NEWS: INDICATOR ANNOUNCES NEW HAMMER FILMS BLU RAY WORLD PREMIERS!

#NEWS: Indicator have just announced details for their second box set HAMMER VOLUME TWO: CRIMINAL INTENT featuring the films:

THE SNORKEL (Guy Green, 1958)
NEVER TAKE SWEETS FROM A STRANGER (Cyril Frankel, 1960)
THE FULL TREATMENT (Val Guest, 1960)
CASH ON DEMAND (Quentin Lawrence, 1961)

Release date: 19 February 2018
Limited Blu-ray Edition (World premieres on Blu-ray)

FOUR CLASSIC THRILLERS from the vaults of Hammer Films released on Blu-ray for the very first time, including premiere presentations of the complete, uncensored UK theatrical release versions of Val Guest’s The Full Treatment and Cyril Frankel’s Never Take Sweets from a Stranger and a host of new and exclusive extra features. This stunning Limited Blu-ray Edition Box Set from Indicator is strictly limited to 6,000 numbered units.

INDICATOR LIMITED BLU-RAY EDITION SPECIAL FEATURES:
• HD restorations of all four films
• Original Mono audio
• New title-specific documentaries exploring aspects of each film
• Two presentations of Never Take Sweets from a Stranger : the original UK theatrical cut, containing original titles and dialogue; and the alternative US version with amended Never Take Candy from a Stranger titles and censored dialogue
• Never Take Sweets from a Stranger introduction by actor and filmmaker Matthew Holness
• Archival audio interview with Never Take Sweets from a Stranger director Cyril Frankel
• Two presentations of The Full Treatment: the uncensored UK theatrical cut; and the censored US version with alternative Stop Me Before I Kill! titles
• Audio commentary with film historian Michael Brooke and author Johnny Mains on The Snorkel
• Audio commentary with film historians Jonathan Rigby and David Miller on Cash on Demand

• New and exclusive interviews with cast and crew members, including actors Janina Faye (Never Take Sweets from a Stranger) and Lois Daine (Cash on Demand), props master Peter Allchorne (The Snorkel) and second assistant director Hugh Harlow (The Snorkel)
• Appreciations of composers Elizabeth Lutyens (Never Take Sweets from a Stranger) and Francis Chagrin (The Snorkel) by David Huckvale, author of Hammer Film Scores and the Musical Avant-Garde
• Hammer’s Women: Betta St John (2018): Kat Ellinger offers an appreciation of the American actress, singer and dancer
• Hammer’s Women: Gwen Watford (2018): British cinema expert Dr Laura Mayne explores the life and career of the prolific English film, stage and television actress
• Hammer’s Women: Diane Cilento (2018): Dr Melanie Williams, author of Female Stars of British Cinema, explores the life and career of the Australian theatre and film actress and author
• Hammer’s Women: Lois Daine (2018): critic and author Becky Booth on the popular English film and television actress
 

• Archival documentaries, interviews and featurettes
• Original trailers
• Image galleries: extensive promotional and on-set photography, poster art and marketing materials
• Exclusive booklets for each film, with new essays by Kat Ellinger, Julian Upton and Kim Newman, archival interview materials, contemporary reviews, and full film credits
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• World Blu-ray premieres of all four films
• Limited Edition Box Set of 6,000 numbered copies

BBFC cert: 15
REGION FREE 

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SHOCK ENTERTAINMENT CREATES BLU RAY WINNER : FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN

Frankenstein Created Woman was not the easiest of Hammer's Frankenstein films to see throughout the 1980s and 90s, but it eventually was released to laser disc, VHS and DVD through Elite Entertainment and Anchor Bay.  The old transfer was washed out and soft, but looked pretty good to viewers at the time who had been waiting to see the film.  Happily, the new transfer available on blu ray through the Shock label in Australia corrects all of that.  Their new transfer looks quite good, with accurately rendered colors and strong detail.  The image is framed at 1.77, which is a little tighter than the 1.66 ratio used in the previous DVD release, but it does not significantly affect the compositions in one way or another.  Suffice it to say, if the new ratio is wrong, it doesn't look it.

The film is completely uncut (not that cuts were ever much of an issue, though some gore was trimmed from the version aired on TNT in the US) and the print is in very good shape, with only some minor speckling to indicate the film's age.  The mono English soundtrack is in good shape, too, which greatly benefits James Bernard's lilting score and Peter Cushing's clipped delivery; it does show up how obvious it is that Denberg and Alan MacNaughton were dubbed, however... but more on that in a minute.

Extras include a documentary titled Hammer Glamour, which assembles interviews with such Hammer beauties as Caroline Munro and Madeline Smith, among others, as they discuss their feelings on being part of the Hammer exploitation machine.  It's an interesting featurette though it could have benefitted from better editing.  Best of all is a new commentary with co-stars Derek Fowlds and Robert Morris, moderated by Hammer historian Jonathan Rigby.

Rigby does a terrific job of keeping the two actors on task and the track is loaded with great information.  The two men were in their late 20s when they appeared in the film and it's fun to hear them reminisce about their youth and experiences on the film.  Among the many topics addressed include their feelings on Peter Cushing, their observations on the beautiful Denberg (whom Fowlds claims to have gotten rather close to during filming, if you catch my drift) and their memories of being directed by Terence Fisher.

 

They also discuss the fact that the German setting inspired Alan MacNaughton to affect a German accent, which seemed a totally appropriate choice at the time; however, he was the only one to go to such extremes, and he ended up having to go back and redub his role with his "normal" accent!  It's a lively and informative track, well worth listening to.

Review: Troy Howarth.

Blu Ray Screen Captures: Here