International NEW BLU RAY HAMMER RELEASES FOR THE UK! (1 Viewer)

Followers of HTF will be pleased to know that the UK will be getting two new blu ray releases this spring/early summer: Phantom of The Opera and Captain Clegg (1962) followed by a DVD release only of Shadow of the Cat (1961). These discs will be loaded with extras and are being released by a very dedicated distribution company in the UK called Media Sales (UK) Ltd.
These are exciting releases . The reason that Shadow of the Cat is NOT being released on blu ray as well is due to the distributor being unable to locate suitable elements in order to produce the best possible HD transfer. My colleagues at Media Sales are at pains to ensure that these releases get the best possible transfers .
Exciting times ahead. I am sure further releases of vintage Hammer will follow if these prove to be successful releases.

I thought Final Cut were releasing these. Will they be better off than the other two Uni titles released on bd in the UK?

Wow, I never thought I'd see Shadow Of The Cat again. The one & only time I saw it was in the cinema supporting The Curse Of The Werewolf. The Phantom Of The Opera is a favourite of mine, but I'll be reading lots of reports about it first. It needs to look better than the Universal DVD & have all sparkle & marks de-spotted, or I'll stick with the DVD. I'm not buying the Blu just 'cos it's a Blu.

Billy Batson said:

...have all sparkle & marks de-spotted, or I'll stick with the DVD. I'm not buying the Blu just 'cos it's a Blu.

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Well that ain't gonna ever happen!

As stated in my announcement Shadow of the Cat is DVD only due to not being able to locate good enough elements for a blu Ray release. Final Cut and Media Sales are one and the same organisation.

Very interested in Captain Clegg because I never did buy the DVD. It will be good to see Yvonne Romain in hi-def!

As stated in my announcement Shadow of the Cat is DVD only due to not being able to locate good enough elements for a blu Ray release. Final Cut and Media Sales are one and the same organisation.

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So I'm thinking they don't have a print, maybe an old (a very old?) TV transfer, which may go back as far as 1" video tape. I'll wait & read reviews. I'm still waiting for what I consider to be a really great looking Blu from Hammer's golden period 1957-1963. So far American International Pictures has done a lot better than Hammer on Blu-ray.I suppose to be fair this thread should really be in the European section as the Blu's are bound to be region B locked.

Excellent news. I hope CAPTAIN CLEGG (original title at last!) is in its proper aspect ratio this time; Universal's DVD of NIGHT CREATURES is overzealously letterboxed at 2.00:1.

Jeffrey Nelson said:

Excellent news. I hope CAPTAIN CLEGG (original title at last!) is in its proper aspect ratio this time; Universal's DVD of NIGHT CREATURES is overzealously letterboxed at 2.00:1.

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They'll probably use whatever is available to them - this is the same company that released BRIDES OF DRACULA at 2.00:1.

I think you will find that this time round lessons have been learnt and assurances given that aspect ratios and transfers will be markedly superior. In the UK we have a lot to be thankful for that these releases are happening and I stress source material is the key to getting a decent release. Lets wait and see. Beggars cant be choosers.... Yes it will be region B but I assume multi region players are becoming more available world wide nowadays?

Is it possible a reissue of BRIDES OF DRACULA will be made available? Or a replacement disc?

I am not sure, probably unlikely, but will ask the distributor when I am next in touch

I watched the Brides of Dracula on blu-ray for the first time today. It wasn't as bad as I expected and although framing is an issue in certain scenes (the carriage arriving at the inn in the beginning and various close-ups where chins disappear) I didn't find it too noticeable in much of the film.

This is my favourite Hammer horror, good script, decent production values and marvellous performances by Peter Cushing and Freda Jackson. I know it will be a minority view but Christopher Lee is overrated as Dracula and he has done much better work elsewhere.

Except for the part about "Christopher Lee is overrated as Dracula". At least in Horror of Dracula anyway. IMHO he redefined the role.

I can't believe The Phantom of the Opera,the 1962 version is coming to blu ray. Thank you Hammer for choosing this as your next blu ray release. I have the dvd release of this but it wasn't as vivid and sharp as I had remembered it in the theater. I hope the blu ray will come as close in picture quality as my first viewing.

It ain't Hammer doing anything, it's Final Cut and Universal. Hammer doesn't even bother to promote any Hammer titles they aren't releasing themselves (which is a grave error on their part, IMO). Here's hoping these are good releases. I'm still crossing my fingers for Anolis' eventual(?) Hammer bds.

Shadow of the Cat debuts on April 14th in the UK with lots of extras and booklet. It is a remastered DVD only as mentioned previously. Captain Clegg follows in May BLU RAY and Phantom of the Opera BLU RAY in June. All will be region locked (B).

Both BRIDES OF DRACULA and EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN indicate Region B on the Blu-ray, however, both play on my Region A locked Oppo. I wonder if CLEGG and PHANTOM will turn out the same way.

April 28th:

Older interview, not sure is this posted already:
http://whatculture.com/film/exclusive-interview-marcus-hearn-on-dracula-blu-ray-release-the-history-of-hammer.php#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=exclusive-interview-marcus-hearn-on-dracula-blu-ray-release-the-history-of-hammer