Having covered so many of
Lucio Fulci's great 80s horror classics,
City Of the Living Dead's absence has probably stood out like a bit of a sore thumb. Well, I'd been planning on doing it, but then, in the beginning of February last year, Code Red announced a new edition with a fresh 2k scan of the OCN. Given the troubled state of the previous
CotLD blus (more on that below), I decided to wait. Eventually, it was announced that Scorpion would be handling it instead of Code Red, and then radio silence. Meanwhile, Arrow announced a fresh 4k
scan from the OCN. And, well, here it is October 2018, and I don't know what's happening with Code Red/ Scorpion, but they're gonna have a hard time topping this!
Update 8/26/19: Another new version! And it's... deliberately worse than the preceding release? Yes, it's Code Red/ Dark Force's curious Retro Drive-In Double Feature of
The Gates Of Hell (a.k.a.
City Of the Living Dead, of course) and
Psycho From Texas, not to be confused with Code Red/ Scorpion's disc, which is apparently still forthcoming.
Update 6/13/20: "Forthcoming" shmorthcoming; it's here! Did they wind up topping the Arrow after all?
Update 3/24/24: And we swing back around to Arrow for their brand new "true 4k" UHD release. We all knew this was coming, right? Well okay, so how much better did things get?
City Of the Living Dead, a.k.a.
The Gates Of Hell, is either the first or second in Fulci's loose trilogy of end of the world, undead horror.
City and
The Beyond are a definite pair, but then it's more of a looser fit to try and tack on
Zombie,
House By the Cemetery, or maybe even
Manhattan Baby. But certainly, as with any of those others, Fulci's assembled his A-Team here: writer,
Dardano Sacchetti, cinematographer
Sergio Salvati, composer
Fabio Frizzi, effects by
Gino de Rossi and
Cathriona MacColl in the lead. And he's assembled a pretty great cast, including
Christopher George,
Giovanni Lombardo Radice,
Janet Agren and
Michele Soavi. There was no way this wasn't going to be somewhere in his upper echelon.
I'm also partial to the horror free for all style of story being told here. You've already got Sacchetti's love for blending genres mixed with a healthy dose of
Lovecraft's undeniable influence. And yet it's still got a little more thematic unity to it than
The Beyond, where each scene could practically be from a different movie. Here, anything can still happen - dead people appearing and disappearing at will, bleeding walls, an air raid of maggots - but it all sort of feels like it fits within the premise. There are certainly... flaws in the characterizations. MacColl is alternatively dogmatically determined to prevent the apocalypse she saw in her visions or willing to forget the whole thing and go get a coffee instead. Bob's tryst with his self-inflating sex doll is completely out of place. But coherence isn't really a highly regarded commodity in 80s Italian horror in the first place, and combined with the utterly mad plot-line, it's hard to define anything as out of place or ill-fitting here. Anything can happen when the gates of Hell are open.
Now,
City of the Living Dead is hardly debuting on disc here. It was first released in 1998 by a cool cult label called EC Entertainment. Then Anchor Bay gave it a wider release in 2000, which was later repressed by Blue Underground in 2007. In 2010, Arrow and Blue Underground released blu-ray editions for the UK and US markets, respectively. I wound up getting the BU blu because it had marginally better picture quality, but I still copped the DVD version (in fact a 2-disc set) of the Arrow disc for all the unique special features. But despite having the superior transfer of the two, BU's disc was still plagued with scanner noise that a lot of Italian films had baked into their scans around that period. So I'd been anxiously awaiting the 4k scan from Arrow's re-release in October 2018; it was the
City of the Living Dead we'd all been waiting for.
But the story hasn't ended there. In 2019, there was this random BD from Code Red and Dark Forces, which didn't have much to offer but could at least be considered an amusing diversion. That was followed by a serious new contender, Scorpion's long-awaited 2020 BD, which rivaled, if doesn't dethrone, Arrow's. And now we've entered the proper 4k era, with it debuting on UHD in the US from Cauldron Films. Their edition was a bit pricey though, so personally I held out for the inevitable Arrow UK release, which I just got my hands on and streets next week.
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1) 1998 EC DVD, 2) 2000 AB DVD, 3) 2007 BU DVD, 4) 2010 Arrow DVD,
5) 2010 BU BD, 6) 2018 Arrow BD, 7) 2019 DF BD; 8) 2020 Scorpion BD. |
So EC's a pretty collectible little label, and I've read that some of their DVDs were actually better quality than many later reissues. That's not the case here. Their Deluxe Collector's Edition is non-anamorphic, interlaced and a generally pixelated affair, slightly mis-framed at 1.75:1. The Anchor Bay DVD may not be pretty, but it corrected all of that: anamorphic, non-interlaced, 1.84:1 and more filmic. And the BU DVD is the exact same transfer, no differences. Pretty straight-forward so far.
Then the fine folks at BU (and Arrow) come back with their blu, finessing the framing to a perfect 1.85:1, clearing up the image and bringing us into the world of HD. Unfortunately, they've got that scanner noise. Now, I don't have Arrow's 2010 blu, just their DVD, but my understanding is that Arrow did some additional tampering with the image in an attempt to undo the noise (certainly their DVD has a weirdly smoothed look to it), and BU left it alone, hence the latter being the preferable option. But of course, neither one is too hot, which brings us to Arrow's new addition.
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| 2010 BU BD left; 2018 Arrow BD right. |
This movie was always a pretty rough looking feature, so fans hoping for a wealth of new, fine detail from this 4k scan might initially be a little disappointed. It's still framed at 1.85:1, but restores all the original film grain and thankfully, yes, is free of the noise. If you're not clear on what scanner noise is, or how to spot it, check out this enlargement. See how all the grain looks very blocky and pixelated? That's not actually grain, but noise on top of the image. It's artificial detail, nothing to do with what was actually being photographed. See how it makes all the lines (of his face, the bookcase behind him, etc) all jagged and oversharpened? Arrow's blu may actually look a bit softer by comparison, but that's the actual, natural image. And since the noise is random, not part of the core image like film grain is, it looks even worse in motion, like you're watching the film through a jittery window screen. So Arrow's new blu may first appear a little underwhelming, but it's a very welcome upgrade.
And Dark Force's disc? Well, it's what Code Red likes to describe as a "grindhouse" version, which is to say that it's an HD scan, but taken from a very beat up source, in this case an old film print. So it's got lots of vertical, green chemical lines, dirt, flecks, spots and cigarette burns at the reel changes. The idea of this sort of presentation is that it's a throwback, enhanced by the fact that this BD is a double-feature, and in between there's about fifteen minutes of vintage commercials and trailers. I don't know if the slight novelty value that provides really sells me on the notion of purposefully collecting lower condition films, but if that's your bag, now you have the option. And it is still a decent HD scan of 35mm, matted to 1.85:1, and preferable to the older DVD releases... arguably even Blue Underground's disc with its scanner noise issue. Well, maybe not; but at least it looks like film. The framing is more zoomed in than any of the other blus, losing some info along the sides and bringing it back to where the DVDs were, and the coloring leans excessively blue. But it's not really missing much detail.
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| 2018 Arrow BD left; 2020 Scorpion BD right. |
The big question then came between Arrow's transfer and Scorpion's. It's not just the same transfer ported over to a region A release. Scorpion's case itself describes it as a "NEW 2020 4K color grading and restoration of the film from a 4K scan of the original camera negative." So it's not the same. But note that it's a new "color grading and restoration," not another new scan. Look at the second set of shots; Scorpion's frame is a lot cooler than the distinctly warmer one from Arrow. They've taken a fresh stab at the colors, and they might actually be genuinely better. Slightly boosted contrast and dark levels also help you make out detail better. Numbers on a clock that were far from the camera and blended into the face around it are now visibly distinct.
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| 2024 Arrow UHD. |
But now of course we're talking about 2160p; so once again, it's a
whole new ball-game. The film has been again scanned and restored in
4k, this time in HDR10 and Dolby Vision. And yes, the 4k resolution clearly puts it ahead of even the last Scorpion BD. Edges that get pixelated and jagged are now smooth and natural curves, though you may have to zoom in or have a really large screen to appreciate it. The contrast is a little lower, making fine detail stand out a little less, but it's all still there, and probably more authentic for it. Film grain is clearer, though still subtle, and much better resolved. Even on the Scorpion, a lot of it was getting lost to the 1080 compression, and it's here now. The new scan does tighten up the framing a little bit. It's still 1.85:1, but shaves thin slivers off the edges compared to the Scorpion disc, though nothing you'd see outside of a direct screenshot to screenshot comparison like this.
By the way, if you're wondering how Arrow's UHD compares to Cauldron's, the answer is: essentially the same,
because Arrow is using Cauldron's master, who are credited in their
accompanying book. So strictly in terms of PQ, it's fairly academic
which UHD you go with, though as we'll see, their are differences in
other departments.
Another sweet thing about Arrow's release, meanwhile, was that it
included both the Italian and English audio tracks. All the previous
editions only had the English. EC had the mono with optional English
and Dutch subs, while AB and BU (2007) had stereo and 5.1 mixes, but no
subs. Same goes for the old Arrow, except their blu also had a 7.1 mix
in DTS-HD. BU's blu also had that 7.1, plus the 5.1 and mono, as well
as English, French and Spanish subs. The newer Arrows (the 2018 BD and the UHD) have the English
5.1, stereo and mono, all in DTS-HD, plus the Italian mono in DTS-HD,
with two optional English subtitles tracks (one for the Italian and one
to go with the English audio).
Predictably, Dark Force only includes the English dub with no subtitle
options. But Scorpion, thankfully, lives up to the standards Arrow set,
including all three English tracks in DTS-HD, the Italian mono (again
in DTS-HD) and both sets of English subtitles. As with the 4k scan, I
think Scorpion's just using the same stuff as Arrow, this time without
any 2020 adjustments. Audio and subtitle-wise, they're the same.
Major things have been happening in the special features department,
too. In short, the new Arrow handily trumps all that came before it.
Their new interviews are longer, better edited and in higher quality
video than any of the previous editions. Plus, they have the old audio
commentaries, which are okay, but completely redundant if you watch the
interviews, which are better paced. So the old Arrow, the BU blu, and
the new Arrow blu all talk to a bunch of the same people, and they all
tell the same anecdotes the same way every time. So, while I understand
(believe me, I do!) the collector's impulse to say I need all these
discs because they all have unique extras, you truly honestly don't.
Specifically, here's what the 2018 Arrow has:
*The old audio commentary with Catriona MacColl and journalist
Jay Slater.
I know he's a bit infamous and had one of his commentaries pulled from a
Shriek Show disc and all, but he's perfectly charming here.
*The old audio commentary with Giovanni Lombardo Radice and writer
Calum Waddell
*On-camera interview with Dardano Sacchetti, who's surprisingly negative towards the film
*On-camera interview with Catriona MacColl
*On-camera interview with cameraman
Roberto Forges Davanzati
*On-camera new interview with production designer
Massimo Antonello Geleng
*On-camera interview with Sergio Salvati
*On-camera
interview with Giovanni Lombardo Radice (again, with these improved
interviews, Arrow could've tossed the old commentaries, but I appreciate
them erring on the side of inclusion)
*On-camera interview with Gino De Rossi
*On-camera interview with
Venantino and
Luca Venantini, played the boy and his father (yes, they're also father and son in real life)
*On-camera interview with Fabio Frizzi
*On-camera interview with
Carlo De Mejo
(this one's from the old Arrow release, and has an annoying editing
style that's difficult to watch, but it's the best we're going to get
since he's passed)
*On-camera interview with expert
Stephen Thrower,
who starts out repeating some pretty basic info, but gets pretty
interesting as he gets deeper into things. I wish he'd gone even deeper
into how this film is an anti-fascist piece from Fulci, because other
aspects, like the cops abusing the bohemians in NY and the fact that
everyone is being punished for being Salem witch burners really play
into that message, too. But that's not a criticism, because Thrower has
a lot of great stuff to say, which just inspired me to think about it
and add my two cents here.
*On-camera interview with
Andy Nyman, director of the recent film
Ghost Stories
*A video essay by
Kat Ellinger (who did a better job on Mondo Macabro's
Who Can Kill a Child?,
but here feels a bit lost) about Fulci's input in the zombie genre,
which spends a lot of time just listing names and titles of classic
zombie films, before eventually coming around to making a point
*Perhaps
this disc's biggest gem: behind-the-scenes 8mm footage of this film's
USA shoots with audio commentary by Davanzati, who shot it all
*Alternate
Gates of Hell opening credits
*Two trailers, a TV spot and a couple radio spots
*Four image galleries
...And, this set comes packaged in a nice hard slipbox with reversible
artwork for the inner case. Also inside is a double-sided poster, six
lobby cards and a 60-page booklet by
Travis Crawford and
Roberto Curti, plus Arrow's usual card for another film in their catalog (I got
Don't Torture a Duckling).
So, the Anchor Bay and old BU discs are barebones, with just a trailer
and slideshow. You can forget them anyway. The EC DVD actually has a
unique extra: MacColl and
David Warbeck speaking at Eurofest '96. A portion of this did wind up on Grindhouse's
Beyond blu-ray,
but this EC version includes about six or seven additional minutes of
them on stage. Small potatoes, but like I said, I understand the
collector's impulse. 😉
Blue Underground had some good stuff, it's just basically all been
rendered redundant. On camera interviews with MacColl and Radice
perfectly mirror their other interviews and commentaries, and their half
hour 'making of' carefully goes over each of the film's infamous set
pieces, which again are all covered as well or better on Arrow's new
blu. Their "Memories of the Maestro" featurette is more unique,
interviewing various cast and crew about their memories of Fulci, but
it's all 100% taken from
Paura vol. 1, meaning it's the exact same footage; so if you have that either by itself or as packaged with 88's blu of
Zombie 3, you've already got that content.
You might be a little more tempted to hang onto the 2010 Arrow blu (or
DVD set). Again some of it, including the commentaries and Carlo De
Mejo interview, have been ported over. But there's a lot that hasn't.
Most of it, though, is older interviews with the same people saying the
same things in lower quality. This includes on-camera interviews with
Radice and MacColl, of course, plus a shorter talk with Sacchetti and a
brief introduction to the film by De Mejo. But it has a couple unique
features, including an interview with Fulci's daughter,
Antonella, and one with
Luigi Cozzi
which feels like they just threw it on there because they had recorded
it a while ago and had no better release to stick it on. Most
compelling is probably a silly featurette called
Fulci In the House,
which is more of an overview of Fulci's career and pretty disposable
except it interviews a few interesting people like
Joe Dante and
Lloyd Kaufman. It also includes a booklet by Waddell, a poster, lobby cards, one of Arrow's old window sleeves and reversible artwork.
Dark Force's disc doesn't really have any
CotLD-related extras, but of course it has the entire other film,
Psycho From Texas, which gets its own coverage
here.
It also has the aforementioned 15 minutes worth of drive-in ads and
trailers, and comes in a very cool, glow-in-the-dark slipcover.
Scorpion basically has everything the new Arrow has, with a few
exceptions. It's missing two featurettes: the Carlo De Mejo interview
and more disappointingly, the 8mm behind-the-scenes footage. They've
also replaced the two audio commentaries with two different ones.
They've recorded a new expert commentary with
Troy Howarth and
Nathaniel Thompson,
which is up to their usual standards, though I'm not sure fans will
learn anything new from them at this point. And they've included the
commentary by Salvati and Davanzati from the old Italian DVD No Shame
put out in 2004. That commentary has never been in English before
(Scorpion has it subtitled), so it's essentially brand new for all of us
English speakers. So I'd say, overall, it's a step backwards in the
featurettes but a step forwards in commentaries, essentially making it a
tie. Scorpion doesn't have all the swag of Arrow's limited edition,
but it does come in a slipcover and includes reversible cover art, using
The Gates Of Hell title (I have to say, I get a little kick now out of having
The Gates Of Heaven and
The Gates Of Hell now right next to each other on my shelf).
And
for Arrow's new UHD? We swing back to the the 2018 BD selection. But coming from the Scorpion, it's nice to get the behind
the scenes footage back. And a nice surprise is the restoration of the 2010 Arrow extras, like the Antonella Fulci interview and even the
Carlo de Mejo intro, that had been dropped from the 2018 BD. Plus, while this new release's artwork is a little questionable, in terms of
packaging, it's the most satisfying yet. A black amary case (with the
six lobby cards and ad card) with reversible artwork sits alongside the
book and poster in a solid slipbox, which itself slips inside a match
slipcover. Frankly, I'm glad to move away from the J-card that's too
big to fit inside its box that's taped on with that little clear circle
on the front.
It's worth noting that Cauldron added a new
expert commentary and a new featurette visiting the Bonaventure
cemetery, which are exclusive to their release. Honestly, any of the
more recent special editions are so loaded, that I can't imagine any of
them will leave their owners pining for the exclusive bits of any of the
others, but if you're a die-hard completist, unfortunately, Scorpion,
Arrow and Cauldron all have a few bits none of the others do. In fact, so do Blue Underground and even EC. But this new Arrow has the most and best overall collection of extras. Plus, not that the revisionist remixes are particularly important, but it should be noted that of the two UHDs, only Arrow includes the stereo and 5.1 in addition to both of the mono tracks. So anyway, I'd say Arrow's new UHD is the one to get. But if you've already got one of the more recent previous editions, this may not be a high priority title to upgrade.
