Mario Bava

[Richard--W]

I have the VCI edition of The Whip and the Body (1963) which is the uncut European print.

It's interlaced and not entirely without a kind of smudge-iness.

Is there a better transfer in region 2, does anyone know?

[Ian Jane]

There's an out of print and very hard to find version from Anolis Entertainment that is, to the best of my knowledge, the best looking version around... if you can find it.

Isn't VCI supposedly putting this out on Blu-ray sooner or later?

[Horace Cordier]

There's an out of print and very hard to find version from Anolis Entertainment that is, to the best of my knowledge, the best looking version around... if you can find it.

Isn't VCI supposedly putting this out on Blu-ray sooner or later?

That's the rumor.

Now that Anolis are on the Blu Ray wagon I wonder if they might tackle this themselves?

[Richard--W]

Thanks for the feedback. I guess I'll stick with the VCI edition until a blu comes out.

[Apronikoff]

Isn't VCI supposedly putting this out on Blu-ray sooner or later?

I thought Kino/Redemption had picked up the rights to this one? That was rumored anyway...Mondo Digital has this on their upcoming releases list (without a release date) as coming from them.

[Ian Jane]

I was fairly certain VCI said they owned the North American rights flat out. I could be wrong - in fact, I'd be happy to be wrong if Kino were in fact working on it. I'm honestly surprised it hasn't been given a Blu-ray release somewhere in the world yet, given it's importance and popularity.

[Apronikoff]

Ok, just found the source of the rumor. Salvation/Redemption announced it last July:

One of Mario Bava's finest and most gothic films, The Whip and the Body aka La frusta e il corpo, has just been signed to Redemption and will now be remastered from the original negative and released on Blu-ray. Starring horror legend Christopher Lee as a sadistic nobleman whose main pleasure in life is to whip his sister-in-law, played by the beautiful Daliah Lavi. When the nobleman is murdered his ghost returns and the beatings continue.

Of course, VCI may have staked a claim to it since then (which might explain why we haven't heard much more about it since then)

[Ian Jane]

I'm a complete spazz. All this time I thought we were talking about Blood And Black Lace.

[Apronikoff]

I'm a complete spazz. All this time I thought we were talking about Blood And Black Lace.

Hehe, guess that explains the confusion.

Now if Kino did get the rights to Blood and Black Lace that would be good news indeed.

[Ian Jane]

Agreed, but that's the one I'm pretty sure VCI has locked down. Not to say they couldn't do a good job with it, as their Dark Night Of The Scarecrow Blu-ray is awesome.