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Released by: Severin Films
Released on: July 8th, 2014.
Director: Jess Franco
Cast: Olivia Pascal, Christopher Moosbrugger, Nadja Gerganoff
Year: 1981
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The Movie:
Jess Franco's Bloody Moon starts off interestingly enough with its odd disco party opening. A foxy blonde makes out with her boyfriend pleading 'Please take me Ralph, I've been waiting so long' while he sports a Mickey Mouse mask. They head back to a room to get it on but when the mask comes off, the horror begins as the man in the mask stabs blondie to death with a pair of scissors. It turns out this guy is a disfigured guy named Miguel (Alexander Waechter) and that he's got some serious issues. Cut to an unspecified time in the future and Miguel has been released from the psychiatric ward into the care of his sister.
From there we head to the 'International Youth School Of Languages Boarding House' where the people in charge are trying to figure out how to pay the bills. Miguel's sister, Manuella (Nadja Gerganoff), figures this would be a good place to bring her deranged brother. The woman who runs the school has to deal with Manuella and Miguel's cranky Aunt Maria (Maria Rubio) who owns the property and assumes everyone is plotting against her. That night, an unseen murderer burns the cranky old woman to death in her bedroom. No one seems too concerned with that, at least initially, as it's time for tennis and topless sunbathing at the poolside. It turns out that this school is the same building where the opening murder scene took place some years ago. The hunky tennis instructor/gardener, Antonio (Peter Exacoustos), is running around banging the students (all of whom look to be in their late 20s/early 30s) but someone is up to considerably more sinister activities as the student and faculty soon learn when the bodies start piling up on and around the school grounds. Is Miguel up to his own tricks or is he too distracted by his sister's incestuous on again/off again desires? The only one who seems at all concerned by what's going on is Angela (Olivia Pascal), but no one takes her seriously as she 'reads too many murder stories'...
Firmly entrenched in the styles and sounds of the eighties - listen for the weird "whoop whoop whoop" sound effects that make up much of the score or note that at one point a character can be seen wearing a Grace Jones shirt - Bloody Moon is a decent enough slasher film. A roller skating-sock hop-disco dance, plenty of outfits involving leotards, mom jeans and pastel colored leisure wear also age the film considerably but the film is not without its quirky charm. Noticeably more polished and linear than a lot of Jess Franco's films, Bloody Moon is, in many ways, fairly accomplished. The murder scenes are grisly and work quite well and the cinematography effectively captures the mood and helps build suspense. A couple of superfluous subplots really serve to do little more than simply pad the film but the core storyline is interesting enough.
The gore scenes in the film are fairly memorable - a woman has a knife shoved through her breast from behind, an unlucky (and very real) snake gets its head cut off by garden sheers, and in the movie's most famous scene a woman has her head cut off by a giant buzzsaw - and they have stood the test of time well (even if it's obviously a mannequin of some sort getting hit with that saw). There are logic gaps aplenty throughout the movie and you'll probably wonder how so many people wind up in one room during a key scene or how the giant boulder managed to fly off the cliff, but these add to the picture's fun.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Bloody Moon arrives on Blu-ray from Severin Films framed at 1.78.1 in AVC encoded 1080p high definition. This is a pretty nice upgrade in every way compared to the previous DVD release from 2008. Colors have more pop to them and they really shine without oversaturating, even the bold, striking reds used in the murder scenes. Skin tones look good and while the film is a little on the soft side in that it has that early eighties feel to it, detail is pretty solid throughout. There are a couple of insert shots that show a bit more wear and tear than the rest of the film but all in all, Bloody Moon looks quite nice on Blu-ray.
The only audio option on the disc is an LPCM English language Mono track but it gets the job done. The score has a little more presence and weight behind it here than it has in the past and there are no issues with any hiss or distortion. The dubbing is exceptionally goofy but most fans won't have an issue with this as it feels completely in keeping with the film's screwy sensibilities.
The main supplement on this release is a featurette entitled Franco's Moon (18:49) in which the director talks about making the picture. He talks about how the film was put together with Olivia Pascal predetermined to play the lead and how the music of Pink Floyd was a big inspiration on the film's noticeably bizarre soundtrack. In fact, Franco mentions that originally Pink Floyd was supposed to work on the film but instead he wound up with a Dutch composer who he was less than impressed with. Franco talks about how the writer kept interfering and about working with the effects technician on the film before going on to making comparisons between making a horror film and making a porno film and the reasons why the effects sequences should be kept on the shorter side. Interesting stuff, delivered with Jess' usual 'no bullshit' approach to talking about his work and his career. The theatrical trailer is also included as are menus and chapter selection options.
The Final Word:
Franco fans already know they want this but the film will also appeal to Euro-trash connoisseurs and slasher aficionados alike, particularly those with an affinity for eighties material. Severin presents the film completely uncut with a very nice transfer and while the extras aren't overflowing here, the interview with Franco is a very enjoyable one and we get nice upgrades in both the audio and video departments. Recommended.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
