Messiah of Evil Blu-ray - Marianna Hill

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

(aka "Messiah of Evil: The Second Coming" or "Dead People" or "Revenge of the Screaming Dead"

or "The Second Coming" or "Return of the Living Dead" )

Directed by Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz
USA 1973

Arletty (Marianna Hill, THE GODFATHER II) travels to dying coastal village Point Dune looking for her artist father but finds that he has disappeared. When she makes inquiries at a gallery, she learns that two women and a man have also been asking about him. She meats the beatnik trio (Michael Greer, Anitra Ford, and Joy Bang) as they are interviewing a tramp (Elisha Cook, Jr.) relating the grisly legend of Point Dune foretelling the return of "The Stranger" when the moon turns blood red. Thrown out of their motel, the trio shack up with Arletty at her father's seaside house and form a foursome of sexual tension. As they delve into Arletty's father's disappearance, the townspeoples' eyes have started bleeding and they've developed a taste for raw meat. Although it has its share of gore and zombie action, MESSIAH OF EVIL is an underrated horror film with a laid-back 70's semi-arthouse atmosphere. Huyck and Katz cite Antonioni's L'AVVENTURA as an influence which is believable as they claim not to have seen horror films similar to MESSIAH like CARNIVAL OF SOULS, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH but cite shot references to PIERROT LE FOU and the heroine being named after a character from Pagnol's CHILDREN OF PARADISE. The film's horror themes draw less from horror films than from literature, specifically Lovecraft with references to "the old gods." Although not well-received by critics at the time of its release (first as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD for which it was served with a lawsuit and the title changed to DEAD PEOPLE and then MESSIAH OF EVIL - the title seen in the L.A. montage of Woody Allen's ANNIE HALL) - with the exception of Sight and Sound critic Robin Wood - MESSIAH OF EVIL has achieved a cult following through pan-and-scan video prints and more recent repertory screenings in scope. Fans of off-beat horror and arthouse pretense will enjoy this admirable little sleeper.

Eric Cotenas

***

After receiving a series of chilling letters from her reclusive father, Arletty (Mariana Hill, High Plains Drifter) drives to the remote seaside town of Pointe Dune to discover the reason for her father's developing madness. Upon her arrival, she encounters a mysterious trio of strangers investigating a local legend known as "The Blood Moon"... a curse that has transformed the inhabitants of the town into a terrifying horde of blood-thirsty maniacs! Also starring Michael Greer (Fortune and Men's Eyes), cult starlets Joy Bang and Anitra Ford, and screen legends Royal Dano and Elisha Cook, Jr., Messiah Of Evil is a unique shocker from the minds of Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz (Oscar-nominated screenwriters of American Graffiti). A visual masterpiece finally brought to home video in its original scope aspect ratio, Messiah Of Evil is unlike any horror film you've ever seen. Enter Pointe Dune and prepare to be spellbound...

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 2nd, 1973

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Comparison:

Code Red - Region FREE - NTSC vs. Code Red - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Thanks to Eric Cotenas for the DVD Screen captures!

Box Cover		Coming to Blu-ray from Radiance Films in September 2023: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Code Red Region 0 - NTSC	Code Red - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:29:42	1:29:49.384
Video	2.34:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 7.36 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	2.35:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 23,525,888,807 bytes Feature: 17,444,143,104 bytes Video Bitrate: 21.00 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 (Dolby Digital 2.0 mono)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1706 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1706 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentary: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1706 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1706 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	None	None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Code Red Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 2.34:1 Edition Details: • Audio commentary by Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz, moderated by Lee Christian • REMEMBERING MESSIAH OF EVIL documentary by Lee Christian (4:3; 21:41) • Audio interview with actress Joy Bang (8:52) • THE BRIDE STRIPPED BARE short film (16:9; 7:38) • DOWN THESE MEAN STREETS short film (4:3; 13:52) • THE STATUE trailer (16:9; 2:27) • BRUTE CORPS TV spot (16:9; 0:33) • CHOKE CANYON trailer (16:9; 2:01) • NIGHT OF THE DRIBBLER trailer (4:3; 2:24) • RITUALS trailer (16:9; 1:58) • STUNT ROCK trailer (16:9; 2:25) • FAMILY HONOR TV spot (16:9; 0:31) DVD Release Date: October 27th, 2009 Amaray Chapters 18	Release Information: Studio: Code Red 2.35:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 23,525,888,807 bytes Feature: 17,444,143,104 bytes Video Bitrate: 21.00 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Commentary by Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz • Remembering Messiah of Evil (21: 41) • Short Films of Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz (21:31) Blu-ray Release Date: November 2014 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 9

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Code Red Blu-ray (January 2021): Code Red have transferred Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz's Messiah of Evil to Blu-ray. So much about this particular film that I love. The 1080P image perks up the colors, detail, contrast - pretty much every visual area improves. The DVD has elongated the image (thinner faces) and is no contest for the Blu-ray in terms of film presentation. Juts like the DVD there are a few frame-specific and visible cue-blips reel-chnage markers (see below.)

NOTE: We have added 80 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Code Red use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. It is another advancement in the film's audio and score featuring the electronic music of Phillan Bishop (The Severed Arm, Kiss of the Tarantula). Like their DVD, Code Red offer no subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Code Red Blu-ray offers the same commentary found on the 2009 DVD with Director Willard Huyck and co-writer Gloria Katz (see Eric's comments below.) Also included is the 22-m,inute documentary with input from director Huyck, co-writer Gloria Katz, editors Morgan Fischer and Billy Weber, mural painter Joan Mocine, and cinematographer Stephan Katz plus the two short films; The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Suitors and Down These Mean Streets. Together they run 22-minutes. So no 'new' supplements but the commentary, documentary and shorts add value to the Blu-ray package.

I love Messiah of Evil - before the film even gets off the ground, we get a young Walter Hill (director of Hard Times, The Driver, Streets of Fire etc.) running for his life and killed - then the title appears. Let's look at the hottie gals involved; Marianna Hill (Medium Cool), Joy Bang (Night of the Cobra Woman), and Anitra Ford (Invasion of the Bee Girls) plus two of the classic era guys; Royal Dano (Moby Dick) and Elisha Cook Jr. (The Maltese Falcon, The Killing, Don't Bother to Knock etc. etc.) It's a Zombie-ish Arthouse film and the grocery store sequence is worth the price alone (well, if you can find it.) The Code Red Blu-ray is a treasure - great to visit every couple of years. Early 70's horror GOLD. Get it - if you still can.

Gary Tooze

ON THE DVD (2009): After years of bad pan-scan videos and a compromised 1.85:1 Greek-sourced version, MESSIAH OF EVIL is finally available in its correct Techniscope (2.35:1) aspect ratio and is hellishly beautiful. Anamorphic, progressive, and dual-layer, the transfer retains natural grain and sometimes-intense colors. Seen in widescreen, the compositions are consistently interesting (particularly when live characters are posed against the mural backgrounds of the studio).

Sadly, Code Red did not include as a bonus the theatrical opening and closing sequences where are the same as here but scored with the Raun McKinnon song "Hold On To Love" (added by the producer). Audio has a little hiss but the dialogue and music is always clear. Director Willard Huyck and co-writer Gloria Katz (who collaborated on AMERICAN GRIFFITI) provide an entertaining commentary - moderated by Code Red regular Lee Christian - which conveys both their enthusiasm for the low budget project as well as their disappointment about its obscurity. The documentary features input from director Huyck, co-writer Gloria Katz, editors Morgan Fischer and Billy Weber, mural painter Joan Mocine, and cinematographer Stephan Katz. Actress Joy Bang provides a telephone interview (the audio has been cleaned up but is still poor given the source). Two short films by Huyck and Katz and the usual bunch of Code Red trailers round out the extras. A very satisfying release.

- Eric Cotenas

Menus / Extras

Code Red - Region FREE - NTSC

Code Red - Region FREE - Blu-ray