Jan S. Kolár: Czech Silent Rarities: Standard Edition – Deaf Crocodile (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Dates: Czechoslovakia, 1921 (The Arrival from the Darkness), Czechoslovakia, 1929 (St. Wenceslas)
Director: Jan S. Kolár (Both Films)
Cast: Theodor Pištěk, Anny Ondra, Karel Lamač, Josef Šváb-Malostranský, Vladimír Majeras Richard, Luigi Hofman, Jan W. Speerger, Alfred Baštýř, Rudolf Myzet (The Arrival from the Darkness), Zdeněk Štěpánek, Jan W. Speerger, Vera Baranovskaya, Dagny Servaes, Josef Loskot, Erna Ženíšková, Jan S. Kolár, Gustav Svojsík, Jindřich Edl, Josef Rovenský (St. Wenceslas)

Release Date: October 13th, 2026
Approximate Running Times: 64 Minutes 35 Seconds (The Arrival from the Darkness), 107 Minutes 38 Seconds (St. Wenceslas)
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Films)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Stereo with Czech Intertitles (Both Films)
Subtitles: English (Both Films)
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $34.95

"The Arrival From The Darkness follows a rare-book collector who revives his sixteenth-century ancestor through an ancient manuscript, unleashing an extraordinary tale involving alchemy, black magic, the Elixir of Life, ruined castles, time travel, and the Black Plague. St. Wenceslas chronicles the struggle between paganism and Christianity in tenth-century Bohemia through the life of Prince Wenceslas, combining political intrigue, betrayal, warfare, and lavish historical spectacle in what became the most expensive Czech film produced during the silent era." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 3.5/5 (The Arrival from the Darkness), 3.75/5 (St. Wenceslas)

Here’s the information provided about The Arrival From The Darkness' transfer, "The NFA collection contains an unassembled original negative and a duplicate negative, both on nitrate, the original nitrate distribution print, and two acetate prints.

The film was reconstructed in 2005-6. All materials were compared and individual parts were assembled. The title is preserved on two polyester prints; the resulting length is 1,752 meters. According to the censorship record. The original length of the film was 2,300 meters; part of the film has not survived."

The Arrival From The Darkness comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45 GB

Feature: 18.6 GB

Here’s the information provided about St. Wenceslas' transfer, "The NFA collection contains a nitrate duplicate image negative with acetate intertitles and further acetate prints and duplicate prints.

The film was reconstructed in 1961-2 by director Jan S. Kolár and a prominent expert in photochemical processing, František Baluška. Part of the reconstruction was the copying of the original intertitles, which were pasted into the bottom and the copy. The total footage is 2,938 meters and the film format is 1.33:1."

St. Wenceslas comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 42.8 GB

Feature: 31 GB

Both films' sources, similar to many silent films, have their limitations. I have included excerpts from the booklet that details the sources used for each film. Nonetheless, the text and screenshots provided in this review offer a clear idea of what to expect. Blu-ray authoring by Vital Passenger.

Audio: 5/5 (Both Audio Tracks)

Each film comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD stereo track with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles. The audio sounds clear and balanced.

Extras:

Extras on the disc with The Arrival From The Darkness include an audio commentary with film historian Peter Hames and Czech film expert Irena Kovarova of Comeback Company and five short films: Polykarp’s Winter Adventure (10 minutes 53 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles), The Oriental Languages’ Teacher (35 minutes 59 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles), The Lady With The Small Foot (32 minutes 9 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles), The Torn Photograph (28 minutes 11 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles), and The Wedding Shirt (4 minutes 14 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles).

Polykarp’s Winter Adventure: Jan S. Kolár’s first film is this charming comedy shot outdoors in the snowy winter in Prague.

The Oriental Languages’ Teacher: Co-directed by Jan S. Kolár and Olga Rautenkranzová, the first Czech female filmmaker.

The Lady With The Small Foot: Directed by Jan S. Kolár. An ambitious mix of Louis Feuillade-style detective thriller / fantasy and comedy.

The Torn Photograph: Directed by Jan S. Kolár. A surreal romantic comedy about four confirmed bachelors who swear they’ll never marry.

The Wedding Shirt: Directed by Josef Kokeisl. The only surviving 4-minute fragment from this haunting silent horror film, co-directed by Theodor Pištěk, who starred in The Arrival From The Darkness.

Extras on the disc with St. Wenceslas include an audio commentary with Peter Hames and Irena Kovarova, a video essay by experimental filmmaker and film scholar Stephen Broomer titled Face of Centuries: Jan S. Kolár and the Afterlives of History (18 minutes 4 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and a short film titled How We Used To Make Movies—a fascinating compilation by Bohumil Veselý of behind-the-scenes footage from Czech silent films shot between 1918 and 1929 (including several by Jan S. Kolár) and assembled in the 1950s (23 minutes 53 seconds, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, DTS-HD stereo with Czech intertitles and removable English subtitles).

Other extras include a 48-page booklet with an essay titled Jan S. Kolár: The First Master of Czech Cinema written by Jan-Christopher Horak, an essay titled The Arrival from the Darkness + St. Wenceslas written by Walter Chaw, and notes on the restorations.

Summary:

The Arrival from the Darkness: A man reading a story about the mystery of the Black Tower unlocks its secrets.

The Arrival from the Darkness is a supernatural horror film that explores love, obsession, and suspended animation. The narrative revolves around Bodhan, a collector of rare books, who comes across a copy of a book about the Black Tower. The book involves a 16th-century alchemist, Jesek, who’s an ancestor of Bodhan. Jesek created an elixir of life after his beloved died, hoping to reunite with her one day. Bodhan’s wife looks exactly like Alena, Jesek's beloved.

The horror elements in The Arrival from the Darkness don’t come from scares; it’s a film that relies heavily on a foreboding atmosphere. Although the visuals lack the expressionist style most silent horror films have, they are more based in reality than fantasy. That said, the visuals do a superb job heightening the mood. The most striking moment visually is a scene that takes place during the Black plague. The narrative does an excellent job holding your attention and building momentum to a finale where the protagonist confronts his alchemist ancestor. Ultimately, The Arrival from the Darkness is a solid example of a silent film that stretches the limits of what was possible at that time.

St. Wenceslas: A family becomes divided when one brother moves away from paganism to Christianity.

St. Wenceslas depicts the historical melodrama of Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia, who fell victim to his brother's assassination, Boleslaus the Cruel. After Wenceslaus's death, he was declared king and patron saint of the Czech state. Jan S. Kolár’s film adaptation of St Wenceslas’ story is an epic film that, at the time of its making, was the most expensive Czech film ever made. Besides large sets, the film is also known for its battle sequence that reportedly featured 5,000 extras.

St. Wenceslas explores faith vs. paganism and peace instead of war, and it is a film that is overflowing with symbolism. The most memorable moment is the scene where Wenceslas is assassinated by his brother in a church. While there are several moments where the visuals look striking, for the most part they just observe what's unfolding. At just under 108 minutes in length, the narrative has many peaks and valleys, and it never fully establishes momentum. A few reasons why the narrative drags: there are few surprises and too much time was spent on characters talking forcibly and taking no action. Ultimately, St. Wenceslas’s positives outweigh its negatives, making it a must-see film for silent cinema fans.

Jan S. Kolár: Czech Silent Rarities gets an exceptional release from Deaf Crocodile, making it a must-purchase for fans of silent cinema. Highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer

The Owl vs Bombo – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1984
Director: Sammo Hung Kam-Bo
Writer: Cheung Lai-ling
Cast: Sammo Hung Kam-Bo, George Lam, Deanie Ip, Michelle Yeoh, James Tien, Philip Chan

Release Date: October 26th, 2026 (UK), November 10th, 2026 (USA)
Approximate Running Time: 101 Minutes 32 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 12 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Cantonese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £16.99 (UK), $29.95 (USA)

"Chan (Sammo Hung) and Wong (George Lam) AKA Bumbo and The Owl, believe their criminal days are behind them. However, their pasts come back to haunt them when ex-cop Chung returns to black mail them. At his behest, the pair find themselves teaching at a reform school. But how long can their earlier criminal lives stay in the past." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "a 2K Remaster of the original camera negative."

The Owl vs Bombo comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 33.1 GB

Feature: 26.2 GB

The source looks excellent; flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are strong, compression is solid, and there are no issues with digital noise reduction.

Audio: 4/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Cantonese with removable English subtitles. The track sounds clean, clear, and balanced, and the action sequences sound robust.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery with music from the film playing in the background (stills/poster), a theatrical trailer (4 minutes 48 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with Ricky Baker titled Those Who Kam-Bo Teach (18 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English subtitles for Cantonese film clips), an audio commentary with Hong Kong film expert David West, a removable U-card leaving the O-Ring free of certificates and markings, a double-sided foldout poster (limited to the first pressing), a doubled-walled O-Ring slipcase (limited to the first pressing).

Summary:

Two notorious thieves are blackmailed into mentoring at a probation center that prepares youths for job placement.

The Owl vs Bumbo is a buddy cop film with an inventive twist, featuring two partnered criminals. The Owl and Bumbo are not your typical criminals; they each possess a distinct set of skills. Their pairing is not by accident; a frustrated police investigator uses them to bring down a crime boss when the system stands in the way of delivering justice. That said, another key component to the narrative that unfolds is how the blackmailers keep The Owl and Bumbo in the dark about their identity.

While Sammo Hung Kam-Bo receives the accolades he deserves as an actor, sometimes it feels like direction does not great the acclaim it should. Where other actors/directors would go out of their way to put the spotlight on themselves, Sammo Hung Kam-Bo is an incredibly generous collaborator who’s direction ensures that everyone rises to the top. A strength about Sammo Hung Kam-Bo’s direction, especially when discussing a film like The Owl vs Bumbo, is how well he handles dramatic moments. A notable example is a scene where The Owl helps the delinquent kids to unlock their repressed feelings.

When it comes to the performances, they are outstanding, especially George Lam (Boat People) and Sammo Hung Kam-Bo (Pedicab Driver) in the roles of The Owl and Bumbo. The Owl is a suave, sophisticated thief, while Bumbo lacks grace and is often the butt of the jokes. George Lam and Sammo Hung Kam-Bo have a tremendous amount of onscreen chemistry. Other notable performances are Deanie Ip (My Name Ain’t Suzie), whose character runs the youth center and Michelle Yeoh (Yes, Madam!) in her first role portraying a teacher.

The Owl vs Bumbo is a hodgepodge of genres that could have only been pulled off in Hong Kong cinema. The narrative spends a lot of time getting to know its characters and placing them in humorous situations. While there is action throughout, most of it is concentrated in the last thirty minutes with an all-out brawl finale where the kids from the youth center show up with bats on BMX bikes. There are two moments of note, both featuring Sammo Hung Kam-Bo: a scene at a restaurant where he tries to retrieve a cherry and what ensues looks like a soccer match, and a scene where Bumbo elegantly dances like Gene Kelly. Ultimately, The Owl vs Bumbo is an emotional rollercoaster that always engages and delivers a lot of laughs.

The Owl vs Bombo gets a solid release from 88 Films that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and a pair of informative extras. Recommended.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer

The Black Cat – Severin Films (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1981
Director: Lucio Fulci
Writers: Biagio Proietti, Lucio Fulci
Cast: Patrick Magee, Mimsy Farmer, David Warbeck, Al Cliver, Dagmar Lassander, Bruno Corazzari, Geoffrey Copleston, Daniela Doria

Release Date: October 13th, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 91 Minutes 48 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 HDR10
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region Free (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $49.95

"In a rural English village, an increasingly deranged professor (Patrick Magee of A CLOCKWORK ORANGE and ASYLUM fame in his final lead role) obsessed with the supernatural will instill his pet feline with powers of homicidal mayhem." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5 (4K UHD), 4.25/5 (Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "newly restored and scanned in 4K from the original camera negative."

The Black Cat comes on a 66 GB dual layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 59.5 GB

Feature: 58.4 GB

While Lucio Fulci’s The Black Cat is a film that has never fared well on home media, Severin Films' release aims to correct that. Although the source still has some minor damage, including a line that appears on the right side of the frame a few times, it has never looked better on home media. Flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are strong throughout, there are no issues with compression, and the image retains an organic appearance.

The Black Cat comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 40 GB

Feature: 27 GB

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 4.25/5 (Both Audio Tracks)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. The two tracks are comparable; both tracks are an improvement over previous home media releases. Both tracks sound clear and balanced, and the ambient sounds and the score are well represented. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian-language track and removable English SDH for the English-language track.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles).

Extras on the Blu-ray disc with the film include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with composer Pino Donaggio titled Symphony for a Black Cat (11 minutes 33 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with camera operator Roberto Forges Davanzati titled Nine Lives (16 minutes 37 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with special effects artist Paolo Ricci titled Of Bats and Cats (11 minutes 48 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an interview with screenwriter Biagio Proietti titled Mr. Poe and Me (26 minutes 55 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles).

Extras on a second Blu-ray disc include a career-spanning interview with actress Dagmar Lassander titled Frightened Dagmar (20 minutes 10 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo German with removable English subtitles), an archival interview titled At Home With David Warbeck (70 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Stephen Thrower, author of Beyond Terror: The Films of Lucio Fulci, titled From Poe Into Fulci: The Spirit of Perverseness (25 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles) and a locations featurette with Stephen Thrower titled In The Paw-Prints of The Black Cat (8 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles).

Summary:

A professor with psychic abilities uses telepathy to communicate with a black cat who kills his enemies.

After two decades as a director, Lucio Fulci was hitting his stride in the late 1970s/early 1980s with what is widely regarded as his most celebrated films. The Black Cat, made during this outstanding run of films, is often overlooked when discussing his other horror films from that era. While The Black Cat takes its name from an Edgar Allan Poe story, it is a very loose adaptation that actually borrows elements from other Poe stories.

There are two areas where The Black Cat is noticeably different from Lucio Fulci’s other films from the early 1980s: it is not as gory and how grounded in reality it is. When it comes to the scenes where the black cat attacks, Lucio Fulci employs a POV camera that greatly heightens the mood. The visuals are overflowing with atmosphere and they are infused with a gothic horror style that is reminiscent of the Hammer Horror films and the Roger Corman Edgar Allen Poe films of the 1960s.

Although Lucio Fulci’s films are more known for their mood than their performances, The Black Cat features an outstanding performance from Patrick Magee (A Clockwork Orange), who portrays a professor with psychic abilities. The only performance that disappoints is Mimsy Farmer’s (Four Flies on Grey Velvet) portrayal of a photographer, an outsider visiting  the town. Other notable cast members are Dagmar Lassander (Hatchet for the Honeymoon), Al Cliver (Zombie), and David Warbeck, who worked with Lucio Fulci on his masterpiece The Beyond.

While not as gory as one has come to expect from Lucio Fulci, The Black Cat features several well-crafted moments of carnage. When it comes to the special effects, they hold up well considering their limitations. The most notable moment is a scene where a room is engulfed in fire. Not to be overlooked when discussing The Black Cat is Pino Donaggio’s (Carrie) remarkable mood-enhancing score. Nine years after this film, Pino Donaggio would score his second of two The Black Cat adaptations for Dario Argento’s Two Evil Eyes segment.

One’s opinion of a film can be significantly influenced by the timing of when it is watched, particularly in relation to other films by the same director. This has certainly been true for me, as I viewed The Black Cat after watching all of Lucio Fulci’s other horror films from the late 1970s and early 1980s. Upon reflecting on The Black Cat, I have found that my opinion of it has evolved over the years. Nevertheless, The Black Cat remains a solid horror film that takes familiar story elements and subverts them.

Severin Films gives Lucio Fulci’s The Black Cat its best home media release to date. Highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

                                                 An example of the source damage.

Written by Michael Den Boer

Memories of Matsuko: Re-Release – Third Window Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 2006
Director: Tetsuya Nakashima
Writer: Tetsuya Nakashima
Cast: Miki Nakatani, Kana Okunoya, Eita, Akira Emoto, Teruyuki Kagawa, Mikako Ichikawa, Yusuke Iseya, Shosuke Tanihara, Kankuro Kudo, Gekidan Hitori, Ryo Arakawa, Shinji Takeda

Release Date: October 5th, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 130 Minutes 20 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 15 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free (Blu-ray), Region 0 PAL (DVD)
Retail Price: £17.99

"When the body of a female tramp is found in the park, her nephew, Shou, is called upon to clean out her abandoned apartment. He unwittingly embarks upon a surprising journey through the extraordinary life of his aunt, Matsuko, a starry-eyed female searching for her prince." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Memories of Matsuko comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 27.4 GB

Feature: 26.9 GB

This is the same transfer as the 2011 Blu-ray release. The source looks excellent; it is a noticeable improvement over the Third Window Films DVD release. Flesh tones look correct, colors look vivid, image clarity and contrast are solid, and black levels are strong throughout. There are no issues with compression or edge enhancement.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Japanese with removable English subtitles. The audio sounds excellent, the dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced and robust when it should.

Extras:

All the extra content comes on a second disc (a single-layer DVD). Extras on this disc include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), a storyboard-to-film comparison (12 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with soundtrack composer Gabriel Roberto (21 minutes 37 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and a making-of featurette (30 minutes 29 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles). Other extras include trailers for other films released by Third Window Films.

Summary:

The nephew of a recently deceased woman cleans up her apartment. Because of her estrangement from the family, he never met his aunt. While cleaning her apartment, he gets to know her through the conversations he has with those who know her.

“Forgive me for being born." These words are written on the wall outside Matsuko's apartment. What could have possibly made someone write the above sentiment? This is just one of many clues that give deeper insight into the downward spiral that ultimately led to her death.

Memories of Matsuko adopts the narrative structure outlined in Citizen Kane. It is a narrative that relies completely on other characters speaking on behalf of the protagonist. And it is through their recollections that Matsuko comes to life. That said, since there are several viewpoints at play, there is not a reliable narrator.

It is a formidable task to sum up someone’s life and untimely demise over the span of two hours. Thankfully, Memories of Matsuko does a great job of keeping things concise; there is no unnecessary filler. And nowhere is the narrative more effective than how it builds momentum via the flashbacks that give a glimpse into Matsuko's turbulent life.

From the get-go, Memories of Matsuko is a roller coaster ride that, at times, is whimsical and often bleak. The earliest memories of Matsuko reveal a little girl who is desperate for affection from her father. He devotes most of his time to her sickly younger sister. This eventually leads to her leaving home. When she breaks away from her family, she struggles to find a stable relationship with anyone who is not abusive to her. And while all of these relationships end badly, she always finds within herself a reason to live and not give up.

The heart and soul of this production is the spectacular performance from its leading lady, Miki Nakatani (Ringu). She delivers a gut-wrenching performance that perfectly captures her character's despair. She would go on to win the Japanese Academy Award for best actress for her portrayal of Matsuko. Asuka Kurosawa’s (A Snake of June) portrayal of Megumi Sawamura is another performance of note. Matsuko became friends with her character while serving eight years in prison for murder.

Stylistically, with Memories of Matsuko, Tetsuya Nakashima picks up where he left off on his previous film, Kamikaze Girls. His films have a strong visual eye, and Memories of Matsuko is overflowing with stylish moments. And though this time around he delves into bleak subject matter, there are a few lighthearted moments, notably musical numbers. Pacing-wise, after starting off briskly, things slow down by the second act; thankfully, the final act gets things moving again, culminating with an evocative ending that provides a satisfying closure. Ultimately, through all of its peaks and valleys, Memories of Matsuko is an emotionally charged melodrama that stays with you long after its final moments.

Memories of Matsuko makes its way back to Blu-ray via a region-free release that ports over the audio/video presentation and extras from the Third Window Films 2011 release. Recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer