Beyond The Darkness (US)

Beyond The Darkness (US)

The Italian Shock release (R2) has already been reviewed by Alan and Mike - check out their reliable views on the film itself.

For the lazy: a young taxidermist can't cope with the loss of his girlfriend, so steals her body on the day of her funeral and (in a famously gruesome scene) removes her innards to 'preserve' her. Anyone who threatens to come between the mortally-challenged lovers is bumped off in gory style - my personal favourite being the total overkill of the gal who not only has her fingernails ripped out by pliers, but is later hacked to pieces and dissolved in acid bath!

Alongside NEKROMANTIK, this could well be the cinema's ultimate ode to necrophilia. Bloody, brave and uncompromising - it could well be D'Amato's best film (open for debate, obviously). Having said that, it's far from perfect in technical terms and those looking beyond it's ability to disgust and amuse (unintentionally) may find themselves themselves starved of conventional movie treats such as a decent script, credible acting, etc ...

But I digress. It's the disc that's under scrutiny here. So, here goes:

The Region 1 disc from Shriek Show is infinitely better than it's R2 Italian Shock predecessor.

Firstly, the print used here is superb. When I first saw the Italian Shock version I was impressed - it was a marked improvement on any version of the film I'd previously viewed. But this is vastly superior - not only is it anamorphic, but the images on screen are sharp and bright with no colour bleeding. Minimal grain appears occasionally. Overall, this is a revelation. It looks great!

The sound is basic mono, but is clearer and more consistent than it's Euro counterpart. No Dutch subtitles though (well, no subbies at all - if anyone cares). This is the best you could ever reasonably demand to see/hear D'Amato's skanky little ode to afterlife hanky-panky. Shriek Show/ Media Blasters have polished this one up really well.

Extras:

The disc delivers pleasingly with not only old standards such as a trailer and stills gallery, but a 10 minute interview with Cinzia Monreale (Anna [the corpse girlfriend] in the film) and a 30 minute interview/commentary track with the film's art director - which is played against the film's goriest scenes! Both features are well worth checking out.

There's also a fold-out colour booklet that offers a wealth of text info not only the film and D'Amato, but on Goblin - who provided the excellent score. OK, so the Italian Shock release had a fold-out card (hardly what you'd could a booklet) with some nice gory images, but the Shriek Show booklet really does reduce it's predecessor to an 'also-ran'

Don't forget to check out the trailers for SOLANGE, 7 BLOOD STAINED ORCHIDS and HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK (or HOUSE OF THE PARK ON THE EDGE as the title appears on the screen). Hopefully these are all future releases in the US, because the prints used for the trailers alone are far better than those we've previously tolerated on DVD (EC's House On ... anybody??!)

So, R1 vs R2? This release (R1) has better extras and a better picture / sound quality. In my opinion, this release also has a better cover and superior inlay booklet. The picture quality of the film itself is brighter, sharper and - in a curiously subtle way - makes the film look and feel nastier than ever before. Which can only be good for a film that stakes it's entire reputation on it's ability to shock and repel.

In every respect, the American release outclasses the Italian Shock release. Don't get me wrong - the IS release is good, and better than any fan of this film could have hoped for. But that's what makes the R1 disc even more outstanding - while not perfect, it does offer a flawless picture and the kind of extras that a film of this ilk rarely warrants.

A classic sleaze/gore film that finally recieves that magical DVD treatment it richly deserves. Look out for this distributor in the future - they could well become the new Anchor Bay ...!

Review by Stuart Willis


 
Directed by Joe D'Amato
Released by Shriek Show (Media Blasters)
Extras :
Slide show; Trailers; Interview/commentary with art director; interview with actress Cinzia Monreale; colour booklet; filmography
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