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Other Hell, The
Media Blasters // Unrated // January 28, 2003
List Price: $24.95 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
You know that you're in for a long night when the liner notes included with the DVD refer to the movie as an "awful...film".
The Movie
Italian horror films are known for their unpredictable nature -- that is, anything can happen at anytime. And while this can be an effective tool in the hands of the right filmmaker (as it keeps the audience on edge), in movies such as "The Other Hell", it only allows the creators to let seemingly random events occur for no apparent reason -- and the audience is expected to follow the movie.
"The Other Hell" takes place in a convent where there has been a series of unexplained murders. At least, that's what we're told. We only see one murder and one corpse (murder victim?) before a priest is sent into the convent to investigate. Father Valerio (Carlo De Mejo)is determined that he can solve the crimes by exposing a sick mind, but he soon learns that Mother Superior Vincena (Franca Stoppi) may have unleashed a dark force that has overtaken the convent.
In the 89 minutes of "The Other Hell", there is only about 20 minutes of story, as the difference is made up of characters walking, climbing stairs, singing, praying -- doing anything but advancing the story. The story is sort of like "Agnes of God" with all of the interesting parts removed. We are told that there have been murders at the convent and that the nuns act strangely, but we don't get to see many examples of this. When there are murders, we have no idea how or why they are happening. Also, the movie suffers from "Alien3" syndrome, as all of the characters (nuns in habits) look alike.
Director Bruno Mattei has become infamous for making some of the worst Italian horror films and "The Other Hell" is a perfect example. To his credit, there is one creepy shot of baby dolls hanging from a ceiling, and the murders are nice and gory, but the convoluted and confusing story, matched with the unbelievably slow pacing, make the film almost unwatchable.
Video
Shriek Show brings "The Other Hell" to DVD with an anamorphic transfer that has been letterboxed at 1.85:1. Considering that the film was originally shot on 16mm, this transfer looks pretty good. The image is fairly clear, although there is some grain at times, as well as some noticeable artifacting. The colors are average, and the blacks and whites contrast well. There are some visible defects from the source print, but these are mainly minor scratches. The bitrate is consistently about 8mbps throughout the film.
Audio
A Dolby Digital mono audio track accompanies the film on this DVD. The track contains several problems. While the dialogue is clear for the most part, this is an obvious low-frequency hiss on the track. For about half of the film, the sound is out of sync. For the dialogue, it could be explained that the English dub didn't match up with the Italian actor's mouths, but that doesn't explain why the cat's hiss comes a few beats after he opens his mouth! The music from Italian stalwarts Goblin (which was lifted from the movie "Beyond the Darkness") sounds fine and the dynamic range is acceptable.
Extras
The DVD offers seperate brief interviews with director Bruno Mattei and star Carlo De Mejo. Both are jovial, but neither offers any great insight into the making of "The Other Hell". The DVD contains the original trailer for "The Other Hell", and bonus trailers for four other titles from Shriek Show.
"The Other Hell" is often considered an example of the Italian "nunsploitation" cycle. But, trust me, the only ones being exploited here are the audience.
The Movie
Italian horror films are known for their unpredictable nature -- that is, anything can happen at anytime. And while this can be an effective tool in the hands of the right filmmaker (as it keeps the audience on edge), in movies such as "The Other Hell", it only allows the creators to let seemingly random events occur for no apparent reason -- and the audience is expected to follow the movie.
"The Other Hell" takes place in a convent where there has been a series of unexplained murders. At least, that's what we're told. We only see one murder and one corpse (murder victim?) before a priest is sent into the convent to investigate. Father Valerio (Carlo De Mejo)is determined that he can solve the crimes by exposing a sick mind, but he soon learns that Mother Superior Vincena (Franca Stoppi) may have unleashed a dark force that has overtaken the convent.
In the 89 minutes of "The Other Hell", there is only about 20 minutes of story, as the difference is made up of characters walking, climbing stairs, singing, praying -- doing anything but advancing the story. The story is sort of like "Agnes of God" with all of the interesting parts removed. We are told that there have been murders at the convent and that the nuns act strangely, but we don't get to see many examples of this. When there are murders, we have no idea how or why they are happening. Also, the movie suffers from "Alien3" syndrome, as all of the characters (nuns in habits) look alike.
Director Bruno Mattei has become infamous for making some of the worst Italian horror films and "The Other Hell" is a perfect example. To his credit, there is one creepy shot of baby dolls hanging from a ceiling, and the murders are nice and gory, but the convoluted and confusing story, matched with the unbelievably slow pacing, make the film almost unwatchable.
Video
Shriek Show brings "The Other Hell" to DVD with an anamorphic transfer that has been letterboxed at 1.85:1. Considering that the film was originally shot on 16mm, this transfer looks pretty good. The image is fairly clear, although there is some grain at times, as well as some noticeable artifacting. The colors are average, and the blacks and whites contrast well. There are some visible defects from the source print, but these are mainly minor scratches. The bitrate is consistently about 8mbps throughout the film.
Audio
A Dolby Digital mono audio track accompanies the film on this DVD. The track contains several problems. While the dialogue is clear for the most part, this is an obvious low-frequency hiss on the track. For about half of the film, the sound is out of sync. For the dialogue, it could be explained that the English dub didn't match up with the Italian actor's mouths, but that doesn't explain why the cat's hiss comes a few beats after he opens his mouth! The music from Italian stalwarts Goblin (which was lifted from the movie "Beyond the Darkness") sounds fine and the dynamic range is acceptable.
Extras
The DVD offers seperate brief interviews with director Bruno Mattei and star Carlo De Mejo. Both are jovial, but neither offers any great insight into the making of "The Other Hell". The DVD contains the original trailer for "The Other Hell", and bonus trailers for four other titles from Shriek Show.
"The Other Hell" is often considered an example of the Italian "nunsploitation" cycle. But, trust me, the only ones being exploited here are the audience.
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