The Film
Napoleonic Era soldier Lieutenant Andre Duvalier (Jack Nicholson) gets separated from his unit in a non-disclosed distant land, where he finds himself in the middle of a battle between Baron Victor Frederick Von Leppe (Boris Karloff) and a witch out for vengeance - the reasons of which (no pun intended) are never fully made clear.
When Duvalier is taken with the Baron's late wife, who has been brought back to life to haunt the Baron, the terror in The Terror begins. While this may sounds like an interesting premise for a psychological thriller, the execution lacks follow through - this is a Roger Corman film after all. Sets are reused from other films, effects aren't all that special and acting is flat, while the characters have little depth, all of which makes it difficult to enjoy the mystery.
But even in this early Nicholson film the actor is already developing his characteristic expression and delivery. Maybe One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and The Shining wouldn't have been possible had Jack not done this Corman film. Oh the horror!
The Picture
When I first read about the film, a ghost story, I thought it would take place mostly at night with ghostly sightings of a beautiful woman. It's just the opposite. Much of the film takes place during the day in some unknown (possibly German?) state. Daylight is turned up a little too high in some shots in this 1.66:1 transfer, washing out the crispness Blu-ray would normally deliver. On the flip side, colors can be a bit oversaturated with the reds in the Lieutenant's Napoleonic uniform appearing quite bright, and skin tones make some of the actors look like they've spent some time on the set's beach, even the ghosts - California doubling as an undisclosed Eastern European setting will have that effect.
The Terror marks HD Cinema Classic's/Film Chest's entry into color presentation of a film on Blu-ray. The before and after restoration demo in the extras shows how they cleaned up the film for Blu-ray -- apparently they did significant work here. However, more work would be required to the film itself to make it truly worthy of a Blu-ray release.
The Sound
Sound can be summed up in one word, flat. You know you're in trouble when the Blu-ray menu offers sound setting options that include Dolby Digital 5.1 and standard 2.0. You don't need Blu-ray for that. The 2-channel track is muddled at best, practically devoid of low end. The 5.1-channel surround track lacks the fullness you'd expect on a Blu-ray Disc. The score, composed by Ronald Stein, is shrill and more accentuated than necessary, overpowering the dialog and even some sound effects.
Within the first five minutes of viewing the movie I felt I needed earplugs. After turning the volume down I struggled to discern dialog while still hearing the violin-heavy score ringing too loudly in my ears. The film's age (released in theaters in 1963), is certainly partially to blame, but attempts to bring it up to date are barely worth the effort. The result is a sonic presentation that is wildly unbalanced and at times painful to listen to in either format.
The Extras
The movie trailer and Before & After Restoration Demo are about all you're going to get with this one. The restoration demo makes you appreciate the work done to clean up the film, though it makes you want more. HD Cinema Classics misses a few opportunities with The Terror. It's said that Roger Corman was thrifty when filming The Terror, and used leftover film sets from other productions for his shots. It would be interesting to see what sets were used, and from which movies. But spending more time and effort (and money) on the extras than on the film itself may not have been worthwhile.
Final Thoughts
Purely as a "classic" -- and I use the word loosely -- the movie is a worthy view, especially as an example of early Nicholson, late Karloff and middle Corman. Its age shows from the first shots of Nicholson on his horse drowsily crossing the beach to the film's climax where characters race to save the Baron from his watery fate. If you're not into films of that era, you're not going to be into The Terror. But if a film buff, or just looking for a little blast from the past, The Terror on Blu-ray will provide an interesting diversion.
Product Details
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