The Devil's Rain – Severin Films (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Mexico/USA, 1975
Director: Robert Fuest
Writers: Gabe Essoe, James Ashton, Gerald Hopman
Cast: Ernest Borgnine, Eddie Albert, Ida Lupino, William Shatner, Keenan Wynn, Tom Skerritt, Joan Prather, Woodrow Chambliss, John Travolta, Claudio Brook, Lisa Todd

Release Date: March 31st, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 86 Minutes 6 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10
Rating: PG
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Mono Spanish
Subtitles: English SDH, English
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region A (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $49.95

"Take an all-star cast – including William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Eddie Albert, Keenan Wynn, Tom Skerritt, Ida Lupino and even John Travolta in his movie debut – at their most hellishly over-the-top. Add one of the most visually inventive filmmakers of the era – director Robert Fuest, of THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES and THE FINAL PROGRAMME fame – and thrust them into “one of the strangest horror movies of all time” (Den of Geek), featuring Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey as Technical Advisor. Watch in infernal awe as it all hurtles towards the most eye-popping, flesh-melting finale in drive-in/grindhouse history." - synopsis provided by the distributor

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

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "scanned in 4K from the original camera negative for the first time ever."

The Devil's Rain comes on a 66 GB dual layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 60.3 GB

Feature: 59 GB

The source looks excellent; it is a noticeable improvement over Severin’s 2017 Blu-ray release. Flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are solid, there are no issues with compression, and the image retains an organic appearance.

The Devil's Rain comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 41.3 GB

Feature: 25.5 GB

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

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in English and a DTS-HD mono mix in Spanish. For this review I only listened to the English-language track. The English-language track sounds clean, clear, balanced, and appropriately robust. Included are removable English SDH for the English-language track and removable English subtitles for the Spanish-language track.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with director Robert Fuest, and an audio commentary with film historian Stephen R. Bissette.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include an extensive poster and stills gallery, four TV spots (2 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Ana Maria Quintana's on-set polaroid gallery, accompanied by radio spots (7 minutes 57 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an archival 1975 interview with actor William Shatner (3 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with filmmaker/horror collector Daniel Roebuck, who discusses The Devil’s Rain (10 minutes 33 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Anton LaVey biographer Blanche Barton titled Hail Satan! (8 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Consulting With The Devil—A Conversation With The High Priest and High Priestess of The Church of Satan (10 minutes 17 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with script supervisor Ana Maria Quintana titled First Stop Durango (14 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with special FX artist Tom Burman titled The Devil's Makeup (4 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actor Tom Skerritt titled Confessions of Tom (10 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with Robert Fuest, and an audio commentary with Stephen R. Bissette.

Summary:

Robert Fuest directed The Devil’s Rain. He is recognized for his work on And Soon the Darkness, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, The Final Programme, and Dr. Phibes Rises Again. Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan, worked as a technical adviser on The Devil's Rain.

Corbis is a priest whose ancestors were burned at the stake for their satanic beliefs. He seeks a book that contains the names of all those who have sold their souls to the devil. This book is currently located in the Preston family home.

One evening, an eyeless figure resembling Steve, the head of the Preston household, appears at their doorstep, warning his family to return the book to Corbis before he melts away before their eyes. In shock, Mark Preston confronts Corbis about his parents' whereabouts, but he soon finds himself a prisoner as well.

Shortly thereafter, Tom Preston and his wife hear about the problems his family has been having; they decide to go home. An occult expert named Dr. Sam Richards comes to their aid. Will they be able to save Tom’s family or is Corbis’ grip on them too strong?

After the success of Rosemary’s Baby, satanic-themed films started cropping up and reaching their peak by the mid-1970s. There are two categories that these films fall into: top-tier productions like Rosemary’s Baby, The Exorcist, and The Omen, and B-movies that lean into exploitation elements like The Brotherhood of Satan, Virgin Witch, and Satan’s Cheerleaders. The Devil’s Rain firmly fits into the latter category.

The opening setup of The Devil’s Rain does a phenomenal job setting the foundation for the events that follow. The narrative continues with a sequence of unsettling moments that build upon one another, leading to a climactic battle between good and evil. Flashbacks are utilized to deepen the characters and reveal why a man named Corbett is so determined to obtain the book hidden by the Prestons.

The Devil’s Rain features an impressive cast, who all fully embrace their roles. The most memorable performance is Ernest Borgnine (Escape from New York) in the role of satanic priest named Corbett. Another performance of note is William Shatner’s (Star Trek) portrayal of Mark Preston; his family possesses the book Corbet covets. William Shatner delivers another performance that is inline with what you expect from him. Other notable cast members include Tom Skerritt (Alien), Eddie Albert (Roman Holiday), and Ida Lupino (The Hitch-Hiker), along with John Travolta (Saturday Night Fever) in a blink-and-you'll-miss-him role.

The Devil’s Rain is a film that relies heavily on atmosphere. The visuals do a superb job heightening the mood, while the core perfectly underscores the foreboding mood. The most surprising aspect of The Devil’s Rain is the special effects, which hold up surprisingly well. There are several scenes where characters' bodies melt into pools of wax. Ultimately, The Devil’s Rain is a solid B film that works as well as it does because of the cast's performances.

The Devil’s Rain makes its way to 4K UHD via a solid upgrade from Severin Films. 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.

Written by Michael Den Boer

Lucky Luciano – Indicator Series (4k UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: USA/France/Italy, 1973
Director: Francesco Rosi
Writers: Francesco Rosi, Lino Iannuzzi, Tonino Guerra
Cast: Gian Maria Volontè, Vincent Gardenia, Silverio Blasi, Charles Cioffi, Larry Gates, Magda Konopka, Edmond O'Brien, Rod Steiger

Release Date: October 19th, 2026 (UK), October 20th (USA)
Approximate Running Times: 111 Minutes 14 Seconds (Italian Version, International Version), 111 Minutes 25 Seconds (US Version)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10 (All Versions)
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian/English (All Versions)
Subtitles: English (All Versions), English SDH (US Version)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £24.99 (UK), $49.95 (USA)

"When ruthless mafia kingpin Charles ‘Lucky’ Luciano (Volonté) is released early from a US prison and deported to Naples, dogged FBI agent Charles Siragusa (playing himself) conspires with informant Giannini (O’Brien) to topple Luciano’s transatlantic criminal empire." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, “Lucky Luciano was sourced from Studiocanal’s 4K restoration from the original negative.”

Lucky Luciano comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 88.1 GB

Feature: 77.7 GB

This release uses seamless branching for the three versions. The source looks excellent, and the color palette is greatly improved when compared to Kino Lorber’s 2021 Blu-ray release. Image clarity and compression are solid, black levels are strong, and the image retains an organic appearance.

Audio: 5/5 (All Audio Tracks)

Each version comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono hybrid track with Italian and English. All versions come with removable English subtitles for dialogue spoken in Italian, while the US version comes with removable English SDH for all dialogue. All tracks are in excellent shape. Dialogue comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and ambient sounds are well-represented.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery (80 images—stills/lobby cards/Japanese press book/posters), a theatrical trailer (1 minute 17 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Italian with removable English subtitles), an extract from the French television program 24 heures sur la Une titled Francesco Rosi on ‘Lucky Luciano’ (3 minutes 40 seconds, LPCM mono Italian with removable English subtitles), Documenting Power—a critical appreciation by Gaetana Marrone, author of The Cinema of Francesco Rosi (24 minutes 51 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and a 36-page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled Get Lucky written by Pasquale Iannone, an archival news report on the real Charles ‘Lucky’ Luciano written by Reynolds Packard, an archival interview with director Francesco Rosi conducted by Michel Ciment, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Lucky Luciano was a notorious gangster whose life has been adapted into numerous films. Besides films about Lucky Luciano, he has been portrayed in other films about American gangsters. That said, most films that featured Lucky Luciano focused on his life before he returned to Italy.

Though Lucky Luciano’s most sensationalized exploits took place before he went to prison in the 1930s. Despite being forced to relocate to Italy, he remained a prominent figure in the organized crime world. And it is precisely his life once he returned to Italy that Francesco Rosi’s Lucky Luciano explores.

From its opening moments, Francesco Rosi’s Lucky Luciano is a deliberately paced melodrama that is heavy on dialog and light when it comes to violence. With most moments of carnage being brief, the most violent sequence is a montage/flashback of the Night of the Sicilian Vespers.

That said, one drawback about Francesco Rosi’s Lucky Luciano is that it spends as much time with other characters as it does with Lucky Luciano. There are often long stretches without Lucky Luciano in which characters who are peripherally connected to Lucky Luciano interact.

If you’re going to make a film about Lucky Luciano, you better have a charismatic actor to portray him. Fortunately, Francesco Rosi’s Lucky Luciano cast Gian Maria Volontè (Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion) in the role of Lucky Luciano. Known for his captivating performances, Gian Maria Volontè once again delivers a performance that perfectly captures his character's essence. Besides Gian Maria Volontè, the rest of the cast are all very good in their respective roles. Ultimately, Francesco Rosi’s Lucky Luciano is an extraordinary piece of filmmaking that offers a deeper dive into one of America’s most notorious criminals.

Lucky Luciano makes its way to 4K UHD via an excellent release from Powerhouse Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and insightful extras. Highly recommended.

Note: This release is a limited edition of 6,000 numbered units (4,000 4K UHDs and 2,000 Blu-rays) for the UK and US.

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.

Written by Michael Den Boer

Visitor Q: Limited Edition – Radiance Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 2001
Director: Takashi Miike
Writer: Itaru Era
Cast: Kenichi Endō, Shungicu Uchida, Kazushi Watanabe, Fujiko, Jun Mutō, Shōko Nakahara

Release Date: October 19th, 2026 (UK), October 20th (USA)
Approximate Running Time: 84 Minutes 14 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Interlaced / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Stereo Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £14.99 (UK), $39.95 (USA)

"A struggling news reporter (Kenicho Endo, The Raid 2) keeps pushing boundaries to impress his superiors, finally winding up in a motel room with his estranged daughter. Back home, his bullied son takes his violent rages out on his mother, who turns to heroin to cope but must prostitute herself to afford the habit. Into this scene of severe family dysfunction steps Q, a mysterious stranger with a knack for knowing just what each member needs most, whether it's a rock to the head, a sexual reawakening, or a bout of murder." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “The film was shot on a Sony VX-1000 MiniDv digital camera. For this release the original MiniDV master tape was transferred in 2025 by Trusttech Japan Co., Ltd. The new scan presents the film in the highest possible quality, while preserving the inherent limitations of the original source format.”

Visitor Q comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 27.7 GB

Feature: 16.5 GB

The original source is interlaced and for this release Radiance Films has not changed it, while New Wave Video for their release changed the source to progressive. The result looks considerably better than expected for a film shot on video, a format that has many limitations.

Audio: 4.25/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM stereo mix in Japanese with removable English subtitles. The audio is clean, clear, and balanced, and range-wise, ambient sounds are well-represented.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 33 seconds, LPCM stereo Japanese with non-removable English subtitles), a video essay by Kat Ellinger titled Mother's Milk: Visitor Q and the Feminine Principle (16 minutes 4 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actor Kenichi Endo (18 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with actress Shôko Nakahara (20 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with director Takashi Miike (21 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with Takashi Miike biographer Tom Mes, reversible cover art, removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings and a 20-page booklet (limited to 5000 copies) with cast & crew information, an essay titled Beyond the Real written by Ana Došen, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Takashi Miike directed Visitor Q. His filmography stretches over 45 years and encompasses over 120 entries, including notable films like The Bird People of China, Agitator, Ichi the Killer, Audition, The Happiness of the Katakuris, Gozu, and Lesson of the Evil. Visitor Q was the sixth and final installment of six straight video films known as the Love Cinema series. 

A mysterious stranger forces his way into a dysfunctional family life and unleashes their libidos.

Takashi Miike never shies away from controversial subject matter. Whether it is taboo subject matter or extreme moments of carnage, his films have no boundaries. That brings us to Visitor Q, who is arguably his most provocative and boundary-pushing film. Before any characters are introduced, Visitor Q begins with a character saying, "Have you ever done it with your dad?” Not only does that one line of dialogue set the stage for what follows, it perfectly encapsulates the essence of Visitor Q, a film that provokes and has no limits to where it might go.

Visitor Q’s premise bears a strong resemblance to Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema. Both films revolve around a mysterious stranger who works their way into a family's lives and corrupts them morally. The family in Visitor Q is already dysfunctional before the stranger arrives. The father, a news reporter, has sex with his prostitute daughter, and a bullied son turns his aggression on his mother. While the strangers' intervention accelerates their perversions, he does not introduce something that was not already deep inside of them.

Takashi Miike really leans into elements that make you feel uneasy. Besides the father-daughter sexual encounter that opens with Visitor Q, there is a scene where the father trying to do a news report is sodomized with his microphone by juvenile delinquents and a scene where the stranger milks the mother's breasts. Visitor Q saves its most shocking moment for its finale, where the father kills a co-worker, keeps her corpse, and repeatedly has sex with it. That said, there is an escalation of perversion and carnage that builds to the fever-pitch climax.

Shot in 7 days with a digital camera for 8 million yen ($50,000), it is astonishing what Visitor Q accomplishes. Although there was a basic framework for the narrative, there was a considerable amount of improvising, which allowed the cast and crew a tremendous amount of freedom to create. When it comes to the performances, the cast go all in and their enthusiasm is infectious. Ultimately, Visitor Q is an arthouse film masquerading as an exploitation film.

Visitor Q gets an exceptional release from Radiance Films that gives the film its best audio/video presentation and insightful extras. Highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer

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