Roger Corman and his brother Gene founded The Filmgroup to distribute their own films. Occasionally they picked up projects by other filmmakers, such as The Devil’s Partner (1961), a macabre tale of an elderly man who regains his youth after making a deal with Satan. This tale of folk terror from director Charles Rondeau stars Edgar Buchanan and Jean Allison. Special Bonus Feature: Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961), Corman’s spoof of crime films where a gangster knocks off his crew members, blaming their deaths on a legendary sea monster. These two were often paired as a double feature during the summer and fall of 1961. Beware of the creature with ping-pong ball eyes!

For thoughts on The Devil’s Partner and Creature from the Haunted Sea, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/eDsAEdjuLRw?si=oZSnX1yGG_wbk2Vi&t=1480]

Video Quality

The Devil’s Partner and Creature from the Haunted Sea make their domestic Blu-Ray debut thanks to Film Masters with brand new 1080p masters in both their original aspect ratios. The Devil’s Partner is noted as being derived from a restored 4K scan from 35mm archival materials while Creature from the Haunted Sea also comes from a 4K scan from 35mm archival materials with additional 16mm elements to supplement some of the material. The Devil’s Partner is the more formidable of the two, but both transfers deliver a carefully maintained experience that allows these films to look better than they ever have, especially since these are Roger Corman productions.

These two releases are pretty similar to one another and will be discussed as a pair with any meaningful differences pointed out. The black-and-white photography thrives in high definition with natural grain intact throughout. The grain field seems a bit looser in Creature from the Haunted Sea, but both transfers are resolved without significant issues. Print damage is kept to a minimum in these presentations with nothing but intermittent nicks and scratches making their way through the restoration process. There are obvious limitations to Creature from the Haunted Sea, but fans will appreciate the quality at hand. There are thankfully very few moments where anything appears unnatural or awry in any serious way.

There are moments during Creature when you will notice the fine detail cannot match the visual splendor of The Devil’s Partner, but it is not a mismanaged transfer by any means. There is a notable amount of detail present with nice texture on the costumes and within the locations that serve as the setting. The contrast is firm across the board, but the tracks do experience fleeting indications of density fluctuation and clarity in the print. Black levels are robust with no egregious occurrences of black crush or compression artifacts. These films have been treated with more care than many ever imagined. Film Masters is on a roll with saving these oddball films.

Audio Quality

These two films come with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mono track that brings these stories to life the best that they can. Given their vintage, these tracks do emanate with a minor amount of age-related wear and tear including some light crackles that likely trace back to the source elements. These scores do their best to present a strong sense of fidelity. The music never overshadows the dialogue or other important information, but it does sound a little fragile at its highest peaks. Dialogue and background noises stay balanced with all competing elements. You can tell these films have some age to them, but they hold up relatively well. Film Masters has done their best to provide the most stable track possible for these. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for all feature films and commentary tracks.

Special Features

The Devil’s Partner

Theatrical (16:9) and Television (4:3) Aspect Ratios

Audio Commentary: Larry Strothe, James Gonis, Shawn Sheridan, and Matt Weinhold from The Monster Party Podcast provide a pretty lively and informative commentary track in which they discuss the history of the film, the ethos of producer Roger Corman, the makeup effects of the picture, the background of the creative figures involved, how this film fits into the period in which it was released, the notable elements of the feature and more.

Hollywood Intruders: The Filmgroup Story – Part Three: Another fine 21-minute continuation of the documentary that started on the Beast From Haunted Cave and The Terror that takes a closer look at the output of Filmgroup, the work of Francis Ford Coppola, how Roger Corman nurtured student filmmakers, how the repurposed Russian films, and more.

Roger Corman – Remembering Filmgroup: An 11-minute interview with legendary producer Roger Corman who discusses his background with Filmgroup, his philosophy when it comes to filmmaking, and more.

Trailer: The disc provides the minute-and-a-half 2024 Re-Cut Trailer for The Devil’s Partner.

Booklet: A multi-page booklet is provided featuring writing from Tom Weaver and Mark McGee.

Creature From The Haunted Sea

Theatrical Cut (1:00:26) and TV Cut (1:14:53)

Audio Commentary: Film Historian Tom Weaver provides a welcome commentary track in which he announces from the outset that this is an atypical track that consists mostly of great interview excerpts from a cavalcade of people he has interviewed from the production along with additional insights from himself.

Trailer: The disc provides the Original 16mm Trailer (1:00) and the 2024 Re-Cut Trailer (1:25) for Creature from the Haunted Sea.

Before-and-After Restoration Video: A two-and-a-half-minute restoration comparison is provided that shows how much of an upgrade this transfer truly is for fans.

Final Thoughts

The Devil’s Partner and Creature from the Haunted Sea are two schlocky productions from Roger Corman that do not deliver an earth-shattering cinematic experience, yet you still have quite a bit of fun with them. The Devil’s Partner promises a lot with its killer cover art, but once you realize what the film actually aspires to be, it works a lot better. This black magic tale is still very kooky while delivering some chills. Creature from the Haunted Sea is simply “so bad it is good” incarnate, and every element seems to be done on the cheap and on the fly. This is a fine one to poke fun at with a group of friends. Film Masters has released a Blu-Ray featuring a strong A/V presentation and terrific special features. Fans of schlocky cinema should give the set a chance. Recommended

The Devil’s Partner and Creature from the Haunted Sea is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.

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

Disclaimer: Film Masters has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.