This Halloween, revisit Dario Argento’s masterpieces of suspense in 4K Ultra HD thanks to Arrow Video. The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Cat o’ Nine Tails, and Deep Red are considered to be among the finest entries in the giallo subgenre of filmmaking and present the auteur at his dark, twisted best…
THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE
In 1970, young first-time director Dario Argento (Deep Red, Suspiria) made his indelible mark on Italian cinema with The Bird with the Crystal Plumage – a film which redefined the ‘giallo’ genre of murder-mystery thrillers and catapulted him to international stardom.
A staggeringly assured debut, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage establishes the key traits that would define Argento’s filmography, including lavish visuals and a flare for wildly inventive, brutal scenes of violence.
Special Features
- New 4K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks
- English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
- Audio commentary by Troy Howarth, author of So Deadly, So Perverse: 50 Years of Italian Giallo Films
- Black Gloves and Screaming Mimis, an interview with author and critic Kat Ellinger exploring the film’s themes and its relationship to both the giallo and Fredric Brown’s novel The Screaming Mimi
- The Power of Perception, a visual essay on the cinema of Dario Argento by Alexanda Heller-Nicholas, author of Devil’s Advocates: Suspiria and The Giallo Canvas: Art, Excess and Horror Cinema, reflecting on the recurring theme of perception and the role of art in Argento’s filmography
- Crystal Nightmare, an interview with writer/director Dario Argento
- An Argento Icon, an interview with actor Gildo Di Marco
- Eva’s Talking, an archival interview with actor Eva Renzi
- Original Italian and international theatrical trailers
- 2017 Texas Frightmare trailer
- Image galleries
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Howard Hughes and Jack Seabrook, and a new essay by Rachael Nisbet
- Fold-out double-sided poster featuring two original pieces of poster artwork
- Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproduction artcards
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring two original pieces of poster artwork
THE CAT O’ NINE TAILS
Following the success of his debut feature, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, distributor Titanus tasked writer/director Dario Argento with delivering a follow-up in short order. The resulting film, granted a greatly enhanced budget and heralded in its US marketing campaign as “nine times more suspenseful” than its predecessor, was The Cat O’ Nine Tails.
This second entry in the so-called “Animal Trilogy” found Argento further refining his distinctive style and cementing his reputation as the master of the giallo thriller.
Special Features
- New 4K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks
- English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
- Audio commentary by critics Alan Jones and Kim Newman
- Nine Lives, an interview with co-writer/director Dario Argento
- The Writer O’ Many Tales, an interview with co-writer Dardano Sacchetti
- Child Star, an interview with actress Cinzia De Carolis
- Giallo in Turin, an interview with production manager Angelo Iacono
- Script pages for the lost original ending, translated into English for the first time
- Original Italian, international and US theatrical trailers
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring an original essay on the film by Dario Argento, and writing by Barry Forshaw, Troy Howarth and Howard Hughes
- Fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Obviously Creative
- Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproduction artcards
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring originally and newly commissioned artwork by Obviously Creative
DEEP RED
From Dario Argento, maestro of the macabre and the man behind some of the greatest excursions in Italian horror (Suspiria, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage), comes Deep Red – the ultimate giallo movie.
Aided by a throbbing score from regular Argento collaborators Goblin, Deep Red (aka Profondo Rosso and The Hatchet Murders) is a hallucinatory fever dream of a giallo punctuated by some of the most astonishing set-pieces the sub-genre has to offer.
Special Features
- New 4K restoration of both the original 127-minute Italian version and the 105-minute export version from the original negative by Arrow Films
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations of both versions in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring originally and newly commissioned artwork by Obviously Creative
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Alan Jones and Mikel J. Koven, and a new essay by Rachael Nisbet
- Fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Obviously Creative
- Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproduction artcards
Disc 1 (4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray) – Deep Red: Original Version
- Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks*
- Optional lossless 5.1 Italian soundtrack
- English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
- New audio commentary by critics Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson
- Archival audio commentary by Argento expert Thomas Rostock
- Almost three hours of new interviews with members of the cast and crew, including co-writer/director Dario Argento, actors Macha Méril, Gabriele Lavia, Jacopo Mariani and Lino Capolicchio (Argento’s original choice for the role of Marcus Daly), production manager Angelo Iacono, composer Claudio Simonetti, and archival footage of actress Daria Nicolodi
- Italian trailer
- Arrow Video 2018 trailer
- Image galleries
Disc 2 (4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray) – Deep Red: Export Version
- Restored original lossless mono English soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Archival introduction to the film by Claudio Simonetti of Goblin
- Profondo Giallo – an archival visual essay by Michael Mackenzie featuring an in-depth appreciation of Deep Red, its themes, and its legacy
- Archival interviews with Dario Argento, Daria Nicolodi, Claudio Simonetti and long-time Argento collaborator Luigi Cozzi
- US theatrical trailer
*The English audio track on this original cut has some portions of English audio missing. English audio for these sections was never recorded for these scenes. As such, they are presented with Italian audio, subtitled in English.
THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE, THE CAT O’ NINE TAILS AND DEEP RED ARE AVAILABLE NOW ON 4K UHD FROM ARROW VIDEO