The Night of the Executioner – Mondo Macabro (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Spain, 1992
Director: Paul Naschy
Writer: Paul Naschy
Cast: Paul Naschy, Manuel Zarzo, Paloma Cela, Sergio Molina, José Álvarez, Adriana Vega, Mara Laso

Release Date: August 8th, 2023
Approximate running time: 92 Minutes 39 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Spanish
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $29.95

"Dr Hugo Arranz (Paul Naschy) is commemorating his 50th birthday with his wife and daughter. As the celebrations reach their height, the family is terrorized by a gang of violent street thugs who have broken into their home. Initially the gang is after jewels and cash. But once they have their helpless victims tied up and defenceless, their thoughts turn to violence. They rape Arranz's wife and daughter and then, annoyed by the doctor's protests, they cut out his tongue and leave him for dead. Arranz survives the attack and recovers after a stay in hospital. Abandoning his medical practice, he seeks vengeance on the men and women who destroyed his life. He embarks on a strenuous course of physical training, involving knives, guns and punishing bouts of weight lifting. Finally, he is ready to go in pursuit of his prey. But to track them down, he must enter the sleazy underworld which his potential victims inhabit. In the process, Dr Arranz begins to learn much, not only about his targets but also about himself." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “Brand new 4k transfer from film negative.”

The Night of the Executioner comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 35.7 GB

Feature: 25.2 GB

The source used for this transfer is in great shape; it is easily the best The Night of the Executioner has ever looked on home video. Colors and flesh tones look correct, the image looks crisp, black levels are strong, compression is very good, and the image looks organic.

Audio: 4.25/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Spanish with removable English subtitles. The audio sounds clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, things sound very good, and ambent sounds are well represented.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an interview with Sergio Molina, son of Paul Naschy (36 minutes 17 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), an interview with actor Pepe Ruiz (20 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), an interview with actor Manuel Zarzo (24 minutes 19 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with The Naschycast (Rod Barnett and Troy Guinn).

Summary:

No name stands taller than Paul Naschy when one discusses Spanish horror cinema. His career spanned five decades, and he appeared in over 100 films. His nickname, ‘the Spanish Lon Chaney, is appropriate since, like Lon Chaney, he was a man of many faces. Paul Naschy, throughout his career, would be a wolfman, Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, a Mummy, and Fu Manchu. In The Night of the Executioner, he would become a vigilante, exacting his own brand of justice in a way that is similar to Charles Bronson’s Paul Kersey from Death Wish.

The narrative revolves around a doctor whose fiftieth birthday is interrupted by a gang of sadistic thieves who raped and murdered his wife and daughter. Left for dead with his tongue cut out, the doctor slowly recovers and plots his revenge against those who raped and murdered his wife and daughter.

Though Paul Naschy would continue to work steadily in the last sixteen years of his life, The Night of the Executioner would mark the end of an era for him. It would be the last theatrical film in which he was the screenwriter, the director, and the star. A trio of functions that he would perform on many of his films.

Content-wise, The Night of the Executioner is best described as Death Wish with a little bit of "A Clockwork Orange"-like violence thrown in for good measure. And though the premise retreads all too familiar ground, this is never an issue since Paul Naschy does a great job putting his own unique spin on things. Also, anyone familiar with Paul Naschy’s other films will be happy to know that The Night of the Executioner has an ample amount of carnage and sleaze.

The Night of the Executioner, like most Paul Naschy films, features performances that are best described as serviceable. Fortunately, this is not a problem since Paul Naschy’s character, who is in most of the film, steals every moment he’s in. Though his character is a man of no words, since his tongue was cut out, he expresses himself via the rage he delivers on his victims.

From a production standpoint, The Night of the Executioner fully exploits its resources. The well-executed narrative does a good job building momentum, and the finale perfectly brings the protagonist's journey to a conclusion. Another strength are the visuals and how Paul Naschy always makes sure that his character is given memorable moments, like a scene where he crashes through a window. Though The Night of the Executioner is not one of Paul Naschy’s better films, it still has many elements that fans of his films are sure to appreciate.

The Night of the Executioner gets an excellent release from Mondo Macabro that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and insightful extras, recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer