Here from Film Masters is a double-bill of two stateside versions of Euro horror films featuring Klaus Kinski. There’s Creature With The Blue Hand- a late 60’s horror focused Krimi. And Web Of The Spider, an early 70’s gothic ghost story where Kinski plays Edgar Allan Poe. The dual Blu Ray takes in HD prints of each film, as well as a commentary track for each picture. Also included is an alternative version of the first film, new featurettes, and a few archive extras.

First up on disc one is 1967’s Creature With The Blue Hand (aka Die Blaue Hand).  It’s a Krimi horror crossbreed with gothic touches. It was jointly directed by Stuttgart born  Alfred Vohrer, and New York-born Samuel M. Sherman- so I’m guessing the former made the original film, then the latter dubbed it/ recut it for English audiences.

Between the late 50s and mid-70s, Vohrer had forty-seven features to his name- these go from teen crime drama Crime After School Ends(1959), classic Krimi Dead Eyes Of London(1961), western adventure Amongst Vultures(1964),  and brothel set comedy The Yellow House on Pinnasberg(1970).

The film runs at a tight and pacy one hour and seventeen minutes. We kick off in court, as Dave (Kinski) is sentenced to life in an asylum, as his identical twin Richard (Kinski) looks on.

Fair soon, we see Dave in his cell- a key is thrown in, and he's over the wall, out into the mist towards his family mansion, some four miles away.  As Dave arrives back home, a black-cloaked, one-eyed, peering killer with an armoured arm that shoots out claws.

From here on, we get a blend of campy police investigation thriller, stalking horror, and a mansion gothic with secret passages ‘n’ creepy vibes. With a great selection of weird ‘n’ wonderful characters/ scenes- these include the shifty grey crew cut and monocle-wearing psych warden Dr. Albert Mangrove(Carl Lange), Dave’s bedroom is hung with full-dressed mannequins and a butler who, fearful of the mansion he works in-, often hides in cupboards.

I’ll have to say that at points it does get a little bit confusing, as you are unsure which is the good and bad brother, but I guess that adds to the fun. There are a few bloody claw kills, creepy atmosphere, twisting who-done-it, and lots of campy chills/cheesy bad dubbing.

Extras-wise on this disc, we get a few new things. First off is a commentary track from genre experts/ writers Kim Newman & Stephen Jones. They kick off by touching briefly on the Krimi genre, and we find out in total there were around sixty examples of the genre, though some films that were put under the Krimi label shouldn’t be there, like What Have You Done to Solange?(1972), which is most certainly a giallo. They discuss how Kinski started in the Krimi's as a bit part actor, making his way up to leading man- they comment on his role here, and how he pulls off his double role well. They talk about how there are at least three versions of the film, touching on the difference between them- the main version we have here is the US New World Pictures version. The chat about the popularity of Edgar Wallace in Germany, the film's script is roughly based on a few of his stories. They point out notable actors in the picture, and other Krimi’s they were in.  Later on, they mention how great the film's soundtrack is/ as well as other notable scores. They point out the James Bond-like fighting scenes, commenting on the hanging body room, and much more. Another worthwhile track from these two pros.

Next on the new side, we get two featurettes- the first is A Man Of Mystery (13.03). Here, we get a good overview of Edgar Wallace's career, finding out he was a good self-promoter, but a persistent gambler, meaning he was broke most of his life. We find out his most well-known story is King Kong, though he wrote across a few genres. All in all, a nice brief look at the writer's career/ impact. Kinski Krimis (17.48) gives us an overview of the actors' input to the genre.

On the archive side, we have The Bloody Dead- 1987 recut of Creature With The Blue Hand, with new extra gore scenes. Otherwise, we get a trailer for the original film.

The second disc takes in 1971’s Web Of The Spider (aka Nella Stretta Morsa Del Ragno)- this is an Italian, French, and West German production.  It’s a gothic ghost story-come melodrama with life-sucking undertones.  It features Mr  Kinski- but he only tops and tails the film.

The film was directed by Rome-born Antonio Margheriti, who has fifty-four features to his name.  These go from sci-fi space oprea Assignment: Outer Space (1960), Witch curse-bound gothic horror The Long Hair Of Death(1964), gothic horror Giallo blend Seven Deaths In The Cats Eyes(1973), gritty & gory namploitation The Last Hunter( 1980), and jungle adventure meets creature feature Alien From The Abyss(1989).

The film runs just over the hour and a half mark- it opens with Edgar Allen Poe( Kinski)  crawling and clawing through a dank, dusty, thick spiderweb-weaved underground crypt- we then shift to an old English pub, where the writer is detailing the end to the tale of terror he was telling.

Into the pub comes American journalist Alan Foster played by Anthony Franciosa- who is best known as the lead character in Dario Argento’s Tenebrae. He’s most keen to interview Mr Poe who is on a brief trip to the UK; but before he can get to this he is approached by one of the men listening to Mr Poe tale Lord Blackwood- who bets the journalist he can’t stay a night in his rundown and abandoned mansion.

Foster agrees to the bet- so he, Blackwood, and Peo head to the mansion- leaving the journalist at the mansion's iron gates, saying they’ll be back in the morning. At first, he stumbles around the dusty and deserted house, jumping at his own shadow. Then a blond-haired woman in a period dress appears, and so the film unfolds through a blend of melodrama, murder, and ghoulish mystery- as a series of ghosts come back to life to tell their story, and possibly take some near and dear to the journalist himself.

 Kinski is typically rewarding with wild eyes and moments of mania. Our lead Franciosa pulls you into the story well, and while some of the storyline/unfold is slightly contrived/ cliched, it’s not a bad gothic ghost story- with some decent moments of unease and creepiness, and a neat enough twist in its tail.

Extras-wise, on this disc, we get another commentary track from Kim Newman & Stephen Jones.  They begin by talking about how the film is an interesting example of where Italian Gothic horror was in the late 60s/ early 70s.  We find that Edger Allen Peo did visit the UK, though as a child and not as an adult, as the film suggests. They touch on the different versions of the film. They talk about Kinski's take on the infamous author.  The touch on the film's cinematography, saying that it wonderfully mimics the tone of Hammer Horror. We get a bio of lead actor Anthony Franciosa, and how he never really had a breakout film.  Later on, they discuss the film's supernatural elements, point out favourite moments like the breathing corpse, and much more. Another well worth a play track. Lastly, we get a few different trailers of the film.

The release is finished off with a glossy twenty-four-page booklet. This takes in two articles about the film, and a fair selection of poster art/ stills.

In finishing this is another excellent double bill release from the folks at Film Masters- if you enjoy either Euro horror, or the work of Klaus Kinski, it truly is a must pick-up, with nice HD prints, and interesting extras.