NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST On Blu-ray From Film Masters

 

The main feature of Film Masters' recent Blu-ray double-bill consisting of two Roger Corman-produced late 50s monster movies is NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST (1959). 

An astronaut named John Corcoran (Michael Emmet) has been launched into space, but he crashes upon his return to Earth. He lands near a tracking station, and its crew goes out to the crash site, finding the astronaut apparently dead. Bringing his body back to the station, it turns out that Corcoran is very much alive, and he has a connection with an alien being that somehow attached itself to his ship. The being has injected Corcoran's body with a number of embryos, and it wants its race to unite with mankind. The tracking station crew are not very excited about this plan, while Corcoran tries to convince them to understand the creature and avoid harming it. 

I thought NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST wasn't as entertaining as ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES. The latter's swamp setting, cracker characters, and Yvette Vickers makes it memorable, while NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST is a mediocre rehash of other movies such as THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT and the original THE THING. Much of NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST takes place in the nondescript interiors of the tracking station, and the alien suit (also used in TEENAGE CAVEMAN) doesn't impress upon close scrutiny. The suit's appearances should have been kept to fleeting glances, but it gets plenty of close-ups under daylight conditions. The suit's bulky and cumbersome nature also detracts from the scenes where the alien is trying to communicate with the human cast. It's obvious that Roger Corman and his brother Gene as producers didn't want the suit damaged, as during the confrontation scenes the actors appear to do everything they can to avoid hurting it. 

That being said, Martin Varno's script for BLOOD BEAST does offer up some thoughtful concepts, but the finished film doesn't have the budget or the running time to properly explore them. Varno hints that the alien might be more sympathetic than one thinks, and Michael Emmet's reaction to being brought back from the dead to serve as an incubator is certainly unusual. Emmet doesn't portray the post-crash Corcoran as a madman under the influence--instead the man is low-key and articulate while attempting to give the alien's side of the situation. The rest of the roles in the story are very bland--the two female leads don't get to do much other than stand around and scream a lot. Director Bernard Kowalski does provide a lot of interesting shot compositions to give NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST some visual vitality. 

Film Masters states that the print used for this release of NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST comes from a newly restored 4K scan, and it is a very clear and sharp presentation. The movie is available on this disc in two formats: 1.85:1 and 1.37:1. 

The extras include an 8mm version of the film. It's silent, but the sound of a clicking projector has been added to it. (I understand why this was done but I thought the effect was annoying.) The MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 episode featuring NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST is here, along with a reconstructed trailer, a restoration comparison, and a image gallery for both BLOOD BEAST and THE GIANT LEECHES. 

Tom Weaver once again provides the audio commentary here. He starts out by telling the story of the launch of Sputnik by the Soviets in the late 1950s, and how that event affected the low-budget horror/sci-fi movie genre. Weaver points out the movie's many similarities to THE THING, and he goes into detail about the film's screenwriter, Martin Varno, and Varno's issues with the Corman brothers over pay and billing. Varno's involvement with the film are also the basis of an article by Weaver which appears in the booklet accompanying this release. 

As I stated in my blog post on ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES, Film Masters has done a great job in taking public domain cult material and giving such movies brand name home video releases. NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST has its faults, but, as with any product associated with Roger Corman, it has enough unique elements to make it stand out.