Studio Canal has released a new 4K remastered UHD and Blu-ray of the horror classic from Ealing Studios Dead of Night.
When Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns) visits a country house, he finds himself trapped in his recurring nightmare that involves the manor’s guests sharing their experiences with the supernatural. With each bizarre tale told, whether it be about a haunted mirror or a ventriloquist tormented by his dummy, Craig hurtles closer and closer to the nightmare’s end, where he knows something awful will happen…
A portmanteau work from four of Ealing Studios’ best directors and starring Michael Redgrave, Googie Withers and Mervyn Johns, Dead of Night is rightly held up as one of the finest and most influential horror films ever made.
All of the stories have a nice twist, a forerunner to the classic series such as The Twilight Zone this also has a nice touch of black humour thrown in, but for its time, it was made just after the war, it was a big hit with audiences around the world.
The black and white cinematography is excellent, really adding to the atmosphere, it is strange these days watching everybody smoking and everyone has a real upper class, BBC English accent!
The image quality on this disc is top drawer, solid blacks and great contrast. The Audio is solid mono, nothing to get you excited but it is of its time and perfectly clear.
Extras are plentiful and include –
Audio Commentary#1 – with critic and film historian Pamela Hutchinson.
Dead of Night: Dreams and Duality – interview with filmmaker Alice Lowe (NEW, 36 mins)
Marketing Galore! The Art of Ealing – interview with Nathalie Morris on how the studio marketed its films (NEW, 22 mins)
Short Sharp Screams: Dead of Night and the British Horror Anthology – interview with author John Llewelyn Probert.
Scoring the Night: On Georges Auric and Dead of Night – interview with author Dr. David Huckvale
Remembering Dead of Night – making of documentary.
Behind the Scenes Stills Gallery.
A solid new release in a great package, and any fan of classic horror should pick this up as it still stands the test of time well when taken in context. (Although it is a bit annoying that they seem to have to put a warning at the beginning of the film that some scenes may be offensive to some ,and reflect attitudes of the time. Of course they do, please give the viewers some credit!)
FILM – 7.5 PICTURE – 8 AUDIO -8 EXTRAS – 8