The late, great Vincent Price was a man who thrived in a literary adaptation. Whether it was for his famous journeys into the macabre with Edgar Allan Poe or something more adventurous and ensconced in science fiction, the legendary performer had a screen presence very few could match. Following his classic turn in Poe’s House of Usher, Price took a turn towards the work of Jules Verne in 1961’s Master of the World. The picture was initially developed to resemble a prestige adventure like the Best Picture-winning Around the World in 80 Days, but by the time it reached the screen it resembled something closer to a well-made B-picture. Based on a combination of the novels Robur the Conqueror and its sequel Master of the World, the film provided a fun canvas for Price to paint a larger-than-life villain who does not view himself in such terms. While the film had a large budget for the studio handling production, it can never completely shake off the feeling that corners are being cut at every turn. The feature is not the pinnacle of his success, but it makes for a lively adventure for its audience.
First time viewers will be thrown off by the opening segment that functions as something of an ice breaker for the audience to warm up to the slightly daffy tone the picture wades through. For several minutes you get a newsreel-esque presentation of the history of flight as executed by the misguided souls that preceded the Wright brothers. Feel free to laugh as man after man fails to successfully take to the skies in a grand, destructive fashion. Things take a turn for the slightly more serious as we settle ourselves in with our main characters; John Strock (Charles Bronson, Guns For San Sebastian) is a government worker looking to investigate a local volcano for signs of eruption; Philip Evans (David Frankham) is the balloon owner who agrees to help him with his endeavor; Dorothy Prudent (Mary Webster) is Evans’ fiancée who is along for the ride; and Dorothy’s father (Henry Hull) is Evans’ argumentative partner in the balloon enterprise. These are four individuals with peculiar energy radiating off of one another, but it is an unexpected change of plans which provides the most drama.
The unexpected force of nature is an oddball named Robur (Vincent Price), a man with a fanciful flying machine who plucks the balloon out of the sky and claims the four passengers as his hostages. Robur has been striking fear in the hearts of the earthbound citizens with some of his more fervent tendencies, but like all good villains he does not believe he is a bad guy. Part of what made Thanos such an iconic villain is that he believed the only way the universe could be saved was by making the hard choice of eliminating half of all people. While not that extreme, Robur has some kooky ideas about how best to achieve world peace. Robur has the ability to rain death from above, so by threatening to destroy all the mechanisms that go into making war a reality he hopes to force the world into a time of peace. He is an idealist, but his methods are absurdly over the top. This is a character that is absolutely perfect for Price, as he has the perfect way of harnessing madness while also making you sympathize for his plight of a more peaceful world.
The biggest hindrance to this film is the aforementioned corner cutting from the studio. The film employs the use of stock footage from other films to achieve many of the most exciting shots. Many of the times when the Albatross airship is engaging in an attack against a military installation, the ship is simply transposed over scenes from That Hamilton Woman or The Four Feathers – films that could seemingly afford the expense. The production design is also lacking the visual wonderment that the best adventure films deliver to make you feel like you are somewhere beyond possibility. These elements are a bit of a letdown for a production that otherwise does its best to create excitement through its ambitious plot and entertaining ensemble of performers. Nevertheless, it is these elements that keep the film mostly a fun journey that only sometimes steps a toe into camp. If you are a fan of live action serials of yesteryear, this feature captures a lot of the ridiculous charm that they used to serve up.
Video Quality
Master Of The World gets a standalone Blu-Ray courtesy of Kino Classics after previously being available as a part of the Vincent Price Collection: Volume III from Shout! Factory. While I do not have that release to compare, it is with almost certainty I can say that this 1080p presentation is derived from the same master as that disc. While not perfect, this disc looks fairly strong throughout most of the runtime. This disc does not digitally manipulate the pleasing natural film grain that is present without being overly clumpy in the grain field. There are some nuanced, vibrant colors that make the film pop in a visually exciting way, even if the film shows some evidence of fading. The skin tones look natural, but the presentation does not have the deepest blacks I have ever seen. The shadow detail sometimes falters with blacks presenting with a bit of a milky appearance. The presentation rarely lacks the fine detail that you would hope for from a Blu-Ray upgrade. There are still an abundance of nicks and scratches, but for the most part the damage does not distract too terribly. The optical effects are still jarring, but this is a limitation of the source material and not the transfer. This film has not been the most widely available feature, so it is nice to see this one get a standalone Blu-Ray. The fact that it is mostly pleasing is all the better.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a lively DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio lossless soundtrack that sonically represents the film in a straightforward manner. The activity is primarily contained to the center channel with not much of an opening up with various elements. The adventurous music that is key to certain moments sounds good, but lacks the raw power that you feel it could possibly achieve. It never overpowers the dialogue or other important information in any significant way. The dialogue lacks a bit of crispness and the track can sound a little hollow at points. The track also showcases a minor bit of age related wear and hiss. This track is good, but never quite reaches the level of greatness.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary #1: Film Historian Tom Weaver anchors this commentary track with insights from David Schecter, Richard Heft and Vincent Price Biographer Lucy Chase Williams inserted throughout which allows discussions about the development of this story, the place of this film within Vincent Price’s output, the special effects work and more.
- Audio Commentary #2: Moderated by Actor/Composer/Illustrator Jonathan David Dixon, Actor David Frankham gives a lot of personal insights into the production of the film and his experiences working with Vincent Price. This provides a much different experience than the initial commentary track.
- Richard Matheson – Storyteller: A fantastic 72-minute archival piece in which writer Richard Matheson takes you through his career step by step with wonderful anecdotes throughout.
- Trailers: The two-minute trailer is provided for Master of the World. There are also trailers provided for The Raven, The Comedy of Terrors, The Last Man on Earth, The Tomb of Ligeia, War-Gods of the Deep, Scream and Scream Again, Theater of Blood and House of the Long Shadows.
Final Thoughts
Master of the World is far from top tier Vincent Price, but is an entertaining enough little adventure to make for a pleasant viewing experience. The plot is utterly ridiculous but the movie never tries to be more than it is. Price swings for the fences with his performance and everyone else goes along for the ride. Kino Classics has delivered this one to Blu-Ray as a standalone disc that sports a decent A/V presentation and an extra commentary track that was not on the Scream Factory release. Those who appreciate a good slipcover will also be interested to know the initial batch ships with one so be sure to get your order in early if that is important to you. If you already have the Scream Factory set, there is no pressing reason to purchase this one, but it might be worth it to you if this is the only film from the set you want and you love audio commentaries.
Master Of The World (Special Edition) will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray on August 31, 2021.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Kino Classics 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.