Two more beautiful Hammer releases
When you think of Hammer Horror there’s a usual train of thought. Britishness, gothica, gore and sex. You’ll have seen the classics with Cushing, Lee, Reed and Munro. The British takes on the classic cinematic Universal monsters were rougher and edgier. You know the rest and if you don’t, go and watch Curse of the Werewolf, Dracula and The Hound of the Baskervilles immediately.
Recently though, you might also have argued it was a home of horror that had faded into one of its grand, gothic, cobwebbed houses. Struggling to keep up with the times, Hammers physical output has historically been pretty poor, from my experience, aside from the Ultimate Collection.
Following John Gores takeover of the brand in August 2023, including its entire back catalogue, a slowly slowly business approach has started to kick into gear. We’ve been treated to some truly stunning, boutique style Collectors & Limited editions of the Hammer classics. I’ve picked up The Men of Sherwood Forest, Cry of the Banshee and The Horror of Frankenstein. They’ve all been fantastic watches but the care and detail that has gone into the special features, booklets and restorations have been stand out.
If you’ve ever visited VHiStory before, you’ll know that I always find joy in the weird and wonderful. I love getting stuck into the films that usually don’t get the love they should from the masses. It’s not an attempt to be edgy or cool, it comes from a place of trying to experience as much as possible. I don’t rewatch films that often and I love picking up random VHS/DVDs/Blu-Rays that I’ve never heard of before. It makes it even more exciting!
That brings us to two of Hammer’s newest releases. Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb and Demons of the Mind. Now I would argue the vast majority of horror fans haven’t come across these two deep cuts before. I certainly hadn’t. From 1971 and 1972 respectively, these are two films that came towards the end of Hammers golden era and probably haven’t had their flowers from a wider audience yet. These two 4K releases though will hopefully change that.
I’d intended to do this blog as a review of both the films but honestly, you should go and check them out for yourselves! As a brief synopsis though…
Demons of the Mind is a film that really needs to be seen to be believed. The tale of a wealthy widower who has locked his offspring up, in the hopes of preventing them going mad, whilst potentially harbouring a dark secret of his own. It was totally different to the film I was expecting, touching on some incredibly taboo subjects and dark subject matter. A heady mix of psychological horror and pre slasher boom mystery sprinkled with a smattering of folk horror. An atmospheric and visually striking film, a slow burn film that really sparked into life in the final 20 minutes. If you like creepy and unsettling 70s horror, this is an absolute must. I’d also recommend going in without knowing a thing.
Blood From the Mummy’s Tomb is a much more typical Hammer style film. Based on Bram Strokers “Jewel of the Seven Stars”, we’re treated to an archaeological horror trip to Egypt via 1960s London. Starring the truly stunning Valerie Leon in a duel role as Margaret Fuchs, daughter of expeditionary Julian Fuchs, and Queen Tera. It’s a hammy, shlocky affair but it’s really fun and considering it’s incredibly troubled production it’s impressive it was even made. We’re treated to crawling severed hands, fog related gore and some generally classic comfort horror. Whilst you can probably guess the main plot line beats, the journey is fun and well worth the watch.
I think both the films were elevated by watching their special features afterwards. Comprehensive interviews with cast, experts as well as making of’s, add another layer to the stories behind the camera that brought these two films to life. I particularly enjoyed hearing Kim Newman’s thoughts as well as present day Valerie Leon’s thoughts on the film.
The love and care that has gone into these restorations from Hammer is truly exceptional and I really hope it can encourage other production companies and film labels to revisit the more niche films in their collections and give them this treatment.
Blood From the Mummy’s Tomb and Demons of the Mind are both available from the Hammer store on 4K Blu-Ray. https://hammerfilms.com/
