a refugee from Hitler's Germany, and had written a film with director Karl Hartl. Reading accounts in books by Tom Weaver and Bill Warren, we learn that the writer Siodmak had difficulty functioning as a director and that credited editor Herbert Strock stepped in to direct. Strock later claimed that the noted writer was indecisive on the set. The truly remarkable aspect of The Magnetic Monster comes in the last reel, when Jeff and Dan take an elevator ride way, way down to Canada's subterranean, sub-Atlantic Deltatron atom-smasher. They're suddenly wearing styles not worn in the early 'fifties -- big blocky coats and wide-brimmed hats. The answer comes when they step out into a wild mad-lab construction worthy of the visuals in Metropolis. A giant power station is outfitted with oversized white porcelain insulators -- even a set of stairs looks like an insulator. Atop the control booth is an array of (giant, what else) glass tubes with glowing neon lights inside. Cables and wires go every which-way. A crew of workers in wrinkled shop suits stands about like extras from The Three-Penny Opera. For quite some time, only readers of old issues of Famous Monsters of Filmland knew the secret of this bizarre footage, which is actually from the 1934 German sci-fi thriller Gold, directed by Karl Hartl and starring Hans Albers and Brigitte Helm. Tors and Siodmak do their best to integrate Richard Carlson and King Donovan into this spectacular twenty-year-old stock footage, even though the extravagant production values and the expressionist patina of the Ufa visuals are a gross mismatch for The Magnetic Monster's '50s semi-docu look. Jeff's wide hat and David Byrne coat are there to make him look more like Hans Albers in the 1934 film, which doesn't work because Albers must be four inches taller and forty pounds beefier than Richard Carlson. Jeff climbs around the Deltatron, enters a control booth and argues with the Canadian scientist/turnkey, who is a much better match for the villain of Gold. Jeff changes into a different costume, with a different cap -- so he can match Albers in the different scene in Gold. The exciting climax repurposes the extravagant special effects of Otto Hunte and Günther Rittau, changing the original film's attempted atomic alchemy into a desperate attempt to neutralize the nasty new element before it can explode again. The matching works rather well for Jeff's desperate struggle to close an enormous pair of bulkhead doors that have been sabotaged. And a matched cut on a whip pan from center stage to a high control room is very nicely integrated into the old footage. The bizarre scene doesn't quite come off... even kids must have known that older footage was being used. In the long shots, Richard Carlson doesn't look anything like Hans Albers. A fuel-rod plunger in the control room displays a German-style cross, even though the corresponding instrument in the original show wasn't so decorated. Some impressive close-up views of a blob of metal being bombarded by atomic particles are from the old movie, and others are new effects. Metallurgy is scary, man. The "Serranium" threat establishes a pattern touched upon by later Sci-fi movies with organic or abstract forces that grow from relative insignificance to world-threatening proportions. The Monolith Monsters proposes giant crystals that grow to the size of skyscrapers, threatening to cover the earth with a giant quartz-pile. The Sam Katzman quickie The Day the World Exploded makes The Magnetic Monster look like an expensive production. It invents a new mineral that explodes when exposed to air. The supporting cast of The Magnetic Monster gives us some pleasant, familiar faces. In addition to the beloved Kathleen Freeman is Strother Martin as a concerned airline pilot. Fussy Byron Foulger owns the housewares store and granite-jawed Frank Gerstle (Gristle?) is a gruff general. The gorgeous Jarma Lewis has a quick bit as a stewardess. The Kl Studio Classics Blu-ray of The Magnetic Monster is a fine transfer of this B&W gem from United Artists. Once hard to see, it was part of an expensive MGM-Image laserdisc set twenty years ago and then an Mod DVD in 2011. The disc comes with a socko original trailer that explains why it did reasonably well at the box office. Every exciting moment is edited into a coming attraction that really hypes the jeopardy factor. At that time, just the sight of a hero in a radiation suit promised something unusual. Nowadays, Hazardous Waste workers use suits like that to clean up common chemical spills. The commentary for The Magnetic Monster is by Fangoria writer Derek Botelho, whose name is misspelled as Botello on the disc package. I've heard Derek on a couple of David del Valle tracks for Vincent Price movies, where he functioned mainly as an Ed McMahon-like fan sidekick. His talk tends to drift into loosely related sidebar observations. Instead of discussing how the movie was made by cannibalizing another, he recounts for us the comedy stock footage discovery scene from Tim Burton's Ed Wood. Several pages recited from memoirs by Curt Siodmak and Herbert Strock do provide useful information on the film. Botelho appreciates actress Kathleen Freeman. You can't go wrong doing that. Viewers that obtain Kino's concurrent Blu-ray release of the original 1934 German thriller Gold will note that the repurposed scenes from that film look much better here, although they still bear some scratches. On a scale of Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor, The Magnetic Monster Blu-ray rates: Movie: Good + Video: Very Good Sound: Excellent Supplements: Commentary with Derek Botelho, Theatrical trailer Deaf and Hearing Impaired Friendly? N0; Subtitles: None Packaging: Keep case Reviewed: June 8, 2016 (5138magn)
Visit DVD Savant's Main Column Page Glenn Erickson answers most reader mail: dvdsavant@mindspring.com
Text © Copyright 2016 Glenn Erickson...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
How did we ever survive without an "Office of Scientific Investigation?" In the early 1950s, producer Ivan Tors launched himself with a trio of science fiction movies based on that non-existent government entity, sort of an FBI for strange scientific phenomena. As of this writing, Kino has released a terrific 3-D Blu-ray of the third entry, 1954's Gog. The second Tors Osi mini-epic is the interesting, if scientifically scrambled Riders to the Stars, which shows up from time to time on TCM but has yet to find its way to home video in any format. The first of the series, 1953's The Magnetic Monster is considered the most scientifically interesting, although it mainly promotes its own laundry list of goofy notions about physics and chemistry. As it pretends that it is based on scientific ideas instead of rubber-suited monsters, Tors' abstract threat is more than just another 'thing' trying to abduct the leading lady. Exploiting the common fear of radiation, a force little understood by the general public, The Magnetic Monster invents a whole new secret government bureau dedicated to solving 'dangerous scientific problems' -- the inference being, of course, that there's always something threatening about science. Actually, producer Tors was probably inspired by his partner Curt Siodmak to take advantage of a fantastic special effects opportunity that a small show like Magnetic could normally never afford. More on that later. The script plays like an episode of Dragnet, substituting scientific detectives for L.A.P.D. gumshoes. Top-kick nuclear troubleshooter Dr. Jeff Stewart (Richard Carlson) can't afford to buy a tract home for his pregnant wife Connie (beautiful Jean Byron, later of The Patty Duke Show). He is one of just a few dauntless Osi operatives standing between us and scientific disaster. When local cops route a weird distress call to the Osi office, Jeff and his Phd. sidekick Dan Forbes (King Donovan) discover that someone has been tampering with an unstable isotope in a room above a housewares store on Lincoln Blvd.: every metallic object in the store has become magnetized. The agents trace the explosive element to one Dr. Serny (Michael Fox), whose "lone wolf" experiments have created a new monster element, a Unipolar watchamacallit sometimes referred to as Serranium. If not 'fed' huge amounts of energy this new element will implode, expand, and explode again on a predictable timetable. Local efforts to neutralize the element fail, and an entire lab building is destroyed. Dan and Jeff rush the now-larger isotope to a fantastic Canadian "Deltatron" constructed in a super-scientific complex deep under the ocean off Nova Scotia. The plan is to bombard the stuff with so much energy that it will disintegrate harmlessly. But does the Deltatron have enough juice to do the job? Its Canadian supervisor tries to halt the procedure just as the time limit to the next implosion is coming due! Sincere, likeable and quaint, The Magnetic Monster is nevertheless a prime candidate for chuckles, thanks to a screenplay with a high clunk factor. Big cheese scientist Jeff Stewart interrupts his experimental bombardment of metals in his atom smasher to go out on blind neighborhood calls, dispensing atom know-how like a pizza deliveryman. He takes time out to make fat jokes at the expense of the lab's switchboard operator, the charming Kathleen Freeman. The Osi's super-computer provides instant answers to various mysteries. Its name in this show is the acronym M.A.N.I.A.C.. Was naming differential analyzers some kind of a fetish with early computer men? Quick, which '50s Sci-fi gem has a computer named S.U.S.I.E.? The strange isotope harnesses a vague amalgam of nuclear and magnetic forces. It might seem logical to small kids just learning about the invisible wonder of magnetism -- and that understand none of it. All the silverware at the store sticks together. It is odd, but not enough to cause the sexy blonde saleswoman (Elizabeth Root) to scream and jump as if goosed by Our Friend the Atom. When a call comes in that a taxi's engine has become magnetized, our agents are slow to catch on. Gee, could that crazy event be related to our mystery element? When the culprit scientist is finally tracked down, and pulled off an airliner, he's already near death from overexposure to his own creation. We admire Dr. Serny, who after all managed to create a new element on his own, without benefit of a billion dollar physics lab. He also must be a prize dope for not realizing that the resulting radiation would kill him. The Osi troubleshooters deliver a stern lesson that all of us need to remember: "In nuclear research there is no place for lone wolves." If you think about it, the agency's function is to protect us from science itself, with blame leveled at individual, free-thinking, 'rogue' brainiacs. (Sarcasm alert.) The danger in nuclear research comes not from mad militarists trying to make bigger and more awful bombs; the villains are those crackpots cooking up end-of-the-world scenarios in their home workshops. Dr. Serny probably didn't even have a security clearance! The Magnetic Monster has a delightful gaffe in every scene. When a dangerous isotope is said to be 'on the loose,' a police radio order is broadcast to Shoot To Kill ... Shoot what exactly, they don't say. This line could very well have been invented in the film's audio mix, if producer Tors thought the scene needed an extra jolt. Despite the fact that writer-director Curt Siodmak cooked up the brilliant concept of Donovan's Brain and personally invented a bona fide classic monster mythology, his '50s sci-fi efforts strain credibility in all directions. As I explain in the Gold review, Siodmak may have been the one to come up with the idea of repurposing the climax of the old film. He was a refugee from Hitler's Germany, and had written a film with director Karl Hartl. Reading accounts in books by Tom Weaver and Bill Warren, we learn that the writer Siodmak had difficulty functioning as a director and that credited editor Herbert Strock stepped in to direct. Strock later claimed that the noted writer was indecisive on the set. The truly remarkable aspect of The Magnetic Monster comes in the last reel, when Jeff and Dan take an elevator ride way, way down to Canada's subterranean, sub-Atlantic Deltatron atom-smasher. They're suddenly wearing styles not worn in the early 'fifties -- big blocky coats and wide-brimmed hats. The answer comes when they step out into a wild mad-lab construction worthy of the visuals in Metropolis. A giant power station is outfitted with oversized white porcelain insulators -- even a set of stairs looks like an insulator. Atop the control booth is an array of (giant, what else) glass tubes with glowing neon lights inside. Cables and wires go every which-way. A crew of workers in wrinkled shop suits stands about like extras from The Three-Penny Opera. For quite some time, only readers of old issues of Famous Monsters of Filmland knew the secret of this bizarre footage, which is actually from the 1934 German sci-fi thriller Gold, directed by Karl Hartl and starring Hans Albers and Brigitte Helm. Tors and Siodmak do their best to integrate Richard Carlson and King Donovan into this spectacular twenty-year-old stock footage, even though the extravagant production values and the expressionist patina of the Ufa visuals are a gross mismatch for The Magnetic Monster's '50s semi-docu look. Jeff's wide hat and David Byrne coat are there to make him look more like Hans Albers in the 1934 film, which doesn't work because Albers must be four inches taller and forty pounds beefier than Richard Carlson. Jeff climbs around the Deltatron, enters a control booth and argues with the Canadian scientist/turnkey, who is a much better match for the villain of Gold. Jeff changes into a different costume, with a different cap -- so he can match Albers in the different scene in Gold. The exciting climax repurposes the extravagant special effects of Otto Hunte and Günther Rittau, changing the original film's attempted atomic alchemy into a desperate attempt to neutralize the nasty new element before it can explode again. The matching works rather well for Jeff's desperate struggle to close an enormous pair of bulkhead doors that have been sabotaged. And a matched cut on a whip pan from center stage to a high control room is very nicely integrated into the old footage. The bizarre scene doesn't quite come off... even kids must have known that older footage was being used. In the long shots, Richard Carlson doesn't look anything like Hans Albers. A fuel-rod plunger in the control room displays a German-style cross, even though the corresponding instrument in the original show wasn't so decorated. Some impressive close-up views of a blob of metal being bombarded by atomic particles are from the old movie, and others are new effects. Metallurgy is scary, man. The "Serranium" threat establishes a pattern touched upon by later Sci-fi movies with organic or abstract forces that grow from relative insignificance to world-threatening proportions. The Monolith Monsters proposes giant crystals that grow to the size of skyscrapers, threatening to cover the earth with a giant quartz-pile. The Sam Katzman quickie The Day the World Exploded makes The Magnetic Monster look like an expensive production. It invents a new mineral that explodes when exposed to air. The supporting cast of The Magnetic Monster gives us some pleasant, familiar faces. In addition to the beloved Kathleen Freeman is Strother Martin as a concerned airline pilot. Fussy Byron Foulger owns the housewares store and granite-jawed Frank Gerstle (Gristle?) is a gruff general. The gorgeous Jarma Lewis has a quick bit as a stewardess. The Kl Studio Classics Blu-ray of The Magnetic Monster is a fine transfer of this B&W gem from United Artists. Once hard to see, it was part of an expensive MGM-Image laserdisc set twenty years ago and then an Mod DVD in 2011. The disc comes with a socko original trailer that explains why it did reasonably well at the box office. Every exciting moment is edited into a coming attraction that really hypes the jeopardy factor. At that time, just the sight of a hero in a radiation suit promised something unusual. Nowadays, Hazardous Waste workers use suits like that to clean up common chemical spills. The commentary for The Magnetic Monster is by Fangoria writer Derek Botelho, whose name is misspelled as Botello on the disc package. I've heard Derek on a couple of David del Valle tracks for Vincent Price movies, where he functioned mainly as an Ed McMahon-like fan sidekick. His talk tends to drift into loosely related sidebar observations. Instead of discussing how the movie was made by cannibalizing another, he recounts for us the comedy stock footage discovery scene from Tim Burton's Ed Wood. Several pages recited from memoirs by Curt Siodmak and Herbert Strock do provide useful information on the film. Botelho appreciates actress Kathleen Freeman. You can't go wrong doing that. Viewers that obtain Kino's concurrent Blu-ray release of the original 1934 German thriller Gold will note that the repurposed scenes from that film look much better here, although they still bear some scratches. On a scale of Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor, The Magnetic Monster Blu-ray rates: Movie: Good + Video: Very Good Sound: Excellent Supplements: Commentary with Derek Botelho, Theatrical trailer Deaf and Hearing Impaired Friendly? N0; Subtitles: None Packaging: Keep case Reviewed: June 8, 2016 (5138magn)
Visit DVD Savant's Main Column Page Glenn Erickson answers most reader mail: dvdsavant@mindspring.com
Text © Copyright 2016 Glenn Erickson...
- 6/14/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Dario Argento fans will want to circle February 23rd on their calendars, as Synapse Films has announced a three-disc Blu-ray / DVD limited edition steelbook release of 1982's Tenebrae:
Press Release: Dario Argento’S Giallo Masterpiece Finally Comes To U.S. Blu-ray On February 23rd From Synapse Films
A 3-disc (Blu-ray, DVD & CD) Limited Steelbook™ Edition Of Dario Argento’S Horror Classic! Only 3000 Units Produced!
Italian terror master Dario Argento elevates the Giallo genre to new heights with 1982’s Tenebrae, a darkly humorous, futuristic and notoriously grisly horror film many consider to be one of his finest works.
American mystery author Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) comes to Italy to promote his newest novel, Tenebrae. Unfortunately, a razor-wielding serial killer is on the loose, taunting Neal and murdering those around him in gruesome fashion just like the character in his novel. As the mystery surrounding the killings spirals out of control,...
Press Release: Dario Argento’S Giallo Masterpiece Finally Comes To U.S. Blu-ray On February 23rd From Synapse Films
A 3-disc (Blu-ray, DVD & CD) Limited Steelbook™ Edition Of Dario Argento’S Horror Classic! Only 3000 Units Produced!
Italian terror master Dario Argento elevates the Giallo genre to new heights with 1982’s Tenebrae, a darkly humorous, futuristic and notoriously grisly horror film many consider to be one of his finest works.
American mystery author Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) comes to Italy to promote his newest novel, Tenebrae. Unfortunately, a razor-wielding serial killer is on the loose, taunting Neal and murdering those around him in gruesome fashion just like the character in his novel. As the mystery surrounding the killings spirals out of control,...
- 1/27/2016
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Scream Factory gave many classic horror film fans a Halloween treat with the release of The Vincent Price Collection II, and now Arrow Films is looking to sate the viewing appetites of Price fans in England with Six Gothic Tales, due out on December 8th. Comprised of six Roger Corman movies based on Edgar Allan Poe’s works and starring Vincent Price, Arrow Films has unveiled their collection’s special features:
Press Release - “From the Merchant of Menace, Vincent Price, and the King of the B’s, Roger Corman, come six Gothic tales inspired by the pen of Edgar Allan Poe. Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the limited edition release of this Six Gothic Tales box set. Limited to a run of just 2000 copies, this much-anticipated release will include The Fall of the House of Usher, Tales of Terror, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Haunted Palace...
Press Release - “From the Merchant of Menace, Vincent Price, and the King of the B’s, Roger Corman, come six Gothic tales inspired by the pen of Edgar Allan Poe. Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the limited edition release of this Six Gothic Tales box set. Limited to a run of just 2000 copies, this much-anticipated release will include The Fall of the House of Usher, Tales of Terror, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Haunted Palace...
- 11/20/2014
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
This week we don’t have as many new releases, but there’s still some great titles coming out. I’m particularly excited for the second Vincent Price Blu-ray collection which includes “House on Haunted Hill.” Who doesn’t love sassy billionaire playboy Vince Price? Here are your Blu-ray releases for Tuesday the 21st:
The Vincent Price Collection II. United States. The Last Man on Earth / The Comedy of Terrors / Dr. Phibes Rises Again / Tomb of Ligeia / The Raven / Return of the Fly / The House on Haunted Hill. Shout Factory. 1959-1972.
From the press release:
Scream Factory, the horror-thriller offshoot of independent film distributor Shout Factory, has detailed The Vincent Price Collection II. The box set set is scheduled to arrive on the market on October 21.
Additional special features for this collection:
The Raven
Introduction and parting words by Vincent Price
New Audio Commentary with author/film historian Steve Haberman...
The Vincent Price Collection II. United States. The Last Man on Earth / The Comedy of Terrors / Dr. Phibes Rises Again / Tomb of Ligeia / The Raven / Return of the Fly / The House on Haunted Hill. Shout Factory. 1959-1972.
From the press release:
Scream Factory, the horror-thriller offshoot of independent film distributor Shout Factory, has detailed The Vincent Price Collection II. The box set set is scheduled to arrive on the market on October 21.
Additional special features for this collection:
The Raven
Introduction and parting words by Vincent Price
New Audio Commentary with author/film historian Steve Haberman...
- 10/21/2014
- by Sarah Skidmore
- Destroy the Brain
The first Vincent Price collection from Scream Factory was a pure treasure. When October rolls around, almost nothing puts me in the Halloween mood like a constant stream of Vincent Price films on my TV. Never did I think that Scream could improve upon their original price collection, but when the films that would be included in this new set were announced, I was shocked. The first Vincent Price Collection has some really solid Price films, mostly of a Poe nature, and it was one of the most exciting releases of the year for fans of classic horror. The second set, drops the Poe theme(mostly), and includes some of Price’s most famous, well-regarded films, including a couple of my favorites. The list of films is impressive, and there are extras on most of the films. The packaging is consistent, and equally pleasing to the eyes. Scream Factory’s...
- 10/21/2014
- by Shawn Savage
- The Liberal Dead
For the third week of October, genre fans have several new and classic titles coming out this week on DVD and Blu-ray to look forward to, including The Vincent Price Collection II, Snowpiercer, Wrong Turn 6: Last Resort, See No Evil 2 and the badass follow-up to last year’s box office home invasion hit, The Purge: Anarchy.
Several notable indie titles are being released this Tuesday as well, including Play Hooky (the first title to come out under Pollygrind’s new distro label), To All a Good Night (directed by the late-great David Hess), Life After Beth and The Scribbler, the film adaptation of Daniel Schaffer’s wildly popular graphic novel.
Spotlight Titles:
The Purge: Anarchy (Universal Home Entertainment, Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD & DVD)
The New Founders of America invite you to celebrate your annual right to Purge. The Purge: Anarchy, the sequel to summer 2013’s sleeper hit that opened to No.
Several notable indie titles are being released this Tuesday as well, including Play Hooky (the first title to come out under Pollygrind’s new distro label), To All a Good Night (directed by the late-great David Hess), Life After Beth and The Scribbler, the film adaptation of Daniel Schaffer’s wildly popular graphic novel.
Spotlight Titles:
The Purge: Anarchy (Universal Home Entertainment, Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD & DVD)
The New Founders of America invite you to celebrate your annual right to Purge. The Purge: Anarchy, the sequel to summer 2013’s sleeper hit that opened to No.
- 10/21/2014
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Last year we fell crazy in love with Scream Factory's The Vincent Price Collection Blu-ray box set. Now the purveyors of all that is spooky cool are back with another round of classic horror goodness featuring the man himself in The Vincent Price Collection Volume II. Read on for details.
From the Press Release
On October 21, 2014, collectors, classic film aficionados, and horror enthusiasts will relish the 4-Disc Blu-ray™ release of Scream Factory’s The Vincent Price Collection Volume II, perfectly timed for Halloween and this year’s holiday gifting season.
This extraordinary collector’s set is an essential movie collection for every home entertainment library and brings together Seven Vincent Price masterpiece classics, featuring the first-ever Blu-ray movie presentation of The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959), The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963), The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964), and Dr. Phibes Rises Again...
From the Press Release
On October 21, 2014, collectors, classic film aficionados, and horror enthusiasts will relish the 4-Disc Blu-ray™ release of Scream Factory’s The Vincent Price Collection Volume II, perfectly timed for Halloween and this year’s holiday gifting season.
This extraordinary collector’s set is an essential movie collection for every home entertainment library and brings together Seven Vincent Price masterpiece classics, featuring the first-ever Blu-ray movie presentation of The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959), The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963), The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964), and Dr. Phibes Rises Again...
- 8/15/2014
- by Steve Barton
- DreadCentral.com
The Blu-ray release I’m most excited for this year is The Vincent Price Collection II, a follow up to last year’s Scream Factory collection with seven more Vincent Price movies making their debut on Blu-ray, including The House on Haunted Hill. Here’s a look at the official list of bonus features:
“On October 21, 2014, collectors, classic film aficionados and horror enthusiasts will relish the 4-Disc Blu-ray™ release of Scream Factory’s The Vincent Price Collection Volume II, perfectly timed for Halloween and this year’s holiday gifting season. This extraordinary collector’s set is an essential movie collection for every home entertainment library and brings together Seven Vincent Price masterpiece classics, featuring the first-ever Blu-ray movie presentation of The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959), The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963), The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964) and Dr. Phibes Rises Again...
“On October 21, 2014, collectors, classic film aficionados and horror enthusiasts will relish the 4-Disc Blu-ray™ release of Scream Factory’s The Vincent Price Collection Volume II, perfectly timed for Halloween and this year’s holiday gifting season. This extraordinary collector’s set is an essential movie collection for every home entertainment library and brings together Seven Vincent Price masterpiece classics, featuring the first-ever Blu-ray movie presentation of The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959), The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963), The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964) and Dr. Phibes Rises Again...
- 8/15/2014
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
The first Vincent Price collection that was released by Scream Factory is a thing of beauty. It was announced recently that they would bringing us a second collection of Vincent Price films on Blu-ray, and I couldn’t be any more excited about it than I already am. Well, maybe I can be, because Scream Factory just released the full details of the set, and it’s going to be a good one. Check out the press release below, and please click here to pre-order your own copy of this collection, which streets on October 21. Man, October is really upon us, isn’t it?
The Vincent Price Collection II
Featuring The First-ever Blu-ray™ Presentation Of
The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959),
The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963),
The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964),
And Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972)
In Stores Everywhere On October...
The Vincent Price Collection II
Featuring The First-ever Blu-ray™ Presentation Of
The House On Haunted Hill (1959), The Return Of The Fly (1959),
The Comedy Of Terrors (1963), The Raven (1963),
The Last Man On Earth (1964), The Tomb Of Ligeia (1964),
And Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972)
In Stores Everywhere On October...
- 8/15/2014
- by Shawn Savage
- The Liberal Dead
Our own Derek Botelho has dedicated countless hours over multiple years to his examination of the work of Dario Argento and we’re happy to see that The Argento Syndrome is now available to read around the world. For those who live in the Los Angeles area, we wanted to tell you about a signing event for the book that includes Derek and a number of special guests:
The Argento Syndrome – In Stores Now! Star-Filled Signing Event Announced!
A retrospective of Italian auteur Dario Argento, The Argento Syndrome is an examination of a career marked by such genre classics as The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Suspiria, Deep Red, Tenebrae and Opera. The Argento Syndrome is part academic study, with essays on every film, and part personal memoir, detailing the author’s time in Italy on a trip to visit the set of Non Ho Sonno. Also included are several...
The Argento Syndrome – In Stores Now! Star-Filled Signing Event Announced!
A retrospective of Italian auteur Dario Argento, The Argento Syndrome is an examination of a career marked by such genre classics as The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Suspiria, Deep Red, Tenebrae and Opera. The Argento Syndrome is part academic study, with essays on every film, and part personal memoir, detailing the author’s time in Italy on a trip to visit the set of Non Ho Sonno. Also included are several...
- 5/17/2014
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
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