The House of Witchcraft – Cauldron Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1989
Director: Umberto Lenzi
Writers: Gianfranco Clerici, Umberto Lenzi, Daniele Stroppa
Cast: Andy J. Forest, Sonia Petrovna, Susanna Martinková, Marina Giulia Cavalli, Paul Muller, Maria Stella Musy, Alberto Frasca, Maria Cumani Quasimodo, Cesare Di Vito, Tom Felleghy

Release Date: May 13th, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 89 Minutes 34 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $34.95

"An over-worked journalist recovering from a breakdown has been suffering from nightmares. To help ease his struggles, his wife takes him to an idyllic country home for the weekend. Nightmares soon turn to reality as the dark truth about the house threatens to undo all who dare stay the night." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "2K restoration."

The House of Witchcraft comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 36.7 GB

Feature: 26.8 GB

The source looks excellent; this film has never looked better on home media. The flesh tones appear healthy, the colors appear correct, the image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the grain remains intact.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian), 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. Both audio tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced. That said, the Italian language tracks sound more robust. Included are English subtitles for the Italian language track and English SDH subtitles for the English language track. It should be noted that subtitles can only be chosen via the audio setup menu, and they cannot be turned off while watching the main feature. Also, you cannot toggle between the two audio options while watching the main feature.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an interview with FX artist Elio Terribili titled Artisan of Mayhem (19 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with cinematographer Nino Celeste titled The House of Professionals (18 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani, Nathaniel Thompson, and Troy Howarth.

Extras not carried over from the limited edition release for this standard edition release include a poster, and a rigid outer box.

Summary:

The House of Witchcraft is one of four made-for-television films known as The Houses of Doom. The other three films are The House of Clocks, The Sweet House of Horrors, and The House of Lost Souls.

A man recently released from a psychiatric ward visits a home he saw in his dreams.

Looking over Umberto Lenzi’s 36-year career, it is impressive how he remained active throughout, even when many of his contemporaries struggled to find financing or just retired from filmmaking. A key to his longevity has to be his ability to move from genre to genre as trends shifted and constantly deliver solid films, in many instances despite limited resources. Out of all the Italian genre filmmakers prominent in the 1970s, his output in the 1980s, consisting of 16 films, is the most prolific.

The supernatural is the central element throughout The Houses of Doom films. The narrative revolves around a man whose marriage is in trouble, and his wife suggests they go to a home in the country to work on their issues. Once there, he gets a feeling of déjà vu when he recognizes that this house is the same one from his dream. From there, a series of bizarre events and disappearances occur, foreshadowing what he witnessed in his dreams.

Out of the four The Houses of Doom films, The House of Witchcraft has the strongest cast. When it comes to the performances, it is a trio of actresses who stand out: Sonia Petrovna (Ludwig), who portrays the protagonist's wife; Susanna Martinková (Detective Belli), who portrays the protagonist's psychiatrist (she is also his sister-in-law); and Maria Cumani Quasimodo (Five Women for the Killer), who portrays the witch from the protagonist's dreams. The weakest performance is Andy J. Forest (Miranda) in the role of the protagonist. It's not just a matter of dubbing; in either language he delivers a dry, one-dimensional performance. A cast member of note is Paul Muller, a frequent collaborator of Jess Franco; he portrays the blind man.

After a solid opening setup, the narrative never manages to create momentum, and pacing could be stronger. Though the narrative is dialogue-heavy, there are a few well-timed jump scares. That said, outside of the murder set pieces, there is not much else going for this film. The most memorable moments are the dream sequences, the interactions with the witch, and the car wreck sequence. The ever-reliable Claudio Simonetti (Opera) delivers a solid score that perfectly underscores the mood. Ultimately, The House of Witchcraft is a fairly conventional horror film that sometimes tries to explore the psychological aspects too deeply.

The House of Witchcraft gets an excellent release from Cauldron Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of extras.

Written by Michael Den Boer