The Films:

Dr. Georges Bonnet has figured out a way to live forever. All he needs are the glands of some very unwilling donors! Anton Diffring stars as the mad doctor in this chilling Hammer Horror classic. As he struggles against the inevitable icy grip of death, the doctor begins a descent into madness that threatens to destroy the laws of nature and the lives of those he lusts after. It's up to horror legend Christopher Lee to stop his unholy quest before it takes a final deadly turn!

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

Legend Films (notable for their colorization of films-to-DVD like The House on Haunted Hill, The Most Dangerous Game, Corman's The Little Shop of Horrors and even Pasolini's The Gosepl According to St. Matthew) have a new digital gimmick - dual-release bare-bones packages on Blu-ray. We have this U.K. Horror pairing (The Man Who Could Cheat Death / The Skull!) plus they have done Houdini + Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies and not yet reviewed; Student Bodies +Jekyll & Hyde Together Again.  I still think it's a pretty good idea since it is doubtful that many of these films would ever see the HD light of day via Paramount. So, again, this is 2 separate single-layered discs (maybe cheaper that way?) and both seem adeptly transferred with bitrates far in excess of SD.  They are both 1080P and The Man Who Could Cheat Death at 1.66: 1 aspect ratio tends to look weaker but still very watchable with some bright colors. I think it is the more entertaining film. The Skulls is tighter with better detail and some subtle instances of depth. Contrast on both is elevated thank to the HD transfer. There are a few speckles in The Man Who Could Cheat Death but nothing untoward and any weaknesses are the fault of the source as no restoration has been implemented for either film. These Blu-rays both gave me a decent and pleasurable viewing experience - and predictably, not in the league of most modern HD transfer appearances but in definite advance of SD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'd still like to have uncompressed audio but we get the standard Dolby on both and there are some inconsistencies. Legend are certainly not taking advantage of one of the format's greatest strengths. Perhaps, again, though this is a factor of cost. There are no subtitles offered and my Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

Extras :

 

BOTTOM LINE:
The Man Who Could Cheat Death is classic Hammer Studios - meaning wonderful! Penned by writer Barré Lyndon - based on his own play "The Man in Half Moon Street". He was also notable for screenplays for The War of the Worlds, The Lodger, Hangover Square and the noirish The House on 92nd Street and Man in the Attic.  I slipped easily into the Hammer mood and had a fabulous viewing. I decoded to pull out, my favorite, the Hammer Horror Series DVD set and am watching it as I write this. I believe this is the third Hammer entry to reach 1080P - along with Paranoiac and Vampire Circus.

The Skull is from Amicus - the next best thing to Hammer but often leaning to the anthologies. It is helmed by Freddie Francis - director of Girly and notable cinematographer of "The Innocents" and "The Elephant Man".

Obviously this isn't the height of the format - but we get two films on Blu-ray for a very reasonable price. I endorse. I'm going to check out more and hope Legend Films continues with this trend especially more Hammer films to 1080P. I'm fairly sure we aren't likely to see either The Man Who Could Cheat Death or The Skull looking any better than this... and at this price it's an easy purchase.