In one of the most unlikely cinematic pairings of all time, David Nelson (who rose to fame as a child star playing alongside his real-life family in the wholesome TV show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet) directs Playboy Playmate and adult star Susan Kiger in this bodycount-heavy, long overlooked slice of Southern fried hack-and-slash – 1982’s Death Screams! Late one night, a young couple are brutally murdered at a make-out spot by an unseen assailant, their bodies tossed into the nearby river. As the lifeless lovers drift slowly downstream, the residents of the town excitedly prepare themselves for their annual carnival, unaware that a machete-wielding maniac with a twisted grudge is lurking in their midst. When a group of teen revellers plan a late-night after party down in the local cemetery, they unwittingly set the stage for a bloodbath. Death Screams, which was released on US VHS as House of Death (and on UK DVD with the reels in the wrong order!) oozes early ’80s regional slasher charm from its every pore, boasting an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink final reel featuring slashed throats, bisected bodies and exploding heads. Lovingly restored from the only-known existing 35mm print, this little-seen slasher classic is ready to carve its way into the bleeding hearts of horror fans everywhere!
For thoughts on Death Screams please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Death Screams comes to Blu-Ray courtesy of Arrow Video in its original 1.85:1 that looks fairly good with some big caveats, but due to the reported quality of the elements we are lucky to have this one in high definition at all. The information accompanying this release states that the film was restored from a badly faded 35mm release print supplied by a collector since no pre-print material could be found. The print was scanned in 2K where it was then restored and color graded by Arrow. While obviously not ideal, Arrow never attempts to mislead you about the inconsistent quality which makes you forgive some of the shortcomings. Most can agree that this was largely forgotten over the years outside of some die hard slasher fans, but Arrow has done everything in their power to give this as much life as possible.
With expectations in check, most will find the presentation to look quite nice. The natural grain is definitely intact and resolved well even in the face of some more chunky or coarse moments. Viewers are treated to a strong amount of detail with nice textures on the clothing and production design. This new transfer shows off a fair amount of depth to each environment. Black levels struggle the most in this presentation with some shadowy scenes that struggle somewhat with a milky appearance, crush and loss of detail. Other moments during the presentation also take a downturn in quality in terms of clarity, but things remain more stable than you might expect. The contrast is well defined, and print damage has been cleaned up as much as possible. Color temperature can be a bit inconsistent, but not so much as to ruin the experience. Arrow Video should be applauded for making this one look as good as it does.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray comes with a LPCM 1.0 mono track in the original English that holds up a bit better than the video side of things. The film employs some creepy sound effects in the form of rustling leaves, steady footsteps or even an unexpected train passing that are given the appropriate presence within the mix. The score comes through pretty well in relation to the other sounds in the mix. The film is fairly dialogue-driven with long stretches of straightforward exchanges until the final act that is packed with violence where the track gets a bit more active. This dialogue sounds clear without music cues or sound effects drowning out important information. This presentation mostly presents without major damage or other unwanted issues as fidelity rarely falters. This disc provides optional English SDH subtitles.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Producer Charles Ison and special effects artist Worth Keeter provide a slightly grating but ultimately informative commentary track moderated by filmmaker Phil Smoot in which they discusses the era in which this film was released, the performers in the film, the shooting locations, how certain special effects set ups changed on the fly, the various titles this was is known by, how they utilized a real train, the history of the production studio, and more. The real weak spot of this track is the fact that Smoot seems to have a hard time following along with the film and really gets things off track a lot.
- Audio Commentary #2: The Hysteria Continues podcast crew provide a much more enjoyable commentary track in which they discuss the under-appreciated nature of the feature, their first exposure to the film, how the film was marketed, the performances in the film, the pacing of the story, the motivations behind the plot and more. The atmosphere of the track is very conversational as if you have a group of well-informed friends over for a movie night.
- All The Fun Of The Scare – The Making Of Death Screams: A new, well-made 33-minute making-of documentary featuring interviews with producer Charles Ison, special effects artist Worth Keeter, writer Paul Elliott and many more. In this piece, you get some great background on the film, the development of the script, how these creatives came to be involved in the film, the uncomfortable shooting conditions of certain scenes, the professional nature of the set, the motivations behind the narrative and more.
- House Of Death Alternate VHS Opening Titles: A six-minute alternate version of the opening sequence in VHS quality under the title House Of Death.
- TV and Radio Spots: This disc provides TV Spot #1 (0:32), TV Spot #2 (0:32), TV Spot #3 (0:32), TV Spot #4 (0:32), and a Radio Spot Reel (3:47)
- Image Galleries: This disc provides galleries for Production Stills, Behind The Scenes photos, Promotional material, and TV Spot Behind The Scenes.
Final Thoughts
Death Screams is another slasher that is either unaware or unwilling to stick to the standard tropes of the genre. In many ways, this is very exciting as you get more development from the characters than you might otherwise. Yet, the film fumbles a bit as it nears the end with its mad dash to the conclusion when so many people are dispatched at once that you lose track of who has been lost and why you should care. With slightly better pacing and editing, this could have more of a long term impression, but this is still pretty enjoyable for what it is. Arrow Video has released a Blu-Ray featuring a decent A/V presentation and a fun array of special features that really up the value of the overall package. This is a film that could have easily been lost to time, so those slasher fans who have been waiting for it should appreciate that it has been handled with as much care as it has.
Death Screams is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Arrow Video has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.