Review: The House by the Cemetery 4K UHD Limited Edition
4K UHD: The House by the Cemetery (1981)
I’ve always loved the movies of Lucio Fulci, so it was a treat to hear that Arrow Films were releasing The House by the Cemetery as a Limited Edition 4K UHD Blu-ray…and this most definitely looks better than I’ve ever seen it.
The third and final instalment in his “Gates of Hell” trilogy, Fulci once again ramps up the gore and weird imagery.
The Boyles – Lucy (Catriona MacColl), Norman (Paolo Malco) and their young (and to be perfectly honest…quite annoying) son Bob (Giovanni Frezza) – relocate from New York City to an ageing house in rural New England. But the evil force which lurks in its basement has already claimed the previous occupant and now has its sights set on the new owners. Soon, the unsuspecting family will become only too familiar with the dark secret of the monstrous Dr Freudstein.
The narrative is far-fetched, but that could be said about any Fulci movie, and the majority of its running time is used as a setup for the grand finale where everything goes completely bonkers, and while you spend quite a portion of Acts 1&2 wishing more would happen, Fulci throws enough onscreen to keep you on tenterhooks, knowing that everything could explode into complete madness at any given moment.
Visually it’s fantastic with the 4k restoration from the original negative by Blue Underground, and though I preferred to listen to the restored original lossless mono Italian soundtrack, the quick listen I had to the optional lossless 5.1 English soundtrack sounded good with the more extended soundscape.
Being an Arrow Films release there is of course a plethora of special features, with a particular favourite of mine being the Q&A with Catriona MacColl at the 2014 Spaghetti Cinema Festival, Luton, England.
A great addition to anyones 4K collection and perfect viewing for this month of October.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- 4k restoration from the original negative by Blue Underground
- 4k (2160p) Ultra Hd Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (hdr10 compatible)
- Restored original lossless mono English and Italian soundtracks
- Optional lossless 5.1 English soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
- Audio commentary by Troy Howarth, author of Splintered Visions: Lucio Fulci and His Films
- Archival audio commentary with star Catriona MacColl, moderated by Calum Waddell
- Archival audio commentary with co-star Silvia Collatina, moderated by Mike Baronas of Paura Productions
- Meet the Boyles – interviews with stars Catriona MacColl and Paolo Malco
- Children of the Night – interviews with stars Giovanni Frezza and Silvia Collatina
- Tales of Laura Gittleson – interview with star Dagmar Lassander
- My Time with Terror – interview with star Carlo De Mejo
- A Haunted House Story – interview with co-writers Dardano Sacchetti and Elisa Briganti
- To Build a Better Death Trap – interviews with cinematographer Sergio Salvati, special make-up effects artist Maurizio Trani, special effects artist Giannetto De Rossi and actor Giovanni De Nava
- House Quake – interview with co-writer Giorgio Mariuzzo
- Q&a with Catriona MacColl at the 2014 Spaghetti Cinema Festival, Luton, England
- Calling Dr. Freudstein – interview with Stephen Thrower, author of Beyond Terror: The Films of Lucio Fulci
- Deleted scene
- Alternate Us opening titles
- Archival introduction by Giovanni Frezza
- Back to the Cellar – archival interview with Giovanni Frezza
- Cemetery Woman – archival interview with Catriona MacColl
- Wax Mask: Finishing the Final Fulci – archival interview with filmmaker and special makeup effects artist Sergio Stivaletti
- Freudstein’s Follies – archival interview with Giannetto De Rossi
- Ladies of Italian Horror – archival interviews with Italian horror cinema stars Stefania Casini, Barbara Magnolfi and The House by the Cemetery’s Silvia Collatina
- The House by the Cemetery Q&a – 2011 panel at HorrorHound, Indianapolis, Indiana featuring the film’s cast
- International theatrical trailer
- Us theatrical trailer
- Tv spot
- Poster and still galleries
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch
- Limited edition 60-page perfect bound book featuring new writing on the film by Roberto Curti, Stephen Thrower, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Rachael Nisbet
- Fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch
- Six double-sided collector’s postcards
Review by Dave from a disc kindly supplied by Arrow Films.