Customer Reviews

The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I am delighted to see the universal intolerance voiced here with SD's little DVD of one of the most important of the 1970's Italian Sex & Horror Show movies. THE NIGHT EVELYN CAME OUT OF THE GRAVE is a total classic, with a showcase appearance by Erika "LEGS" Blanc as a stripper involved with a plot to drive a wealthy young duke out of his skull. Classy, filled with great colorful sets, "cool" music and a fabulous modernist look, this is a Giallo that really isn't a Giallo at all & sort of mocks that specific sub-sect of Italian horror by having the killer wearing yellow gardening gloves [Giallo is Italian for "yellow"] instead of the usual sexy black variety.

With that said, you'll be better served buying one of the cheapo fullframe releases from Alpha Video or on one of the Brentwood Home Video box sets TALES FROM THE BONEYARD and FRIGHT NIGHT: This is a reburn of Sinister Cinema's DVD-R release, which suspiciously found it's way into the market about 6 - 10 weeks before this release and wasn't even transferred at the proper aspect ratio by SD, which is why the picture looks "squished" -- all of Sinister's widescreen releases are optimized for 16:9 screens with the flick of a switch, but sadly nobody told SD's technicians this before they ripped off the transfer.

So whatever: If you want a codefree reburn of Sinister's work that appears to have been engineered by circus chimps who had acess to DVI technology, here you go. Just be forewarned that it will look awful, you'll want your money back, and then you can come here & share your pain with us. We feel for you, and want to try and help.

It indicates on the DVD's case that this film has been digitally transferred. One would then expect that the film would present a crystal-clear image with vibrant colors. Well, expect again - this DVD is a piece of crap!

The colors are washed-out, the images are fuzzy, and the aspect ratio is all wrong! Automobiles look like they are three feet long and six feet tall! The gorgeous Erika Blanc is made to look as though she is twelve feet tall and suffering from terminal anorexia nervosa. The DVD is watchable with effort, but keep aspirin nearby in case you get a headache from focusing on the distorted images.

If you get a chance to see a good print of the famous Italian mystery from the 1970s, please do so - you will enjoy it. However, leave this edition alone!

I was eagerly awaiting this film on DVD as I'm a big fan of Eurocult films and the stunning Erika Blanc. However, I was very disappointed with Eclectic DVD's treatment of its presentation.

The back of the box says it is "letterboxed" and presented in a "gorgeous digitial transfer" - both accounts are misleading. The original 2.35:1 Techniscope image is not represented correctly as the image appears 'stretched' and 'squeezed' with a fair amount of information lost on both sides. For example, the opening titles do not even fit the screen.

There is also an irritating 'grey/green' bar on the top of the screen which is persistent throughout the film. The print is very worn and scratched and seems to be from the same source used by Sinister Cinema for their VHS release many years ago.

There are no extras whatsover.

On the positive side, it does appear to be an uncut print.

I have another two titles from Eclectic - "Vampires Night Orgy" and "Eerie Midnight Horror Show" and would not recommend these titles either. If Eclectic want to satisfy us fans, they better lift their game. I would prefer to pay a bit extra for a DVD that a company has invested the time and care in releasing these gems in a transfer befitting the DVD format.

This tape was made from a TELEVISION release of the film. For that reason all of the nudity and much of the story have been cut. This is a FUN movie when it is all in one piece. Let's hope somebody releases a full version one of these days!

What a horrid DVD (and I never ever complain)...And I LOVE this film!!

I think they got this print from my old beat up copy that I taped in the 70's on my beta machine from a pirated cable channel and only recently found crushed in the bottom of my basement...and I didn't even receive any royalties for providing it!!

Come on, guys, you should be embarressed!! I am for having purchased this crappy copy... I know you are gonna make a few bucks on the handful of fools that buys this DVD, but you'll have a short lived career in the DVD-producing business.

Do I need to continue?

There is no reason whatsoever that this fun, campy and atmospheric horror movie should have ever been released on such a substandard, laughably bad print. Bleeding colors, blurry images, extreme fades in the audio along with crackles and hiss.

Thankfully the newly released Emilio Miraglio Killer Queen box set by No Shame not only has a cleaned up and remastered version of Evelyn but also the even better, gorier and more thrilling "The Red Queen Kills 7 Times", also remastered with highly improved audio/video. It also has interviews with cast and crew, 20 page booklet, lobby postcards, and a sculpted figure. All for $30.

Thank you No Shame for showing these [...] companies how it should be done. Twelve dollars for that tattered piece of [...]that looks like it was copied straight off a warped Betamax tape? Sinema Diablo, you deserve to be out of business.

If I could give this copy a zero I would, as someone else said. The Alpha version I have is certainly not letterboxed and is a muddy wash. I seriously fear I will go blind if I watch this film -- it gives me a headache just to watch a tiny bit. No point in reviewing the film when you can't see it! Also I suspect Alpha video masquerades under several "imprint" or "distributor" names. I am thoroughly disgusted with them since 5 out of 6 films I got from them are similary horrid transfers. Boo hiss!

i was sooo looking forward to purchasing this title as it is one of my faves,but be WARNED-one of the worst "transfers" i have ever sat thru!uneven colors,improper framing,grain on top of more grain,you get the picture...i would suggest waiting for a (hopefully)better release,or buy it used.you have been warned...

The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave is a fairly standard Euro cult movie. Not quite a giallo but has the same style as one. The story opens with the main character, a wealthy aristocrat from a priveralged background, escaping a mental asylum then later picking up red haired woman before taking them home to his mansion/castle then whipping and finally murdering them. These scenes of course have the required nudity and have a cool if not well placed soundtrack (I am certain that one of the songs is the main theme to another film, Eugenie De Sade). We learn of course that the mans actions stem from the lost love of a woman with red hair.

After he marries a woman he meets at a party, a super natural element comes into the film as he is haughnted by the ghost of his lost love, on top oif that his new bride may be up have a sinister scheme. I won't give the story away but by the end there are many twists and turns.

While not the high art of films such as Deep Red this is still a fun Euro cult film, if you're not already a fan of these types of films you might want to remove a star from my rating however.

When Lord Alan Cunningham's wife dies he takes to luring beautiful women who resemble her to his castle and gruesomely murdering them. It's the only thing that helps him feel sane! Ah but then he meets Gladys and his life changes. Now he really IS sane. At least until he starts to think his dead wife has come back from the dead!