The Shiver of the Vampires – Indicator Series (4k UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: France, 1971
Director: Jean Rollin
Writers: Monique Natan, Jean Rollin
Cast: Sandra Julien, Jean-Marie Durand, Jacques Robiolles, Michel Delahaye, Marie-Pierre Castel, Kuelan Herce, Nicole Nancel, Dominique, Jean-Jacques Renon

Release Date: May 8th, 2023 (UK), May 9th, 2023 (USA)
Approximate Running Time: 94 Minutes 57 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono French, LPCM Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £24.99 (UK), $49.95 (USA)

"Arriving at a decrepit chateau for their honeymoon, young newlyweds undergo a series of surreal and sinister encounters, and come to realise that they are the prey of the resident vampires..." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, “The Shiver of the Vampires was scanned, restored and color corrected in 4K HDR (Dolby Vision) at Filmfinity, London, using original 35mm internegative film materials. Phoenix image-processing tools were used to remove many thousands of instances of dirt, eliminate scratches and other imperfections, as well as repair damaged frames. No grain management, edge enhancement or sharpening tools were employed to artificially alter the image in any way.”

The Shiver of the Vampires comes on a 66 GB dual layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 61.6 GB

Feature: 52.6 GB

The source used for this transfer looks exceptional. Image clarity, depth, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated and at times vivid, and grain remains intact; the image always looks organic.

Audio: 4.25/5 (LPCM Mono French), 4/5 (LPCM Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options: a LPCM mono mix in French and a LPCM mono mix in English. Both audio mixes are in great shape; just like the video presentation, the audio tracks have been cleaned up. Dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced. Though ambient sounds are well represented, range-wise, both tracks are not that active. That said, the French-language track sounds the more robust of these two audio tracks. Included are removable English subtitles for the French language track and removable English SDH subtitles for the English language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include image galleries: promotional and publicity material (88 images), and behind the scenes (76 images), French language theatrical trailer (4 minutes 12 seconds, Dolby Digital mono French with removable English subtitles), English language theatrical trailer (4 minutes 12 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), seven explicit sequences filmed for foreign markets (24 minutes 17 seconds, Dolby Digital mono), a critical appreciation by the author and film historian Virginie Sélavy titled Macabre Psychedelia (8 minutes, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a lengthy discussion between director Jean Rollin and the film theorist Patricia MacCormack, filmed in Paris in 2004 titled Fear and Desire (40 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an updated documentary on the making of The Shiver of the Vampires by Rollin’s personal assistant, Daniel Gouyette, including interviews with key collaborators Natalie Perrey and Jean-Noël Delamarre titled Rouge vif (17 minutes 17 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo French with removable English subtitles), an archival introduction by Jean Rollin (4 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with Jean Rollin, in French with removable English subtitles, an audio commentary with Jeremy Richey, author of Sylvia Kristel: From ‘Emmanuelle’ to Chabrol, and an eighty page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled The World of Eternal Darkness written by David Hinds, an archival introduction by Jean Rollin titled The Making of The Shiver of the Vampires, an archival interview with Jean Rollin titled The Early Years conducted by Peter Blumenstock, an archival interview with actress Marie-Pierre Castel titled So Young and Already a Vampire! Conducted by Sophie Majeur, an essay about Acanthus the mysterious group behind The Shiver of the Vampires’ soundtrack titled In Search of Acanthus written by Andy Votel, and information about the restoration.

Summary:

The more one digs deeper into the cinema of Jean Rollin, the more it becomes clear that his films are more about mood than conventional storytelling. Though his films feature simple narratives and minimal dialog, it’s astounding how much he’s able to convey as a filmmaker, despite his minimalist approach to storytelling.

When discussing the cinema of Jean Rollin, one must not undervalue his visual eye. He has a knack for creating arresting imagery that’s often overflowing with symbolism. And though he often worked on very limited budgets, he was always meticulous when it came to framing compositions.

The narrative revolves around newlyweds who, on their honeymoon, decide to visit relatives that live in an isolated castle. Shortly after their arrival, they’re told that their relatives have recently died. From there, things become more bizarre when their deceased relatives resurface alive! Later on, things turn deadly when they discover that everyone at the castle, including their relatives, is a vampire.

Though The Shiver of the Vampires is a film that relies more on mood than spoken words. This does not take away from the overall impact since Jean Rollin always excelled when it came to his choices of locations and architectural structures. The way in which he photographs his films gives them a lyrical style that fuses with the music he uses, creating a hypnotic rhythm.

The Shiver of the Vampires standout moments include the opening black and white prologue transition to the opening credits in color, a scene where a character is assaulted by an avalanche of books, and a scene where a man is impaled by a woman who has spiked breasts.

Performance-wise, the cast is very good in their respective roles, especially Dominique (Requiem for a Vampire) in the role of a vampire named Isolde. Other notable performances include Michel Delahaye (Blanche) and Jacques Robiolles (The Bride Wore Black) in the roles of the bride's two uncles who transformed into vampires, and Sandra Julien (I Am Frigid... Why?) in the role of the bride.

Despite The Shiver of the Vampires having many elements that have become synonymous with horror cinema, the result is a film that is best described as a psychedelic melodrama. That said, classifying The Shiver of the Vampires as a horror film would be doing this film a great disservice. Ultimately, The Shiver of the Vampires is like a fever dream that fans of 1970s French fantastique cinema should thoroughly enjoy.

Over the years, the cinema of Jean Rollin has not been treated well on home video, and though in recent years things have gotten better, there is still room for improvement. This brings us to this release of The Shiver of the Vampires by Powerhouse Films as part of their Indicator Series. If this release is any indication of what Powerhouse Films has in store for the cinema of Jean Rollin, then fans of his films should be ecstatic. The Shiver of the Vampires makes its way to 4K UHD via a definitive release from Powerhouse Films, highly recommended.

Note: This release is a limited edition of 10,000 numbered units (6,000 4K UHDs and 4,000 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 VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer