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Virgin Witch
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - Redemption / Kino Lorber Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (23rd July 2014). |
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The Film
 ***This is a technical review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** Capitalizing on the pop cultural fascination with the occult, while taking advantage of the eras relax censorship, VIRGIN WITCH was one of the most notorious British horror films of the early seventies. Ann Michelle (House of Whipcord) and Vicki Michelle (BBC's ‘Allo ‘Allo!) star as a pair of miniskirted birds who travel to a remote castle in order to land a contract in the modeling agency of the mysterious lesbian Sybil Waite (Patricia Haines). Only then do they realize that the agency is a means of procuring fresh victims for a witch's coven. Sybil's plan goes awry when she discovers that only one of the virginal sisters is hardly an innocent victim—but is gifted with deadly supernatural powers.
Video
Redemption films have released the seventies British horror "Virgin Witch" on to Blu-ray in America using the original aspect ratio of 1.66:1. The transfer is 1080p, uses an AVC MPEG-4 encode, and has been remastered (but not restored) from an original 35mm negative. It's a very mediocre transfer. The biggest problem that litters the transfer, is the large amount of dust, scratches and other such damage. There are numerous noticeable white specs throughout, and the scratches, although only lasting briefly, are quite concerning. We even get a couple of black dots that used to signify a reel change. Despite the damage, it isn't a complete waste of time, and is far from being unwatchable. Colours are surprisingly good, and although on occasion the blacks may feel a little soft, they are solid and inky for the vast majority. Skin tones look natural, and the detail in the facial close-ups is certainly noticeable. Details of background items and details in the shadows can vary somewhat scene to scene, but are never particularly poor. There has been no restoration work done here, and with that we avoid any signs of edge enhancement or digital noise reduction, but I was still left disappointed. "Virgin Witch" is a notorious film, and a restoration (though perhaps not cost effective), would've been thoroughly welcomed. The feature is uncut and runs 88:55
Audio
Redemption have provided us with a single audio track for this release; English LPCM 2.0 Dual Mono and it sounds okay, but has a couple of issues. The first issue of note, is that some of the higher dialogue can sound slightly tinny. The second main issue, was that some of the dialogue is unfortunately mumbled. Although you can make out the mumbled dialogue, it just hasn't got the consistent clarity one would hope for. There is also an occasional pop and scratch, but these are few and far between, and barely noticeable. The audio here is adequate and up to the task, providing you can forgive its pitfalls. No subtitles have been included.
Extras
The extras included here are rather unsubstantial and self-explanatory. Photo Gallery - 16 images Theatrical Trailer (1:51) Redemption Trailers: The Cinema of Jean Rollin - "The Nude Vampire" (3:42) - "The Shiver of the Vampires" (4:10) - "The Iron Rose" (3:42) - "Lips of Blood" (2:20) - "Fascination" (2:33)
Overall
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