Corpse Mania – Vinegar Syndrome (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1981
Director: Chih-Hung Kuei
Writers: Chih-Hung Kuei, Sze-To On
Cast: Tien Ni, Wang Jung, Yu Tsui-Ling, Lau Siu-Kwan, Erik Ka-Kei Chan

Release Date: October 29th, 2024
Approximate Running Time: 82 Minutes 49 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region A (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $54.98

"After a defiled corpse is discovered in an abandoned building, Inspector Zhang recognizes the scene as being similar to other mutilated bodies that have been turning up in the area. Realizing that there is a deranged serial killer at large, Zhang's investigation soon leads him to a local brothel run by the headstrong Madame Lan, which appears to be the killer’s hunting ground. While public suspicion soon falls on a recently released-from-prison necrophile, Zhang is unconvinced, believing that the killer and their motive are hiding in plain sight." - synopsis provided by the distributor

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

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative."

Corpse Mania comes on a 66 GB dual layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 61 GB

Feature: 60.3 GB

The source looks excellent; it's a noticeable improvement over this film’s previous home media releases. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid, and grain remains intact.

Corpse Mania comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 32.6 GB

Feature: 24  GB

The Blu-ray included as part of this release uses the same source that was used for the 4K UHD’s transfer.

Audio: 4.25/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese with removable English subtitles. The audio is in good shape; dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced. Range-wise, ambient sounds and the score are well-represented.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include an audio commentary with Ming Beaver Kwei, son of director Chih-Hung Kwei and filmmaker Alan Chu, and an audio commentary with film historian Samm Deighan.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include an interview with producer Lawrence Wong titled Statistics with the Producer (3 minutes 10 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with cinematographer Lee San Yip (7 minutes, Dolby Digital stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an  interview with Ming Beaver Kwei (18 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by film historian and author Grady Hendrix titled Chih-Hung Kwei: Shaw Brothers’ Master of Horror (17 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary with Ming Beaver Kwei and Alan Chu, and an audio commentary with Samm Deighan.

Other extras include reversible cover art, a spot gloss slipcover (limited to 6,000 units) and a 28-page booklet with an essay titled Kuei Chih-Hung: A Man of All Genres written by Erica Shultz.

Summary:

Chih-Hung Kuei directed Corpse Mania. His other notable films include The Lady Professional, The Delinquent, The House of Bamboo Dolls, The Killer Snakes, Virgins of the Seven Seas, Killer Constable, Hex, Bewitched, and The Boxer’s Omen.

A necrophile recently released from prison is suspected of having killed and mutilated women's bodies.

Despite being most known for their martial arts films, Shaw Brothers actually covered all film genres. When it comes to Shaw Brothers horror films, these are some of the wildest films of the 1970s and early 1980s. That said, these films are not just yours with blood and guts; they contain lured material typically found in exploitation films. Case in point, Corpse Mania, a film directed by Chih-Hung Kuei, Shaw Brothers resident horror/explanation go to director.

Besides having a premise ripe with possibilities, Corpse Mania does a fantastic job laying the foundation and setting the mood in its opening setup. In the opening moments, suspicious neighbors call the police when a strong odor emanates from the home of a man and his sick wife who recently moved in. The wife's maggot-covered corpse is discovered, and it is revealed that the husband is a necrophile. This vivid sequence is an excellent example of how to open a film.

Corpse Mania, like most Hong Kong films, mixes genres. Despite horror being its dominant genre, Corpse Mania is also a police procedural with some exploitation elements thrown in for good measure. That said, the horror elements are mostly confined to the opening and closing acts. Also, the police procedural moments are not as impactful as the horror ones.

Corpse Main is not a film that you watch because of its performances. The actors and actresses are essentially props in the grand scheme of things, with Chih-Hung Kuei’s rock solid direction creating the impact instead of the performances.

Considering the name of this film, Corpse Mania, and its lured premise, the number of on-screen deaths is not that many; fortunately, when it comes to carnage, there is an abundance of blood that flows. As mentioned before, the narrative feels like it has distinctive parts; the horror moments move briskly, while the police procedural moments have a deliberate pacing. Ultimately, Corpse Mania is a horror/crime drama hybrid that's overflowing with moments of midsection, which culminate with a very satisfying twist ending.

Corpse Mania gets an exceptional release from Vinegar Syndrome that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and informative extras, 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.

Written by Michael Den Boer