Anyone get the DVD yet?
Mine comes Monday. I cannot wait. I wanna hear what others think about the release!
shareGot it yesterday. Totally worth it.
shareHello everyone...
I'd like to extend a special thanks to those of you buying and enjoying this DVD. We worked very hard on this one to ensure it would be a treasured release for those who admire this film as much as we do.
Many happy wishes to you all!
Kind regards,
Lee Christian
Code Red DVD
Hi Lee.
This is a great DVD!
Thanks!
May i ask when 'Nightmare in a damaged Brain' will be released?
You can't handle it. Get me Bruce Lee!
Ehh... Bruce Lee is dead.
Then get his brother!!!
Hi Savini-2!
First, many warm thanks for the kind words regarding the DVD release of MESSIAH OF EVIL. After all the work, the big payoff is in reading comments such as yours and we GREATLY appreciate your purchase of this DVD.
As for NIGHTMARE, unfortunately I don't have any more information on that release other than that Code Red is working to improve the available elements. The camera negatives -- according to Jim Markovic, one of the film's editors -- are completely useless for a telecine process due to improper storage conditions that have imposed irreversable damage over the years. That said, Code Red found itself in the tough position of having to make the best of release prints that bear the expected blemishes.
I hope that this suffices for the time being and if I can, I'll keep you posted as any news develops. Thanks again for the kind regards on MESSIAH OF EVIL!
Kind regards,
Lee Christian
Code Red DVD
Got it today.
Watched it - twice (once w/commentary).
The 21-minute featurette and commentary alone are worth it.
Huyck and company are hilariously self-deprecating in recounting the daily tribulations in creating their reluctant masterpiece.
"Many have noticed the blue and red color scheme throughout the movie.
Was this intentional?"
"No. But clearly, my subconscious was hard at work."
The transfer?
Best yet, certainly. But honestly, a disappointment.
The print is not in great shape, and the color correction seems oversaturated and overwarm much of the time. At least one scene has a bad frame (looks like a telecine error). Truthfully, this film needs a transfer from the camera negative. Probably won't see that in my lifetime. But we should.
Unfortunately, the film's grain is quite noticeable. As explained in the commentary, Techniscope's 2-perforation format is responsible. They chose this nearly-abandoned configuration to save on 35mm film stock, which took up half the budget. So a future HD presentation may not look that much better.
I would have appreciated a little more effort spent cleaning up the audio. Less distorted than other versions, it's still quite hissy.
The featurette presents a still of Kevin Thomas's L.A. Times review from April 1975. Nice touch, but unreadable.
One last point: Understandably, Huyck and Katz don't have much to say about the work that was done to complete the film after it was taken from their hands. Considering what there was to work with, they did a commendable job. Very nice superimposed titles (almost nonexistent for an $80,000 title), editing, and an ending that almost works. And Philan Bishop's creepy electronic score, while perhaps not quite what the filmmakers had in mind, became an inseparable addition. The one truly unwelcome embelishment -- that sucky Raun McKinnon song -- is gone, revealing a final line of Arletty dialogue missing from every previous video release. Could have been far worse.
Despite some letdowns, clearly a must-have for any devotee.
It's been a long wait.
Hi Tabbbycat...
Thanks for the kind words regarding the extras.
As for the transfer, obviously we would have loved to have had access to the camera negatives. But those elements -- for close to four decades -- have apparently become as long lost as Jimmy Hoffa and D.B. Cooper. Such is the sad truth in attempting to do justice to the DVD release of films whose materials have vanished over the years. For the transfer, we employed the services of Ascent Media which routinely does the telecine work for major studio releases (while I was there during one of our recent jobs, they were working on the Hi-Def transfers for a number of Sony titles, such as THE DEEP and KRAMER VS. KRAMER).
The print that we did use for the telecine process is one of TWO prints known to exist. I've seen the other print; it's not even worth projecting for a revival screening, let alone using for a telecine transfer. Frankly, it's a miracle that the print we used was still as well preserved as it was (let's hope that very same print REMAINS in in good shape). Our goal was to give MESSIAH OF EVIL the best treatment possible with the AVAILABLE materials.
Regarding the "oversaturated colors," we entrusted -- and have no regrets in doing so -- director Willard Huyck and editor Billy Weber to supervise the transfer (as stated on the packaging). As the film was Willard's vision to begin with, we felt that his aesthetic was best suited to act in congress with HIS original vision. I can personally attest that both men were present for the entire process of color correcting.
As for the appearance of film grain, indeed this is a problem that is amplified by the Techniscope process in much the same way as a 16mm blowup. Techniscope became the format of choice as well for George Lucas when he shot both AMERICAN GRAFFITI and THX-1138. Ron Howard -- in the AMERICAN GRAFFITI documentary seen on that film's DVD -- fittingly referred to the Techniscope process as "a sort of a poor man's anamorphic." But it should also be noted that ALL FILM has grain (just look at the monitors playing a Blu-Ray disc of the latest blockbuster -- the ones actually shot on FILM, that is -- at your local Best Buy).
As far as the "hissy" audio quality is concerned, the audio was taken from the analogue tracks of the very release print that we used for the image transfer. Again...the original elements are apparently lost. Those privy to film resotration may recall that Robert Harris and James Katz sparked controversy when they elected to re-record the foley track for Alfred Hitchcock's VERTIGO as a means of overcoming the hisses and pops that had become permanently ingrained in THAT film's original elements over the decades.
Those of us who worked on this release did so tirelessly to ensure that it was both timely and blessed with the best quality possible. (I can personally assure you that I poured countless hours into this release STRICTLY for the love of the film). Despite the flaws, we hope that you enjoy this release as it REALLY was a labor of love.
Kind regards,
Lee Christian
Code Red DVD
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Hi Leydenstone!
Thanks for the kind words (and that sentiment is really extended to EVERYONE who was looking forward to and bought this disc)!
Regarding inquiries about the actresses, all of our interview subjects were asked about all of the key players in the film, but most of them didn't remember. In drafting questions, I generally include amongst those questions a list of all the key players involved in a film and ask each interview subject what they may recall about those people. That's how Morgan came up with the story about Marianna's discontent about her character having to drive his Volvo onscreen.
Unfortunately, "I really don't remember" became a very common reply (sometimes, you get a LONG interview mostly resulting in "I don't remember" as the most frequently repeated phrase). Since that doesn't contribute any information, we left those types of answers out of the documentary. Based on previous discussions with Willard, I didn't think he had much more to say about Marianna so I left that matter where it was.
Speaking of Marianna, our research revealed that she lives in overseas in Europe. We did attempt to reach her, but it never came to fruition. A source that apparently has known her said she reflects on her filmmaking days VERY selectively (i.e., ask her about MEDIUM COOL and she loves to talk). As for Anitra Ford, Willard had previously been in touch with her, but hasn't been able to reach her for the past couple of years (she does have a MySpace page, through which I tried to contact her, but I never heard back from her). Charles Dierkop still lives in Los Angeles, but we couldn't work anything into our schedule to get together with him.
Deadlines impose a problem of their own. Our original September release date would've been met had it not been for the last minute revelations of A) Steve Katz' unexpected visit to Los Angeles, and B) an unexpected call by Joy Bang to Code Red's founder. I had initiated a very loose correspondence with Joy for several weeks before an inteview could actually be set up. Joan Mocine recalled having a conversation on the set with Joy regarding Theosophy(!).
As for the music playing in the background...I'm sad to say this, but that was in my notes and it didn't occur to me until you brought it up that I forgot to ask about that! Sorry about that! :-) Unfortunately, sometimes that happens.
As for the James Bryan titles, Code Red does have some of his other titles on their slate. Truthfully, my relationship with Code Red is mostly limited down to the services that you see (commentary moderating and interviews), so I don't want to speak for them, but I'll let you know if I find anything out.
I hope this is helpful! Thanks again for the kind words and for buying the disc! During a recession that has the DVD business at an all-time low, such dedication as yours only contributes in the best way to a DVD label's ability to do what it likes to do best; provide the most thoroughly satisfying product possible. Many, many thanks to ALL of you!
Many kind regards,
Lee Christian
Code Red DVD
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Lee,
Following your reply I put the disc on again for another look.
I have to say that much of it looks quite clean and vivid; I don't want to diminish the work you've done. Guess I had just fantasized about a transfer without the reel-end scratches and blemishes I've gotten used to since the 1986 VHS release.
As to your comments via the colors, yes, I did notice Willard's mention on the commentary track that the colors were, in fact, intended to be much warmer than those found on previous releases. I respect his choice, but have some trouble understanding it. Taking the Mobil station scene as an example, in previous releases the location appears to be lit strictly by flourescents, imparting a ghoulish sheen. In the new DVD, the faces of Marianna and Bennie are noticeably reddish and warm. This seemed distracting and detracting from the creepy mood (and not realistic). For me, it calls attention to the filmmaking, so I don't see the point. But I'd certainly be interested to hear Willard's reasoning on it.
Finally, can you clear up one mystery? Clearly, there were two separate versions of Messiah of Evil released: this version without "Hold On to Love", and the one with. I actually saw both versions in theaters: this version at a drive-in in October of 1976 (on a double bill with God Told Me To) and the other on April 26, 1975, at the California Theater in San Diego. How did these two versions come to be, and which is in fact the original release version? I'm also wondering if any prints survive bearing the alternate titles Dead People and Return of the Living Dead.
very awesome dvd release thanks code red where is nightmare at?
i heard a rumor that the reason there has been no news on nightmare is because code red doesn't even own it now i hope that isn't true
Hi Fceurich!
Thanks for the kind words on MESSIAH OF EVIL!
As for the rumor about NIGHTMARE, that pretty much sums it up; it's definitely a rumor, Code Red DOES have the rights. The delay has been due to the materials being in less than decent shape. Code Red licensed the film for ten years with the understanding that the camera negatives would be useable for the telecine. The negatives, however, aren't useable at all. That comes directly from Jim Markovic who -- now with DuArt -- was looking forward to restoring the film that he had previously worked on as an editor, but then made the sad discovery regarding the condition of the negatives.
Thanks for asking! Code Red is currently working to make due with the selection of release prints that have been unearthed.
Kind regards,
Lee Christian,
Code Red DVD
Hi Tabbycat!
First, I sincerely apologize if my previous response came off as abbrasive. Much work went into this release so it's easy to find myself on the defensive. Having seen MESSIAH OF EVIL upon it's original release, your devotion to this film obviously cannot be overstated and your expectations for the DVD release are clearly valid and reasonable. Let me be the first to say it's an honor to have you as a customer for this disc.
With that said, I'm not sure why Willard and Billy opted for the color scheme emphasis that they did. But there was definitely a preference to emphasize the reds and the blues. But that was over a year ago and I regret that I didn't ask him about that at the time or during the commentary, but Steve Katz did tell us that the emphasis on the colors was very conscious on his mind while shooting. The gas station scene I couldn't comment on specifically, but I have to confess that prior to speaking to Willard about it, I had always assumed that a Mobile station was chosen specifically because of its red and blue logo. It turns out, however, that that was merely a coincidence.
I had at one time posed the idea of doing a featurette about the actual telecine process, by showing the director interacting with the technicians who physically carry out the his/her intentions throughout the process. Understandably, however, having cameras present in a facility that routinely handles major studio work did not bode well for those who manage that facility and I can't blame them for saying no to that proposal.
As for the insertion of the Raun MacKinnon song, "Hold On to Love," the exact time when that happened isn't clear yet (perhaps someone out there may have more information on that), but it's worth noting that the much of the film's ongoing, periodic distribution (right up until 1982) under alternate titles -- and alternate parties -- was mostly (if not entirely) the result of money owed on the initial negative and/or print expenses which apparently remained unpaid over the years. One such person who has acknowledged being one of the sub-distributors of the film (circa 1976) was James Bryan, the director of -- among other films -- DON'T GO IN THE WOODS. Ironically, Mr. Bryan is currently married to Rosanna Norton, who is credited as Costume Designer for MESSIAH (although when I questioned her about this, she insisted that she didn't actually work on MESSIAH; Jody Tillen, she insists, was the film's only true Costume Designer. Also ironically, Rosanna was married at the time to Bill Norton, who directed MORE AMERICAN GRAFFITI and also directed Joy Bang in CISCO PIKE).
I was told by the distributor (then head of Checker Releasing Co.) who released the film as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD that as he understood it, the Raun MacKinnon song was dropped in by an associate of Raun's who gained distribution rights to the film prior to the Checker Releasing acquisition. Checker Releasing acquired MESSIAH OF EVIL through a court auction as the money owed to Technicolor (or CFI) was still under arbitration. However, Checker Releasing only acquired previously struck release prints -- NOT the negatives -- presumably left over from the 1975 release. None of those release prints contained the Raun MacKinnon song. Needless to say, as indicated in the commentary, Checker Releasing was the distributor that faced a legal challenge on the title and promotion of the film as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD while using "When there is no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the earth." Due to the lawsuit, he changed the title to REVENGE OF THE SCREAMING DEAD. Out of respect for his privacy, I've elected not to name the gentleman with Checker Releasing here, but the story on the legal action against the RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD gimmick was documented in the October 12, 1978 issue of Variety.
This much of the distribution history of the film is confirmed: The film was first theatrically released under the title MESSIAH OF EVIL on April 23, 1975 at several locations in Los Angeles (and as you have noted, in San Diego), but most noteably at The Roxie. This release was distributed by International CineFilm which had cut the GONE WITH THE WEST footage into the theatre scene [GONE WITH THE WEST had suffered a similar fate as MESSIAH OF EVIL; running out of money prior to completion, although in the case of that film it was because the set had burned down]. MESSIAH OF EVIL was re-released as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD in Chicago on Friday, September 29th, 1978 and then changed (as of October 11th) to REVENGE OF THE SCREAMING DEAD. NOTE: As the title REVENGE OF THE SCREAMING DEAD was imposed on the film due to the legal problems regarding the RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD ad campaign, there were no advertising materials ever printed to advertise the film as REVENGE OF THE SCREAMING DEAD. It was last released (theatrically) in 1982 as DEAD PEOPLE with a full sized (black and white) photo of Bennie Robinson (the albino), curiously named "Albert."
Regarding release prints of DEAD PEOPLE and RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, none are known to exist (although wouldn't it be wonderful if a collector came out of the woodwork posessing a print bearing either title?). According to the gentleman who distributed MESSIAH through Checker Releasing, he did not retain any prints of the film, nor did he impose any changes on the film when he released it (other than splicing in his new title). The only prints we are aware of are A) the one used for the telecine and B) a print belonging to a collector in New York that DOES contain the Raun MacKinnon song. However, the latter print is VERY beat up (this print was run last year at The Silent Movie Theatre in Los Angeles; Willard & Gloria started off their post screening Q&A by noting how bad the print looked). Code Red opted not to include the Raun MacKinnon song as an extra for the simple reason that A) there isn't a source for this version in decent shape, B) it's widely available on other labels WITH the song, but mostly C) it was Willard's preference to leave the song out of the film entirely.
I hope all of this is helpful, Tabbycat! And thanks once again for sharing your perspectives on this release!
Many kind regards,
Lee Christian
Code Red DVD
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