Fans of horror know the name Vincent Price immediately upon hearing his name. Whether it was the Roger Corman directed Edgar Allan Poe films or his work on Michael Jackson’s Thriller, the unmistakable image and voice that was Price is recognized around the world. Many might be surprised to discover that the majority of the movies he made weren’t horror films at all and that he had a long career in dramatic films. But it will always be the horror films he will be remembered for.
Kino Lorber is in the midst of releasing many of those great movies on blu-ray right now. I was lucky enough to get a few in. Among those are MASTER OF THE WORLD and THE LAST MAN ON EARTH. Both give us different looks at Price and steer clear of the Poe films.
MASTER OF THE WORLD is based on the Jules Verne novel of the same name. In this film Price stars as Robur, a man determined to end all wars on the planet at the turn of the century. To do so he’s built a flying machines with bombing capabilities unlike any ever seen. Investigating a disturbance in a mountain a group led by government agent Strock (Charles Bronson), industrialist Prudent (Henry Hull), his daughter Dorothy (Mary Webster) and her fiancé Phillip Evans (David Frankham) are captured. The group are witness to the power of the flying airship as well as the intentions of Robur. Like any good set of heroes they set out to stop him before he kills more people after having watched him blow up a ship and a major city.
Made in 1961 the film features spectacular effects for that time period. The cinematography is wonderful and this print of the film brings the colors to life that have been seen in previously washed out prints. The acting is solid and gives Bronson one of his first time efforts as a hero. He and Price had worked together previously on THE HOUSE OF WAX. Yes, Bronson was in that movie. This one offers plenty of entertainment that the whole family can enjoy.
THE LAST MAN ON EARTH was made 3 years later. And Italian production based on the novel I AM LEGEND by Richard Matheson it tells the story of Dr. Robert Morgan (Price). As the film opens we see him roaming the near empty streets looking for the killers he seeks. A virus has affected the planet killing off people and causing them to rise from the dead. Morgan has a natural immunity to the plague and the dead now seek to destroy him. Every day he rises and goes out trying to find these ghoulish vampires to destroy and then burn their bodies in a pit created by the government before everything fell apart. He comes across another survivor only to find she too is infected, but differently from the rest. He gives her a transfusion and she’s cured. Can she help him to explain to the others like her that he has been killing that he can save them all?
Shot in black and white this movie has been offered in countess collections and cheap versions for years. All of those have been washed out or out of focus prints that were terrible. Kino Lorber has changed all that with this version offering the film in the most beautiful print ever. The acting is better than most would expect from a low budget film like this but that was always the case when Price was attached to a film. He treated all of his roles as if they were special.
If the name of this film sounds familiar it should. This film was remade twice, first as OMEGA MAN with Charlton Heston and then as I AM LEGEND with Wil Smith. At the time Matheson was disappointed in this version and yet time has shown it to be the closest one made to the original novel. Speaking of Matheson, there is a documentary featuring an interview with him on both movies. A nice touch.
If these movies weren’t enough Kino Lorber also has several other Price titles available. Also coming out are THEATER OF BLOOD, THE TOMB OF LIEGIA, THE RAVEN and COMEDY OF TERRORS. Each of these offers Price in some of his most iconic moments.
At a time when the people are saying that physical media is dying off it’s nice to see a company like Kino Lorber investing in offering films like these in the best way possible. If you are a fan of Vincent Price you won’t find a better version available on any of these films. These are all worth adding to your collection.
No comments:
Post a Comment