In the aftermath of a near-death experience in the final days of the First World War, former soldier Tomás has become a photographer with a particular — and peculiar — expertise. Presenting the bereaved an opportunity for one final, indelible memory of their dead loved ones, Tomás creates family photos in which the living and the dead are posed together.

Haunted by a vision of an orphaned girl, Tomás is drawn to a disease-stricken village claimed to be overrun by ghosts. With the young orphan at his side, Tomás digs deeper into the mysteries of the village — and of what lies between life and death.

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Video Quality

The film debuts on Blu-Ray courtesy of Scream Factory with a really striking 1080p presentation in its original aspect ratio that captures the film very well. The movie itself has a subdued color palette that was never going to make this a disc you turn to for bursts of color, but it is perfectly in line with the tone of the film. There is a strong amount of detail and clarity throughout the entire presentation, even in the more shadowy environments. The fine detail that can be observed on faces is quite remarkable. Shots that roam from room to room remain stable and avoid any blurring or banding. For a story that often relies on darkness to build tension, it is important to have deep black levels, which this thankfully does. Objects hold up well in the shadows and retain their depth. There is no damage, black crush or digital noise detectable throughout this transfer. This is an impressive transfer from Scream Factory that allows this brand new film to thrive with a problem-free viewing experience.

Audio Quality

Post Mortem comes to Blu-Ray with an impressive DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio track in the original Hungarian and dubbed English. As always, we recommend sticking with the original language for best results. The movie can be very quiet for much of the runtime, but when it does spring to life, it really delivers with bursts of activity. The low end of the track is especially active during these haunting moments with a bit of wall shaking happening. The dialogue and sound effects are appropriately balanced with the unsettling score where nothing gets lost in the track. Surround channels get some nice ambient activity where sounds are coming from unknown origins. This is a film that is immensely satisfying from a sound design perspective. The directionality of this track is precise with sounds coming from all of the appropriate places. This track is mighty, and will be appreciated by horror fans who pick up this disc. There are optional English subtitles provided.

Special Features

Deleted Scenes: Nine minutes of unused material is provided here mostly featuring small moments of Tomás witnessing some bizarre things, talking to bereaved relatives and more.

Trailer: A very effective two-minute trailer that gives you a nice taste of what is in store without spoiling everything.

Final Thoughts

Post Mortem initially positions itself as what has often been described as an “elevated” horror film, as it thoughtfully explores the trauma lingering from combat within the confines of a very specific setting. What “traditional” horror fans might like to hear, knowing full well that thoughtfulness in horror is nothing new, is that this film delivers when it comes to the full-spectrum thrills. You are not simply teased with ghostly goodness, you get to see a reckoning from the past in full effect. The movie is very satisfying in this sense, as you get the best of both worlds no matter what kind of horror fan you might be. Scream Factory has released a Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation but not too much in the way of special features. If you are looking for an effective ghost tale, put this one on your list. Recommended

Post Mortem is currently available to own on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Scream Factory 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.