Showing posts with label remastered. Show all posts
Showing posts with label remastered. Show all posts

Wednesday 13 May 2020

COMPETITION! COME SNATCH AND WIN KINO'S REMASTERED 'THE FLESH AND THE FIENDS' BLU RAY HERE!


PCASUK 'THE FLESH AND THE FIENDS' KINO LORBER  BLU RAY
COMPETITION NOW LIVE @ FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE

OK! HERE! Here is another PCASUK COMPETITION for you. A little something  YOUR give a break from that knitting (!!) and maybe liven up your day!😉😉😀 Here is YOUR  chance to SNATCH yourself one of TWO copies we have up for grabs of KINO LOBER's SUPERB 2K REMASTERED BLU RAY of the 1960 British Peter Cushing Classic, 'The Flesh and the Fiends' aka 'Maniac'!  Starring Peter Cushing as Dr Alexander Knox, Donald Pleasence as William Hare, George Rose as William Burke, Billy Whitelaw, June Laverick and Melvyn Hayes, this film is one of a few little gems, that has somehow slip under the radar and well deserves its remastering and letting out of its cage! 


FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS RELEASE at our PCASUK NEWS and REVIEW post from APRIL 28th : CLICK HERE!

DIRECTED BY THE VERY TALENTED John Gilling, the film is based on a true story, set in 1828 Edinburgh, Scotland, and the 'work' of surgeon Dr. Knox who practices medical research (!!) with assistance from local murderers Burke and Hare. Hint : They are SNATCHERS, but they are NOT snatching purses or handbags! ðŸ˜€ The film received some great reviews when released back in 1960, and still sends more than a chill, when watched even today! I'll be posting a review of Kino's blu ray in the next few days... 


THIS PCASUK COMPETITION is ONLY being held at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE and there is also a pretty neat EXTRA for one of the TWO LUCKY WINNERS! There is a DOUBLE PRIZE! One winner will be also getting a RARE and VINTAGE 'The Flesh and the Fiends' UK Press-book too! It MIGHT be YOU?


AS WITH ALL PCASUK COMPETITIONS this is OPEN to EVERYONE, whoever or wherever YOU are! THIS COMPETITION is LIVE NOW and OPEN until TUESDAY 19TH MAY 2020 MIDNIGHT GMT. WINNERS will be announced the following day Wednesday 20th May 2020. So, check in to see if you are a WINNER! GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!  😀😉 - Marcus

Wednesday 19 December 2018

FIDELIS ET MORTEM? TUESDAY TOUGHY ANSWER AND RARE SIGNED DRACULA 1958 LINK!


ABOVE IS THE QUESTION  and ANSWER to last week's Cushing Tuesday Toughy! It seems as though either script writer Jimmy Sangster's or set designer, Bernard Robinson's LATIN was a bit lacking! We asked you where were the Latin words we posed, seen in a Peter Cushing film, AND what did they mean? Well, the latin is seen on the family crest, above the fireplace in Hammer films 1958 'DRACULA' and it looks as though didn't quite translate, in the way they probably wanted or intended. FIDELIS ET MORTEM translates as 'FAITH AND DEATH', where what they thought they were displaying was, 'FAITHFUL AND DEAD'. Oh dear! Utinam Non!


ABOVE is a RARE and INTEREST LINK to REMIND you, that TODAY is  the LAST DAY in which to send us YOUR answer to WARNER BROTHERS REMASTERED BLU RAY OF HAMMER FILMS 1958 DRACULA! IF YOU TOO would LOVE to WIN yourself a copy of this EXCELLENT remaster of the BFI print, there is just HOURS TO GO before the competition entries time, pulls up the draw bridge! SO CLICK HERE!  


Monday 17 December 2018

REVIEW : TWILIGHT TIMES THE SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST BLU RAY




THE CHARACTER of ROBIN HOOD as far as film production is concerned, seems to have revived and arrived as frequently as the BLOKE in the Cloak, Count Dracula. Since 1938, when actor Errol Flynn donned the tights and bow in 'The Adventures of Robin Hood', which hit loads of lolly for the rich and entertainment for the thrill hungry public, Robin and his Merry Men have nearly always been a winner. There have been many remakes and story direction retakes  that not only revived the tale, but such was the power of the story of Mr Hood, you can spot it like a well aimed arrow, providing themes, influences in everything from extended ideas for spin offs, Mel Brooks epics and even down to a Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny cartoon! The world of Robin Hood is one of Olde Worlde very rich, but usless kings, lords and ladies, fat monks and pious priest, where every town has men with swords and maidens who are lit and presented in soft focus, having been crafted by a Westmore brother, who  struggle with the caddish-fiend advances of tash tweaking, baddie barons. But I LOVE it!  



HAMMER FILMS 'SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST'  couldn't be and isn't the DISNEY or Errol version. This Hammer film budget, but BUT it is enormously entertaining. Hammer set design guru, Bernard Robinson was and had been tied up with The Mummy, The Brides of Dracula and the Two Faces of Doctor Jekyll, so John Stoll, did the duties. The reason WHY SWORD does so well is because of its excellent cas. which headlines with Peter Cushing as the Sheriff of Nottingham.. in THREE splendid costume changes. Knowing PC he probably pooted along to Berman's and chose them, as he would say 'Mu-self!'...  and Richard Greene as the lead, and for many THE Robin! Others include Hammer's Richard Pascoe, almost 'out stepping' Cushing as a beauty of a bounder and baddie! Oliver Reed gets the better of Cushing's Sheriff, Niall McGinnis makes a very good Friar Tuck and Richard Greene IS Little John! For a tale, almost exclusively set in woodlands and forest, that also has the FOREST word in its title, one wonders if actress Sarah BRANCH was cast and chosen, only for the potentially endless publicity and press office premier inches that could be pushed and published using her surname as an endless pun? BRANCH is very good in the feature, but held a held a carear that only lasted just over four years!? Did Hammer and Chairman Sir James only spot the BRANCH potential as the main and valid reason to another money spinner and quickly slapped together another fim poster to collect the backers cash? Nope. Truth is, the business  and Hollywood has been churning out  Robin Hood films for actually MORE than a century. And Sword of Sherwood Forest, is certainly one of my personal favorites!



SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST is a film from an era, where movies where 'crafted' for the family. No gallons of gore or huge and cavernous miles deep cleavage, to fall into here! You would think, the attraction of such a film of such qualities, would be well passed. BUT just two weeks ago, PCAS offered up SEVEN copies of the Twilight Time remastered blu ray as sponsored prizes in a VERY well supported competition. This gives a fair indication, that Robin and his Merry Men are still very popular. And in THIS EXCELLENT transfer of the feature film, which is typical of the standard of quality we have come to expect from Twilight Time and Sony, the release looks very good indeed! 


SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST was directed by Hammer film icon Terence Fisher, who was well prepared and knew exactly how best to present all the 'key Hood' moments, having also directed many of the television series episode, that also starred Richrad Greene as Robin. It looks delicious, having been shot in Technicolor and makes the most of the luscious green forests, fern, flora and fauna of the Irish location, having been shot in beautiful Enniskery, County Wicklow. 


VISION
FOR ALL THOSE who mull of the technical pickings of screen size and frames, this 2.35:1 Megascope production is bang on, properly framed. The visuals in that frame, well meet the standards we have come to expect from Twilight Time, who in the past have brought us other Peter Cushing classics like Hammer films 'The Hound Of The Baskervilles' (1959)  and Amicus films 'THE SKULL' (1965) this transfer is immaculate! The colours are VIBRANT and do justice to the magnificent scenery, that both Fisher and cinematographer Ken Hodges were working to capture on the big screen. Hodges also worked with Fisher on the TV series. 


ABOVE: SEVEN LUCKY WINNERS of our TWILIGHT TIME PCAS competition last month!


SOUND
THE SOUNDTRACK on the disc comes as a  DTS HD-MA mono track, which presents dialogue clearly, with no drop out, hiss or bassey muffle. Even though in mono, the music composed by Alun Hoddinott, as in ALL Hood films and particulary the UK tv series, sounds terific. is as good as it could be, with clear dialogue throughout, supporting the clanking and thrashing of duels and sword fights very well. All of this drama, sometimes takes a break and presents Alan-a-Dale played by Denis Lotis singing and yodeling, medieval melodies with harp, flute and his mandolin! Charming! English SDH subtitles are available. 


EXTRAS
IN THE PAST, Twilight Time extras have included, documentaries, galleries, trailers and posters. This release offers a very nice isolated music and effects track. Which personally, would always get my vote, over endless talking heads of types who weren't even breathing when the film was released, let alone a twinkle in some daddy's eye! Also included is the theatrical for the film and the very nice thought of a short but appreciative glossy brochure / booklet on the film.

FOLLOWERS who are interested in purchasing it can skip along to the Twilight Time website or the Screen Archives website to order their copy. A GREAT watch for the family at Christmas.
 

Saturday 15 December 2018

REVIEW: DRACULA IS ALIVE RESSURECTED AND NEVER LOOKED BETTER ON WARNER BROTHERS REMASTERED BLU RAY!


PETER CUSHING AND CHRISTOPHER LEE FANS, PCAS followers and all in the US Hammer film fans, have waited a LONG time for the PRINCE of DARKNESS and his number one enemy, to finally cross the Atlantic and set foot, on their home cinema screens! On the 18th of December 2018, Hammer films numero uno Dracula classic, will finally hit the streets . . just like when the vampire king landed on the shores of Whitby, England back in the late 19th century, and frightened EVERYONE to death!


THERE IS EVERY POSSIBILITY, with Warner Brother's REMASTERED BLU RAY release of the BFI restored print, that with Christopher Lee amazing performance and stunning quality of this print, he WILL do it, yet again, for there is  MUCH to be quite shocked and surprised by in this fabulous Warner Brothers Archive release. In the past, just like the Stoker novel of 1897, there have been several nightmares and tense moments concerning the release of the film on blu ray. In 2012, the first blu ray release of the film in the UK, devided fans and techie types, with a print that was remastered, but for some looked like it had been shot with director Terence Fisher holding a BLUE GEL lighting filter in front of expert camera operator's Jack Asher's lens! For a studio that celebrated the rich and throbbing reds and colours of it's gothic sets, furnishings, fangs and well, blood lusting the chilly blue tone resulted in a very cool reception on its release.


IT CAN'T BE DENIED that Warner Brothers Archive releases, have hit many major BULLS EYE not just in the last two months, where they have utterly spoiled us with the fantastic remasters of two later Hammer Cushing and Lee films on blu ray,  DRACULA AD 1972 and THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULAbut also their HAMMER HORROR CLASSICS VOLUME ONE, presented us with new remastered versions of 'Dracula Has Risen From The Grave', 'Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed'  AND 'Taste The Blood Of Dracula'! No other version of previous releases of these titles can compete with the visual and sound quality of the Warners blu ray releases!


AS TIME DREW CLOSER, after the announcement from Warner of the planned 1958 DRACULA release, just like the tension of the final ten minutes of the film, we ALL waited to find out if THIS release was going to be yet another Warner triumph with gold stars, or if it was going to shock for ALL the wrong reasons, with the horrible news that the blue tint, had risen yet again and returned to haunt the passionate lovers of this film. It was great relief, on pressing the play button on my blu ray player, that I saw an old friend, but looking MORE than healthy! For those of us, who have watched and wore out our VHS and DVD recordings of the film over the years, we KNOW and are very familiar with its tone, contrast, rich, rich colours and that powerful score and accompanying owl screeching and vampire hisses. Here at last, all those things are back, but now cystral clear, remastered and never looked better.


TERENCE FISHER'S 1958 Dracula / Horror of Dracula US Blu-ray arrival on the red carpet is a stunning  “brand-new presentation, sourced from the British Film Institute/Hammer Film restoration master”. Dracula's  'Blur Period' is over.  Through out,  images are strong with good detail and defined and correct  colouring. Everthing, as you would expect looks balanced and bold when they should do! Like many of you, this film is like an old friend to me. I know it well and what I was seeing and hearing was quite an experince. Familiar, but now better and a HUGE departure from previous releases. THIS is how it was meant to be! Because of the clarity, the depth of the sets like Dracula's first arrival on meeting Harker and the fisty-cuff with Lee and Valerie Gaunt, you get the shadows and creepy light and SIZE of Dracula's den. At last, Bernard Robinson's dedicated set design can be seen in all it's beauty. Flagstone floors, drapes, banners, curtains and even the subtle gold detail on the floor space area, when the Count meets his end, is luscious, clear and quite regal. 


IT IS ONE OF THE MANY things you notice from the first scene where Harker stands outside Castle Dracula and certainly when he steps inside, there are SO MANY colours and some are, for me, seen for the first time! I am please to say, that it also sounds as good as it looks. Dialogue isn't lost in what is sometimes a quite dramatic score, every word can be heard and is crisp. Sound effects to seem to have a new life. The horses during the chase, have a lovely thundering base, Cushing's feet on the wooden and hollow tablle top... and hey, those curtains, come down with quite a crash and Dracula's body THUDS when he hits the floor. You'll be please to hear, that for once... The Count's footsteps are wonderfully absent! As, they should be!   


THERE IS MUCH to be VERY happy about concerning this NEW remastering. I think for once too, fans and admirers of this much loved Cushing and Lee classic Hammer film, will appreciate that the task of remastering has been carried out properly, with an eye for detail with a quality that respects the standards, skills, dedication and artistry, of a cinematic production crew and studio, once long gone, but now . . celebrated and still with us! Consider that past ressurections of the DRACULA are now staked, dead and dust. THIS Dracula, has RISEN and has never looked better. He TRULY IS a terrifying lover who DIED and and yet LIVES!




ON TUESDAY WE POSTED what is our LAST competition for this year, has at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE AND what a PRIZE there is to WIN! 😲 With many thanks to our sponsors at Warner Brothers..we have a PAIR of their latest Peter Cushing Hammer film release... their REMASTERED blu ray of the restored BFI print of Hammer films 1958 DRACULA! All you have to do is guess the answer to our VISUAL competition.
 

AS USUAL I have to ask that you DO NOT POST YOUR ANSWER ON THE PAGE... send it to us using the SEND MESSAGE button UNDER THE COMPETITION BANNER Any answers or entries posted on the COMMENTS thread will be deleted and not counted as an entry. The competition CLOSES on Wednesday 19th December 2018. So get your ENTRY in now...and maybe you would like to give us a LIKE too? I'd be most grateful 😉Have fun and GOOD LUCK! - Marcu




JUST CLICK ON THIS LINK to the WARNER BROTHERS SHOP site, where you can also purchase your copy of this release!  

Saturday 1 December 2018

BLU RAY NEWS! ARROW FILMS TO RELEASE REMASTERED UK AND USA HORROR EXPRESS BLU RAY!


RELEASE NEWS: Arrow Films have announced they are putting out a band new remastered blu-ray of Horror Express (1972) starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. This brings a REMASTERED blu ray to fan of the film in the UK for the first time!

RELEASE DATE: February 11th 2019 (UK) February 12th 2019 (US, CAN)




READ OUR PCAS FEATURE WITH GALLERY HERE! 


BLU RAY SPEC:
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS
Brand new 2K restoration from original film elements
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
Original Uncompressed mono audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Brand new audio commentary with Stephen Jones and Kim Newman
Introduction to the film by film journalist and Horror Express super-fan Chris Alexander
Murder on the Trans-Siberian Express – an interview with director Eugenio Martin
Notes from the Blacklist – Horror Express producer Bernard Gordon on working in Hollywood during the McCarthy Era
Telly and Me – an interview with composer John Cacavas
Original Theatrical Trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys

FIRST PRESSING ONLY
: Fully-illustrated collector’s booklet with new writing by Adam Scovell

Thursday 29 November 2018

CHRISTOPHER LEE'S GOT MILK AND YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN WARNER BROTHERS HORROR OF DRACULA BLU RAY!


#THROWBACK THURSDAY! NO BLOOD, BUT GOT MILK! Lee drinks MILK, on the set of the 1974 Bond epic, 'The Man With The Golden Gun'. Like with several of Hammer films productions, the UK Milk Marketing Board filmed an on set visit during production, to grab several of the film's stars and crew, gulping and gagging down gallons of full cream pasteurised moo moo cream. It all made for some free publicity for the movie and some much needed free health promotion for the UK dairy farmers. 



I NOTICE THAT NEITHER Lee or Cushing, who did one for Legend of the Seevn Golden Vampires, From Beyond the Grave, Dr Who and the Daleks...are rarely actually SEEN swallowing it, though. They hold it to their chops, but there it seems to end! The UK Milk Marketing Board ran these promos in UK cinemas for many years. It was a neat way to get a peep at some of your fav actors and actresses on set, and a few mins away from cheap and tacky ad's for restaurants, hairdressers and mega bucks ads for killer cigarettes and 'mothers ruin' gin! Happy days 😉

 
MISS IT AND MISS OUT! NEXT WEEK!
 

Tuesday 20 November 2018

NEWS! WARNER BROTHERS RELEASED 'HORROR OF DRACULA' ON REMASTERED AND TWEAKED BLU RAY!


SOME REALLY GREAT NEWS for US 'Horror of Dracula' fans! The US gets a blu ray release at last, courtesy of Warner Brothers 🙂


HORROR OF DRACULA (1958) NEW 2018 1080p PRESENTATION SOURCED FROM THE HAMMER/BFI RESTORATION Run Time 82:00 Subtitles English SDH Sound Quality DTS HD-Master Audio 2.0 - English Aspect Ratio ORIGINAL ASPECT RATIO - 1.66:1, 16 X 9 WIDESCREEN Product Color COLOR Disc Configuration BD 25 includes Original UK Theatrical Trailer (HD)



CHRISTOPHER LEE AND PETER CUSHING, Britain’s premier masters of the macabre, bring the Horror of Dracula to vivid, full-color death in this retelling of Bram Stoker’s spellbinding vampire tale. Dracula (Lee), a centuries-old Transylvanian nobleman damned to an eternal half-life, regularly finds new victims. He also finds Dr. Van Helsing (Cushing), a scientist who becomes the Count’s implacable foe in a deadly game of bat-and-mouse. This is the UK version titled “DRACULA”, and featuring footage previously restored by the British Film Institute and Hammer Films. Warner Archive’s new release restores the original color palette of the film, using dye-transfer Technicolor prints as reference, and has been meticulously cleaned of film-related damage for a superior presentation.


Saturday 17 November 2018

ARE YOU A WINNER IN OUR WARNER BROTHERS DRACULA AD BLU RAY COMPETITON??


MANY CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNERS of our Warner Brothers Dracula AD 1972 Remastered Blu Ray Competition! It was another VERY popular competition. MANY thanks to everyone who took part and to our generous competiton sponsors Warner Brothers 🙂 The FIVE winners of our Warner Brothers remastered blu ray of The Satanic Rites of Dracula, will be posted HERE on TUESDAY 20th November. TOMORROW we launch the last of our THREE Peter Cushing Dracula competitons! DO join us 🙂 - Marcus

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