VERDICT
HOME CINEMA CHOICE SEPTEMBER 2019
This boxset celebrates the career of underrated
genre fi lmmaker Norman J. Warren by collecting
together fi ve of his best-known fi lms...
Satan’s Slave (1976) fi nds an orphaned young
woman taken in by seemingly benevolent relatives
who secretly hope to use her in resurrecting an
ancient ancestor. Heavily censored on its original
release, the fi lm is presented here fully uncut.
The tale of an alien hiding out with a lesbian
couple, Prey (1977) is reminiscent of Performance in
how it confronts ideas of sexual politics and identity.
Arguably Warren’s best; defi nitely one of his weirdest.
Little more than a series of barely connected
fright sequences that have something to do with
a reincarnated witch, Terror (1978) doesn’t make
a whole lot of sense. It is a lot of fun, though.
Inseminoid (1981) has often been labelled an Alien
rip-off. There are similarities, but this comparison
devalues an enjoyably gory B-movie with better
production values than you might expect, thanks
to the decision to shoot it all in Chislehurst Caves.
Bloody New Ye a r (1987) is a weaker aff air about
a group of people trapped in a temporally-displaced
hotel where they are menaced by zombies, silent
movie stars, and... er, kitchen cutlery.« Bloody Terror: The
Shocking Cinema of
Nor man J Warren, 1976-1987Picture: Satan’s Slave (2.35:1 Techniscope) and
Inseminoid (2.35:1 J-D-C Scope) were both scanned
from internegatives (at 4K in the case of the former),
while Prey (1.66:1) and Terror (1.85:1) both derive from
the original negative. Bloody New Year's negatives
were ‘mistakenly destroyed’ some time ago, so a
35mm print was sourced. All fi ve fi lms were then
restored at 2K, and signed-off by Warren.
For the most part the image quality is superb.
Grain is cleanly resolved, textures are well-handled,
colours are robust (particularly Terror’s garish
palette) and black levels are inky. The one exception
is Bloody New Year, which has fl atter colours, less
precise detailing and suff ers from vertical staining.
Audio: All feature lossless versions of their original
mono soundtracks. None do much to test your
speakers, but there are no drop-outs, hiss or other
technical issues. There’s also no sign of the diabolical
5.1 remixes that accompanied several of these fi lms
on previous DVD releases.
Extras: As well as a director’s commentary (two in
the case of Satan’s Slave), each fi lm is supported by
interviews, Making of... featurettes, trailers and photo
galleries. You also get two diff erent cuts of Satan’s
Slave and a look at how that fi lm was censored in the
UK; deleted scenes for Satan’s Slave and Terror; and
some of Warren’s early shorts. Pick of the bunch,
however, is a fascinating two-hour chat with the
fi lmmaker about his life and career. This Limited
Edition also comes with an 118-page book. AvBBloody Terror: The Shocking
Cinema of Norman J. Warren
« Indicator
« All-region BD « £45
WE SAY: A must-own for exploitation
cinema junkies, packed with extras
and new restorations.
Movie:
Picture:
Audio:
Extras:
OVERALL:Shocks for shock’s sake
Indicator shines an overdue light on a former master of British exploitation cinema
The set bundles two cuts
of 1976 horror Satan's Slave1981's Inseminoid- not just an Alien rip-off