The Church — The Church( UHD, Blu Ray, CD)
The Church is a late 80’s Italian horror film that blends the atmospheric and gothic with the gorily creative and brutally deranged. The film shifts from the medieval times to the then present day- being largely set/ focused around a huge church built on the burial ground of the damned dead. Here from Severin is a classy three-disc set, taking in a UHD disc, a region A Blu-Ray, and a CD soundtrack. The release features a wonderful bold & well-defined print, hours of extras, a colour inlay booklet, and a glossy card slip.
The Church ( aka La Chiesa) is from the year 1989 it was directed by Milan-born Michele Soavi, who co-wrote it with none other than Dario Argento, and Franco Ferrini- known for writing/co-writing more than a few Argento pics, as well as the likes of Demons (1985) & Once Upon A Time In America (1984). Soavi had six features to his name, as well as twenty two TV films/ TV episodes/ documentaries. His features take in theatre set slasher Stagefright (1987), satanic horror thriller The Sect (1991), and intelligent zombie horror comedy Cemetery Man (1994). He was seen as the natural successor to the likes of Argento and Fulci- but due to the bottom dropping out of Italian horror in the 90s, he never got to fulfil his full promise.
The film opens in medieval times, as we see a group of knights galloping towards a cave which has a 666 mark on its outside. In the cave is a woman bathing her feet- she has a cross cut into one of her feet, so she is killed- with the knights going on slaughter to the rest of the nearby village- digging a huge pit to throw the half-alive people in. Placing a cross with a metal emblem seal in it’s middle, with a church built around it.
We then zoom forward to the 1980’s, and the huge gothic church tnow sits on the ground of the pit. We see bespeckled Evan (Tomas Arana) walking in for his first day as a librarian in the church. Up on the scaffolding is archaeologist Lisa (Barbara Cupisti) he chats with her briefly before making his way to the church library meeting teenager Lotte (Asia Argento) and his guff/ grumpy/ grey bushy eyebrowed boss The Bishop(Feodor Chaliapin Jr)- who scalds him for been late.
As things unfold Lisa uncovers a map in the church's wall, which starts to reveal the places dark grounding. We get an body organs pulled out possession, a group of folks trapped in the churn with implements, brutal face tearing’s, demented body twitching mounds, and a few ancient cog-based puzzles, with a few gory twists.
The film balances a keen & creepy gothic atmosphere with well-realized/ extreme gore. As with many European horror films, the acting is far from great, although the young Asia Argento does well with her parts as the teen who hangs around the church.
This recent three-disc set from Severin really is a thing to behold- as it is truly stacked with extras. Anyway first off we need talk about the 4k scan on both the UHD & Blu Ray disc- this is wonderful well defined and balanced, with great clarity/ depth even in the darker scenes.
Other than the film the UHD disc features just a trailer, with a large selection of the all-new extras on the Blu-Ray disc. So we have the following: The Mystery Of The Cathedrals (19.46) Interview with director Michele Soavi- he moves from talking about how he first became of horror/ Dario Argento at the age of 12, when he put heels in his shoes to get into the 14 cert Bird With The Crystal Plumage. Talking about how he managed to get hold of the director's phone number at the age of 18, and at this point, he gave he a short story to read- Argento gave some feedback, but it wasn’t until 1982’s Tenebre when Soavi got a job as one of the films assistant directors. He goes on to talk about the film to hand, how the script had been around for a while/ adjustments he made to it. Filming the opening and church-based scenes/ issues they had. Influences on the films design/ look- etc.
Otherwise, we have the following: Alchemical Possession ( 12.41)Interview with Co-Screenwriter/Producer Dario Argento. The Eleventh Commandment( 18.36) Interview with Co-Screenwriter Franco Ferrini. The Ghostwriter (18.36) Interview with Co-Screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti. Lotte (8.36) Interview with actress Asia Argento. Here Comes The Bride (10.56) Interview with actress Antonella Vitale. A Demon Named Evan (25.37) Interview with actor Tomas Arana. Father Giovanni (14.14) Interview with actor Giovanni Lombardo Radice. Monsters And Demons (19.41) Interview with special FX Artist Sergio Stivaletti. Holy Ground( 9.46) Interview with make-up artist Franco Casagni. Building The Church (20.46) Interview with Set Designer Antonello Geleng. The Right-Hand Man (16.50) Interview with Assistant Director Claudio Lattanzi. Return To The Land Of The Demons ( 5.59) Interview with Alan Jones, Author Of Profondo Argento. There is a whopping three hours plus of extras to take in here.
The third disc in the original soundtrack. This features twelve tracks in all, with a runtime of just shy of forty-eight minutes. It’s a mixture of material from Keith Emerson, Fabio Pignatelli played by Gobin, and one track from the band Zooming On The Zoo. The main of the score is a blend of gothic keyboard/ organ runs, 80’s midi heavy production, sampled evil whispers/ choirs and beats- some of it’s ok/ memorable enough- but it largely sounds terribly dated in a bad way. And don’t mention the Zooming On The Zoo., which is an awful collision of synth funk bass, stabbing synthetic horns, sassy female vocals, and even a rap-like breakdown- truly terrible!. It’s nice to have this disc as an extra, but I can’t see myself returning to it again. I guess if you enjoy that very 80’s sound, with Emerson/ Goblin trying to do gothic atmospherics you may get more from it than I did.
The set takes in a glossy forty-page inlay booklet. This features a thick paper stock cover, and inside we find a lengthy article about the film/ all surrounding it by Claire Donner, as well as colour stills and pictures. The version we were sent for review comes with a glossy laminated slip- which features gold texts- adding an extra layer of class to the whole thing.
Once again Severin has really gone above and beyond what you normally expect from a reissue. With a lovely scan, hours & hours of extras, the soundtrack CD, inlay booklet, and slip. Another great release from the label, and a must-buy for anyone who enjoys 80’s Euro horror.