The Church – Severin Films (4k UHD/Blu-ray/CD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1989
Director: Michele Soavi
Writers: Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini, Michele Soavi
Cast: Hugh Quarshie, Tomas Arana, Asia Argento, Barbara Cupisti, Giovanni Lombardo Radice, Feodor Chaliapin, Jr., John Karlsen, John Richardson, Michele Soavi

Release Date: December 5th, 2023
Approximate Running Time: 101 Minutes 59 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Stereo Italian, DTS-HD 5.1 English, DTS-HD Stereo English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region A (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $54.95

"In a gothic cathedral built on the mass grave of a Teutonic purge, an ancient discovery by the new librarian will release an unholy maelstrom of madness, violence and demonic vengeance." - synopsis provided by the distributor

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

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “a Soavi-approved 4K scan from the Rome vault negative.”

The Church comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 76.6 GB

Feature: 75.3 GB

This transfer's source looks excellent. Flesh tones look healthy, colors look correct, image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic look. As great as Scorpion Releasing Blu-ray looked, this new transfer from Severin Films somehow betters that transfer.

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

Disc Size: 45.7 GB

Feature: 30.6 GB

The Blu-ray uses the same source as the 4K UHD does for its transfer.

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD Stereo Italian), 5/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English, DTS-HD Stereo English)

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD stereo mix in Italian, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English, and a DTS-HD stereo mix in English. All three audio tracks are in great shape. They sound clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, the two English-language tracks sound more robust than the Italian-language track. 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 U.S. theatrical trailer (2 minutes 5 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles).

Extras on the Blu-ray disc 1 include a U.S. theatrical trailer (2 minutes 5 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Alan Jones, author of Profondo Argento titled Return to the Land of the Demons (5 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with assistant director Claudio Lattanzi titled The Right-Hand Man (16 minutes 50 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with set designer Antonello Geleng titled Building The Church (20 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with make-up artist Franco Casagni titled Holy Ground (9 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with special FX artist Sergio Stivaletti titled Monsters and Demons (19 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with actor Giovanni Lombardo Radice titled Father Giovanni (14 minutes 14 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no  subtitles), an interview with actor Tomas Arana titled A Demon Named Evan (25 minutes 37 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no  subtitles), an interview with actress Antonella Vitale titled Here Comes the Bride (10 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with actress Asia Argento titled Lotte (8 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti titled The Ghostwriter (18 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Franco Ferrini titled The Eleventh Commandment (13 minutes 18 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with screenwriter/producer Dario Argento titled Alchemical Possession (12 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an interview with director Michele Soavi titled The Mystery of the Cathedrals (19 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles).

Disc 3 is a CD with The Church’s 12-song soundtrack.

Other extras include a slipcover, and a 40-page booklet with an essay titled A Vision of the Future, a Rocket from the Crypt written by Claire Donner, information about author Claire Donner, and a track listing for The Church’s soundtrack.

Summary:

Michele Soavi’s first four films as a director—Stage Fright, The Church, The Sect, and Cemetery Man (Dellamorte Dellamore)—are among the best horror films to come out of one of Italian genre cinema’s bleakest periods, the 1980s and 1990s. Before directing, he started out as an actor and then worked as an assistant director on Tenebrae, Phenomena, Opera, and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.

The narrative revolves around an inquisitive librarian who unleashes an unholy terror when he goes searching in the catacombs of a gothic cathedral.

The Church started off as a third installment in the Demon Films series, and when director Lamberto Bava was unavailable to direct, producer Dario Argento would bring in Michele Soavi. From there, what started off as Return to the House of Demons would evolve into what is now known as The Church.

Michele Soavi had one film under his belt by the time that he directed The Church. He had already established a visual style, and there are many moments in The Church that bear his distinct style. That said, it is also easy to see while watching The Church how Dario Argento influenced some of the look and tone of The church.

The most impressive aspect of The Church is the amount of resources it had to work with, especially when viewed through the dismal state of Italian horror cinema of the 1980s. Michele Soavi, in his previous film Stage Fright, proved what he could do on a shoestring budget. And yet, with the church, he is given a significantly larger canvas to work with, and he rises to the occasion.

When it comes to the performances, they range from adequate to very good. The strongest performance was by Asia Argento (The Stendhal Syndrome) in the role of Lotte, the sacristan’s mischievous daughter. There are many recognizable faces in the cast, like Barbara Cupisti (Stage Fright) in the role of Lisa, who is restoring frescoes in the church; Giovanni Lombardo Radice (House on the Edge of the Park) in the role of Reverend Dominic; and John Richardson (Torso) in the role of The Architect, the man who designed the accursed church.

Though the narrative dives in headfirst with a carnage-filled opening sequence where Teutonic Knights massacre a village of accused devil worshipers, when the narrative shifts to the present, things slow down considerably. From there, things start to pick up as the secrets inside the church are unlocked, building momentum towards a blood-soaked finale act. That said, when it comes to pacing, there is never an issue, as the narrative does a great job pushing forward.

From a production standpoint, there are a few areas where The Church does not excel. Michele Soavi has a strong eye for creating visually arresting moments, and the score does a phenomenal job reinforcing the mood, especially the two Philip Glass music cues. Also, production design is rock solid, and Sergio Stivaletti’s special effects are among some of his best, except for the death of the girl who is hit by a subway train. Ultimately, The Church is a solid Gothic horror film that's overflowing with atmosphere, and there are a few stylized murder set pieces that Italian horror cinema fans should thoroughly enjoy.

Severin Films gives The Church a fully loaded release that comes with over 3 hours of extra content and a solid audio/video presentation, making this release from Severin Films a definitive presentation and 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 VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer