The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue

Summary

”Do I look like I’m about to attack you??… And I’m surrounded by radiation!”

Synapse Films has established its reputation as one of the most reliable purveyors of cult and horror cinema. The label is best known for their terrific releases of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, Tenebrae, and Phenomena. Synapse Films have recently begun releasing impressive 4K versions of some of those titles, and both of the Demons films. When I saw that they would be releasing The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue on Blu-ray in a new edition, my interest was piqued. Doing some research, I saw that the film boasted some impressive fans, including filmmaker Edgar Wright, who I trust emphatically as a steward of cinema. I watched the film the other night, and I was extremely impressed.

In London, an antique seller closes his shop for the holiday. He hops on his motorcycle and heads to the country with a few antiques in his bag.  At a gas station, his motorcycle is accidentally hit by a car driven by a redhead. His motorcycle will need to be fixed over the weekend in the garage, so he asks to be given a ride to Windermere in her car …with him driving of course. His name is George (Ray Lovelock) and she is Edna (Cristina Galbo.) She is planning to visit her sister’s cottage and it is very important that she arrive there soon. The radio warns of “ecological problems creating hysteria.” She asks him to take her to the cottage and offers to let him have the car until she can send someone to fetch it. Despite his plans to fix up a house that he has purchased with some friends, he agrees to her suggestion. Arriving in the countryside looking for the Madison cottage, they encounter a group of agricultural scientists using an experimental technology to ward off insects with ultrasonic radiation. The machine hums to life and, unbeknownst to the scientists, the machine causes the unintended effect of bringing the dead back to life. This remains unknown to the scientists, but Edna sees a dead man walk towards her and her car from the cemetery. When she reports seeing the reanimated man, George and the scientists shrug off her suggestion that the man was undead. The assume that she must have been mistaken. At the cottage, Katie (Jeannine Mestre) and Martin (Jose Lifante) are in an unhappy marriage. Martin wants to have her sent to rehab for her heroin addiction which is why her sister has come to visit. As George and Edna near the cabin, an undead man attacks Martin and kills him, despite Martin striking the attacker with a rock. With George and Edna arriving fresh on the scene of the murder, and with the undead attacker disappeared, the police force George and Edna to stay put within the small village. This puts their lives in grave danger.

I don’t want to oversell this, but this is one of the best horror films I have seen in a long long time. I feel confident that this film is entering the pantheon of my favorite horror films ever made. I have only watched the film once as I write this, so my opinion may change on subsequent viewings, but I was incredibly impressed by the film. 

The setting of the film is rural and unique. There is a wonderful sense of mood to the film that will grab the attention of fans of films like The Wicker Man or Blood on Satan’s Claw.  I really enjoyed the wide open spaces of the English countryside and the small hamlets used in the film. Unique settings make for the most interesting horror films, and this film is no exception.

The screenplay by Sandro Continenza and Marcello Coscia is an excellent example of how a simple concept can be explored in ways that are clever and interesting. The characters are much better developed than is usually the case for characters in horror films. Each character has motivations that guide their actions which all make good sense. Characters have distinct attributes that define them throughout the course of the film and they never perform actions that are out of character. Aside from the occasional moment where people run inside of claustrophobic places instead of away from them, the actions of the characters are fairly logical. That is unusual in horror films where characters seem to act against their best interests the majority of the time. The film does not feature a tremendous amount of dialogue, but not a word is wasted. It is a very good horror script that only asks for the  audience to believe that the dead could rise again. If the core premise is taken at face value, the script for the film ranks as one of the best written zombie films.

Jorge Grau directed the film with a strong eye. Utilizing cinematographer Francisco Sempere, Grau brought the very best out of the surroundings with evocative images of the English countryside that morph into paranoid and claustrophobic settings within homes, hospitals, and tombs. The film looks great, with a pronounced visual style. The film begins with a fantastic opening sequence that focuses on George leaving London to a pulsing soundtrack. That sequence let me know that I was in store for something a little different and exciting. The editing of this sequence is very clever and sets the stage for the well made horror film. I was taken with the film from the beginning to its finale, which I thought was fantastic.

Overall – This is one of my favorite releases of the last year. The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue earns our highest recommendation. 

Video

This new transfer in 4K from the original uncut 35mm camera negative by Synapse Video uses an MPEG-4 AVC encoding of the film in 1.85:1. The work by Synapse proved to be a tedious task. The restoration of the 35mm negative took eight months to complete. The 4K scan was performed at Cinecitta Studios in Rome. It looks fantastic. Clarity and depth of field are very good. The work that Synapse put into the film shows in an organic and rich viewing experience. The grain looks filmic and does not show distracting compression issues. Until we have a 4K UHD release of the film (which hopefully sales will prompt one!,) this is a near perfect viewing experience of the picture.

Audio

Synapse Video have provided two options – a newly remastered English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround track and a restored DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono track. The 5.1 track is the way to go in my opinion, because of the greater immersion it offers. That said, the mono track has been given a solid restoration for purists. Either way, fans should be pleased with the work that Synapse has done here. I don’t have any complaints whatsoever.

Supplements:

• Jorge Grau – Catalonia’s Cult Film King – This feature-length documentary revolves around the film career of director Jorge Grau.
• The Scene of the Crime – Giannetto De Rossi in Discussion from Manchester
• Giannetto De Rossi – Q&A at the Festival of Fantastic Films
• Theatrical trailer, TV spots and radio spots
• Audio commentary with author and film scholar Troy Howarth
• Audio Commentary with film scholars Nathaniel Thompson and Bruce Holecheck
• Newly translated removable English SDH subtitles

Overall Scores:

Video – 5/5

Audio – 5/5

Supplements – 4.5/5

Overall – 5/5

The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue has been brought to Blu-ray by Synapse Films in an incredible new edition. I had never seen the film before the other night, and I have a feeling that this film will rank among the best horror films I have seen. The film is expertly directed and very well written. The acting by the leads is also of high quality. The new 4K transfer supervised from Synapse was worth all the months of work that they put into it. The film shines on the Blu-ray format and fans of the picture are going to be extremely pleased by the new restoration. The supplemental features on the disc are of very high quality. Fans of zombie horror films or just well written horror in general owe it to themselves to add this film into their collection. This is one of the best releases this year and earns our highest recommendation.