The Lash of the Penitentes Blu-ray

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

Directed by Roland Price, Harry Revier
USA 1936

Exploitation films were often ripped from the most sensational headlines of the day, and few headlines were as scandalous as those reporting a murder within the community of a masochistic religious cult in northern New Mexico. Los Hermanos Penitentes celebrated Lent by enacting elaborate tableaus of flagellation, self-mutilation, and crucifixion. Envisioning the box-office potential of such a spectacle, cinematographer Roland Price (Marihuana: Weed With Roots in Hell) shot several reels of footage of the rituals, then teamed with producer Harry Revier (Child Bride) to fashion a murder mystery around the documentary material. For years, The Lash of the Penitentes flourished on the exploitation circuit, sometimes with new footage cut into the feature (and most notoriously: the trailer). Usually circulated in an abbreviated 35-minute version, this Kino Classics edition was restored from film elements preserved by the Library of Congress, and represents the uncensored 48-minute cut: The Penitente Murder Case.

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Actual footage of Penitentes - a sect of Catholic religious fanatics who engage in self-flagellation - is combined with new footage about a murder.

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Theatrical Release: April 13th, 1936

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Review: Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime	The Penitente Murder Case: 0:47:56.248 The Lash of the Penitentes: 0:35:28.707
Video	1.33:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 21,903,315,409 bytes The Penitente Murder Case: 11,314,429,632 bytes The Lash of the Penitentes: 8,305,124,928 bytes Video Bitrate: 27.96/28.06 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate The Penitente Murder Case Blu-ray:
Bitrate The Lash of the Penitentes Blu-ray:
Audio	LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit Commentary: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps
Subtitles	English (SDH), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Kino 1.33:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 21,903,315,409 bytes The Penitente Murder Case: 11,314,429,632 bytes The Lash of the Penitentes: 8,305,124,928 bytes Video Bitrate: 27.96/28.06 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • The Penitente Murder Case (the complete, uncensored, 48-minute cut) • The Lash of the Penitentes (the censored and condensed 35-minute version) (35:28) • Audio commentary by series curator Bret Wood on The Penitente Murder Case • The Lash of the Penitentes Trailer (2:27) Blu-ray Release Date: April 6th, 2021 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 7

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Kino Blu-ray (March 2021): Kino have transferred The Penitente Murder Case and the censored and condensed version The Lash of the Penitentes to a single-layered Blu-ray. This is 'Volume 9' of Kino's 'Forbidden Fruit' series put to Blu-ray that includes the recent Ingagi which we have already reviewed HERE as well as covering Volume One Mom and Dad, (STDs, birth control), Unashamed / Elysia (nudity, nudist camps), Volume 4 - Marihuana and/ Narcotic (also drugs) and Tomorrow's Children / Child Bride (eugenics / child marriage - Volume 5) and Volume 6 1949's She Should Have Said No and The Devil's Sleep. The footage is uneven in quality ranging from quite impressive (notably in the beginning) to slightly marked and damaged stock footage of the location. Overall watchable and generally a notch above the rest of the series. The inconsistencies are both understandable and expected considering the history of the film(s). To my eye The Lash of the Penitentes doesn't look quite as good - maybe even a more degraded source. The 1080P resolution exemplifies the grain, detail and the occasional marks.

On their Blu-ray, Kino use a linear PCM dual-mono track (16-bit) in the original English and Spanish languages. It reflective of the time of production - fairly agreeable but hollow by more modern comparisons - and relates directly to the quality of the Library of Congress source. There is a score Lee Zahler (who was uncredited for a mass of 30's and 40's genre films including Terrors on Horseback, Thunder Town, Jeep-Herders, The White Gorilla, The Monster and the Ape, The Panther's Claw etc. etc.) - it has a 'stock' feel but adds to the kitschy experience, in its own way. Kino offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Kino Blu-ray offers a detailed commentary on the, longer version, The Penitente Murder Case, by Bret Wood, co-author of Forbidden Fruit: The Golden Age of the Exploitation Film, who also curated and produced this series of films for Kino Lorber. He talks about how it became Lash of the Penitentes and he points out the difference between the two version, the 'cult' itself rejected by the Catholic church and more fascinating information about how, as well as why, this was ever made, the censorships sequences, Marie DeForrest lost footage, directors Roland Price and Harry Revier, producer Harry Revier and much more. There is trailer and a trailer gallery with other three films from the 'Forbidden Fruit' series.

The 'Forbidden Fruit' films on Kino Blu-ray are at their own 'unusual' exploitation level and most suitable to curious film fans, history students or the adventurous cinema viewer. The Penitente Murder Case and the censored and condensed version The Lash of the Penitentes are totally weird... and wonderful if you approach them the right way. Mysterious, forbidden, bizarre and the grandfather of, often fearless, opportunistic exploitation. This is another doozy and we endorse to the right crowd.