THE UNNAMABLE (1988) Blu-ray
Director: Jean-Paul Ouellette
Unearthed Films/MVD Visual

Unearthed Films' line brings H.P. Lovecraft's THE UNNAMABLE into higher definition with their "Unearthed Classics" Blu-ray.

For over two centuries, the Winthrop house has remained sealed from the light of day since the night Joshua Winthrop (Delbert Spain) had his heart ripped out by something he kept locked in the attic. When science major Joel Manton (Mark Parra, THIN ICE) scoffs at his rigorously researched account of a subsequent incident in which a man was scared out of his wits by the sight of an unnamable creature whose image left an impression in the attic window glass, eccentric Miskatonic University folklore student Randolph Carter (Mark Kinsey Stephenson, SERVANTS OF TWILIGHT) dares him to spend the night in the old house. When Joel does not show up for classes the next day, freshman Howard Damon (Charles Klausmeyer, CAN IT BE LOVE) becomes worried and convinces Carter to investigate. Unbeknownst to them, Howard's unrequited crush Wendy (Laura Albert, DR. ALIEN) and her exchange student friend Tanya (Alexandra Durrell) have been enticed by frat boys John (Blane Wheatley, THE LOOKING GLASS) and Bruce (Eben Ham, THE RUNESTONE) to explore the Winthrop house in preparation for pledge week hazing. When the four are attacked by a monstrous creature, Howard attempts to find Joel and rescue Wendy while Carter comes across Winthrop's copy of the Necronomicon and discovers the nature of THE UNNAMABLE.

Coming up after Stuart Gordon's Empire Pictures duo RE-ANIMATOR and FROM BEYOND, and the uncredited "The Colour Out of Space" adaptation THE CURSE, but predating the nineties mini-boom of direct-to-video H.P. Lovecraft adapations – among them Full Moon's THE LURKING FEAR and CASTLE FREAK, the anthology NECRONOMICON: BOOK OF THE DEAD, Dan O'Bannon's THE RESURRECTED, and the Canadian HEMOGLOBIN/BREEDERS – THE UNNAMABLE feels like a body count film under the guise of a Lovecraft adaptation but it proves to be quite ambitious on a low budget with attempts to evoke the eldritch through set design and its visualization of the titular menace while also balancing out the grimmer aspects of the film with some humor by way of Carter's equal obliviousness to flirtation and sheer terror. There certainly is a slasher component to the film, although it subverts some expectations about who survives, and remains a charming remnant of the era of direct-to-video horror discoveries.

Released direct-to-video by Vidmark on VHS and laserdisc by Image Entertainment in uncut, unrated form, THE UNNAMABLE was absent on home video during the period in which LionsGate had the rights (although they briefly streamed the old tape master) even though they had issued the sequel on disc. Anchor Bay's UK arm released both films in a double-disc set with extras for the sequel including commentary by Ouellette, a featurette, and PDF screenplay, but the transfers were not remastered despite the inclusion of 5.1 Dolby Digital and DTS upmixes. Restored from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, Unearthed Films' inaugural "Unearthed Classics" line release features a 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 widescreen transfer that manages to scrub off the home video haze for better or worse. The enhanced detail makes obvious the miniatures used in the opening credits along with the artiface of the front façade of the Winthrop house which were once too murky to assess. The sound stage interiors also manage to look clean in spite of the ripped wallpaper and dust while the blue moonlight is apparent as the blue lighting gels they always were. On the other hand, severed body parts, prosthetic wounds, and the creature make-up hold up well. In spite of the exposed artiface, the film now impresses with the work put into the look, effort abandoned more or less in subsequent Lovecraft adaptations until the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society attempted its own more recent adaptations expressionistic adaptations. The original mono mix is provided in two options: a clean-sounding LPCM 2.0 track boasting clear dialogue, music, and effects as well as a "Grindhouse" option in LPCM 2.0 in which the hiss and some faint crackle has not been digitally cleaned up. A DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround option is more problematic. Sourced from the UK DVD release's upmixed track, something went amiss with the conversion of the PAL speed audio to 24fps of an already somewhat hollow upmix, causing individual channels to drift out of sync with an echo becoming more apparent as the film progresses while the center channel maintained sync. There are no SDH subtitle options.

Extras start off with a lively audio commentary by cast members Klausmeyer, Stephenson, Albert and Ham, along with special makeup effects artist R. Christopher Biggs (SCALPS) and effects artist Camille Calvet (EVE OF DESTRUCTION). We learn that UCLA stood in for Miskatonic University and that the Winthrop house exterior façade was erected in Malibu Canyon not far from the still-standing sets from the TV show M*A*S*H, that the Necronomicon prop was reused in ARMY OF DARKNESS (on which Calvet also worked), and the actor who was initially cast as Carter was Colin Cox who is seen here in the prologue as the Parson. They do speak affectionately about director Jean-Paul Ouellette but nothing on the disc indicates why he was not involved in the extras. It is an entertaining track to listen along with the film but some information gets talked over and some anecdotes left unfinished but the disc also includes a series of video interviews conducted by Horror Happens Radio's Jay Kay. The first is with actors Klausmeyer and Stephenson (78:53) who discuss their stage training and how hit helped in working on a low budget film on a tight schedule, their lack of familiarity with Lovecraft until they were both cast in the sequel THE UNNAMABLE II: THE STATEMENT OF RANDOLPH CARTER, the film's subsequent cult status, and their experiences with fans and conventions. In his interview (30:53), actor Ham is also asked the same questions, revealing that he was unfamiliar with Lovecraft but his East Coast family and friends were excited when they learned he would be in a Lovecraft adaptation, and that Ouellette auditioned him and Wheatley together. In her interview, actress Albert (46:16) reveals that she did read up on Lovecraft and was already a horror fan, and interviewer Kay points out some more understated humor in the film including a bit involving Albert and a severed head. In his interview (33:36), actor/martial artist Parra recalls working with Klausmeyer and Stephenson as well as getting his head cast by Calvet.

Special makeup effects artist Biggs and make-up artist Calvet share an interview (60:03) in which Calvet discusses being one of the few women in make-up effects in the eighties – also noting that they hired other women to work on THE UNNAMABLE because actress Katrin Alexandre's creature make-up was not a suit but make-up and prosthetics on her naked body – that she started working under Biggs during pickup shoots for CRITTERS, and THE UNNAMABLE came up for them just as the writer's strike hit in Hollywood. In discussing the creature design, they note that their backstory concept for the make-up would end up anticipating the plot turn of the sequel. While the interviews are informative, they are plagued by digital audio artifacts that seem to have been part of the original recording or some aggressive digital cleanup. Also included is a photo gallery of thirty behind the scenes images, and trailers for FLOWERS, FRANCESCA, MECANIX, future Unearthed Classics title NIGHTWISH, along with SONG OF SOLOMON and WHEN BLACK BIRDS FLY. The disc comes with a slipcover feature new artwork while the more familiar home video artwork is on the actual disc cover insert. (Eric Cotenas)

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