Review: Mausoleum
Blu-ray: Mausoleum (1983)
The 3rd release from Treasured Films (make sure to read my reviews of The Last Hunter and Satan’s Little Helper), Mausoleum is a movie I loved back on VHS and so welcomed a Blu-ray release from Treasured Films who have done a great job with it.
Bobbie Bresee plays Susan, who we are introduced to aged only 10 years old in a flashback scene, where at the funeral of her mother she runs off and enters into the Nomed-family (see what they did there?) tomb and becomes possessed by a demon.
Jump forward 20 years and Susan is now happily married to Oliver (Marjoe Gortner, of which there is a great video essay about him by John Harrison in the special features), but things soon change when the demon inside of her begins to take control and sate its appetite for sex and death…sometimes both at the same time.
A beautiful 4K scan and restoration from the 35mm original camera negative makes this look superb, with rich colours and a crisp image that brings out all the details in John Buechler’s make-up effects…including those infamous “bitey demon boobs”…now there’s a tease for anyone who hasn’t watched the movie!
Mausoleum ticks all the low budget genre boxes; sex, nudity, gore, inventive deaths…including one by those aforementioned bitey demon boobs, while also adding a few laughs along the way, though most are inadvertent…the looks on Ben the Gardners (Maurice Sherbanee) face being one such example.
Low on budget but high in entertainment value, Mausoleum is a horror gem that has entertained me for many years, and now with this great transfer accompanied by some hugely entertaining special features (the John Harrison video essay and the lively commentary track by Bobbie Bresee and Lee Christian being just two of them), it will continue to entertain me for many years to come.
Another superb release by Treasured Films which has whetted my appetite even more for what may be coming from them in 2024.
Grab it before this limited edition release sells out.
LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS (3,000 units only)
- Rigid slipcase with exclusive artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Perfect-bound book with essays by John Martin, Darrell Buxton and Mikel Koven.
- 6 Collectors’ art cards
- Webstore exclusive ‘Bitey Boobs’ Nomed Demon Magnet
- Webstore exclusive A3 reversible fold-out poster
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- 4K scan and restoration from the 35mm original camera negative.
- New audio commentary by Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw.
- 2008 audio commentary by Bobbie Bresee and Lee Christian.
- A Damn Good Reason: Bobbie Bresee comes out of retirement to give a new and exclusive comprehensive audio interview on her life and career. Packed full of photos and press clippings from Bobbie’s personal files. (52:58 mins).
- When You Comin’ Back, Marjoe?: a new video essay on the life and career of Marjoe Gortner, written and presented by author John Harrison (18:58 mins).
- Making Monsters: interview with special effects makeup artist John Carl Buechler (8:39 mins).
- Babysitting Monsters: a new interview with special effects artist Christopher Biggs (22:43 mins).
- Cursed Auras: Stephen Thrower on Mausoleum (29:43 mins).
- Trailers
- TV Spots
- Image Gallery Slideshow: promotional stills, advertisements, press cuttings, lobby cards and video covers (7:22 mins).
- Reversible sleeve featuring two artwork choices.
- English SDH Subtitles
Review by Dave from a disc kindly supplied by Treasured Films.
