The Devil-Ship Pirates Blu-ray

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

Directed by Don Sharp
UK 1964

An action-packed adventure drama set in the summer of 1588, The Devil-Ship Pirates stars Christopher Lee in a memorable turn as the evil captain of a Spanish privateer intent on mayhem and murder! Stylishly directed by Don Sharp – and one of several swashbucklers made by Hammer in the 1960s – it is featured here as a High Definition restoration from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.

While the British fleet is engaged in a desperate battle with the Armada, a Spanish vessel, the Diablo, puts in at a lonely inlet on the Cornish coast for emergency repairs. Finding a nearby village, the Spaniards terrorize the local population and take village girls as hostages.

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A pirate ship, fighting in 1588 on the side of the Spanish Armada, suffers damage and must put into a village on the British coast for repairs. The village is small and isolated and the Spanish convince the villagers that the English fleet has been defeated and that they, the Spanish, are now their masters. This results in the villagers' sullen cooperation, but rumors and unrest begin to spread and soon the Spanish pirates find themselves facing a revolt.

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 21st, 1964

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Comparison:

Sony - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Network - Region 'B' - Blu-ray

Box Cover
		Bonus Captures:
Runtime	1:26:19	1:26:37.108
Video	2.35:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.54 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	2.35:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 33,369,547,513 bytes Feature: 18,163,445,760 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.92 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate DVD:
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	English (original) , DUB: French	LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit
Subtitles	English (CC), French, None	English (SDH), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Sony Aspect Ratio: All Original Aspect Ratios - 1.66, 2.35 Edition Details: • Commentaries on all 4 films • Cartoon - The Merry Mutineers • Chapter One of 1953 serial - the Great Adventures of Captain Kidd • Two Reel Comedy - Hot Paprika • trailers DVD Release Date: June 10th, 2008 Keep case Chapters: 12	Release Information: Studio: Network 2.35:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 33,369,547,513 bytes Feature: 18,163,445,760 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.92 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • The Unlevel-Ship Pirates: A brand-new featurette on the making of this classic Hammer swashbuckler (21:21) • Hammer Time (17:12) • Boys Own Adventure (24:04) • Brand-new interviews with actors Annette Whiteley and Michael Newport • Theatrical trailers (UK - 2:41 - US - 2:52) • Extensive image gallery • Limited edition booklet written by Neil Sinyard Blu-ray Release Date: May 31st, 2021 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 12

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Network Blu-ray (July 2021): Network have transferred Don Sharp's 1964 Hammer Studio feature The Devil-Ship Pirates to Blu-ray. It is a notable step-up from the 2008 Sony DVD. Now all 4 films from the US Icons of Adventure DVD Set are now on Blu-ray; The Stranglers of Bombay (1960), The Terror of the Tongs (1961), The Pirates of Blood River (1962) and, this, The Devil-Ship Pirates (1964.) The higher resolution here improves the detail, it is brighter, colors are richer and deeper plus the contrast is significantly more layered showing a far superior presentation. Network's new 1080P has some pleasing gloss and the visuals are tighter and cleaner with consistent grain.

NOTE: We have added 50 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Network use a linear PCM dual-mono track (16-bit) in the original English language. The Devil-Ship Pirates has quite a few aggressive sequences of fighting, plenty of swordsmanship, rifles etc. that come with a modicum of depth plus a swashbuckling score by Gary Hughes (The Pirates of Blood River), supporting the action via in the uncompressed transfer. Network offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'B' Blu-ray.

The Network Blu-ray unfortunately doesn't carry over the commentary on the Sony DVD, but has a few viable supplements including a new 'making of'- participants include assistant director Hugh Harlow, actor Annette Whiteley, and Pauline Harlow. There are featurettes; Hammer Time and Boys Own Adventure running almost 40-minutes in total. Plus there are brand new interviews with actors Annette Whiteley and Michael Newport, an extensive image gallery, trailers from both sides of the pond, and the package has liner notes with an essay written by Neil Sinyard.

Don Sharp's The Devil-Ship Pirates is a rare Hammer foray in the swashbuckling genre. It has Christopher Lee as the bad-ass Bligh-like, ruthless, villainess Captain. There is a host of solid Hammer support players, charismatic sets and period costumes and a rip-roaring adventure saga with stalwart villagers defending their turf. What's not to love? The Network Blu-ray breathes new life into the SD a/v with over an hour's worth of supplementary material. Hammer enthusiasts are encouraged to indulge.