A grimy tale of corrupt grave robbers run amok in 19th century Scotland, 1985's atmospheric thriller The Doctor and the Devils was one of the non-comedy films executive produced by comedic legend Mel Brooks. Though (justifiably) not as well-regarded as Brooks' other not-funny producing ventures The Elephant Man and The Fly, this moody, impressively cast movie nevertheless has gotten a nice Blu Ray release as part of Shout Factory's Scream Factory imprint.

The Doctor and the Devils had its origins in a screenplay written by celebrated poet Dylan Thomas (!). Following the lead of several other films (including Val Lewton's creepy The Body Snatcher), Thomas based this story on the real-life exploits of Burke and Hare, the notorious 19th century pair of Scottish serial killers who sold their victims to a local anatomy professor for use as educational specimens. Here, Timothy Dalton heads a top-drawer cast of British actors as Dr. Thomas Rock, an idealistic, charismatic anatomy professor at an Edinburgh university. To fuel his students' desire for real-world knowledge, Dr. Rock teams with his young assistant, Dr. Murray (Julian Sands), to buy recently buried bodies from grave diggers for his students to study. This under-the-table scheme captures the attention of an opportunistic local wastrel, Robert Fallon (Jonathan Pryce). Along with his friend, Timothy Broom (Stephen Rea), Fallon at first secures bodies by shadowing the grave diggers on their nocturnal body excavations. Soon, however, he finds that it's more convenient for he and Broom to lure the dregs of Edinburgh into drunken submission, smothering them to death to ensure the bodies lack the blemishes which make them unsuitable for Dr. Rock's use. After the professor's forbidden use of human cadavers becomes evident to Rock's jealous colleague Macklin (Patrick Stewart), pressure is put upon him to resign from the university in disgrace. Meanwhile, Dr. Murray falls in love with Jeannie Bailey (Twiggy), a headstrong prostitute who winds up perilously within Fallon's murderous clutches.

Unlike earlier films which used the Burke and Hare story as an excuse for sensationally depicting lurid murders, The Doctor and the Devils plays it cool - perhaps a little too cool. In emphasizing the nobility of its hero - defending the logic of science and reason over the religious society he lives in - it winds up being excessively heavy and message-y, despite the lively performances of Dalton, Pryce, Twiggy and the rest of the cast. Mel Brooks' involvement ensured that it would be a good, solidly made production, while screenwriter Ronald Harwood's adaptation of Dylan Thomas' work opened up the story, made the dialogue more naturalistic, and even allowed some room for morbid humor (best displayed in the scene where Pryce and Rea attempt to off an old woman who refuses to go down quietly). The story also has some superfluous elements, however, including all of the scenes involving Dr. Rock's spinster sister (Sian Phillips) and his artist wife (Downton Abbey's Phyllis Logan). The production design does a nice job of capturing the claustrophobic, moist and filthy environs of a 19th century slum, while the interior of Rock's home is done up in contrasting, clean elegance. I also enjoyed the atmospheric camerawork, although director Freddie Francis doesn't do much in the way of creatively framing or setting up shots. Brooks did well in hiring visionary directors for The Elephant Man (David Lynch) and The Fly (David Cronenberg). A longtime vet known for un-subtle British shockers like 1973's Tales That Witness Madness, Francis was a competent-enough choice, but his stodgy, straightforward approach hampers a project that sorely needed that extra something to make it stand out.

Barely promoted in theaters due to a supposed feud between Brooks and distributor 20th Century Fox, The Doctor and the Devils didn't get a fair chance at finding an audience in 1985. The Blu Ray edition of the film will hopefully bring it some newfound appreciation, although most viewers will be advised to keep their expectations low for this more-moody-than-frightening effort.

The Blu Ray:

Video

The 2.35:1 letterboxed image on Scream Factory's Blu Ray looks pretty great, the high resolution bringing out fine details in the photography. For its age, the disc uses a pristine looking print with nice grain and barely any dust or white specks. Light levels are kept warm and realistic looking, while darks have a richness without getting too murky. The well-calibrated colors have a nice, muted and lifelike feel as well.

Audio

The sole audio option is the film's original stereo soundtrack done in a 2.0 DTS Master Audio mix. Like the video component, it's a moderately clean sounding track with a good balance between dialogue, sound effects and scoring. The track sports little in the way of distortion, pops or age. Optional English SDH subtitles are also provided on the disc.

Extras

A 15-minute Interview has executive producer Mel Brooks sharing fond memories of the film with producers Jonathan Sager and Randy Auerbach. It's an interesting watch, as is the feature-length Audio Commentary with author Steve Haberman. Although Haberman pauses frequently and rarely speaks directly on the onscreen action, the track is filled with fascinating info on Burke and Hare, Dylan Thomas' screenplay and other filmed versions of the story, and background info on the production, cast and crew. The film's original Theatrical Trailer rounds out the extras.

Final Thoughts:

Handsomely produced Gothic thriller The Doctor and the Devils might be worth a peek for fans of Jonathan Pryce, since it captured him just before his breakthrough in Brazil. The actor does an uninhibited turn in this 1985 scare flick as a Scottish wastrel who is all too eager to supply fresh corpses for an anatomy professor played by James Bond #4, Timothy Dalton. Turgid, unimaginative direction and too many unnecessary side characters weigh it down, however. At least the Blu Ray edition looks as nice as the production. Rent It.

Matt Hinrichs is a designer, artist, film critic and jack-of-all-trades in Phoenix, Arizona. Since 2000, he has been blogging at Scrubbles.net. 4 Color Cowboy is his repository of Western-kitsch imagery, while other films he's experienced are logged at Letterboxd. He also welcomes friends on Twitter @4colorcowboy.