BADass SINema Unearthed - Blu-ray 4K UHD Review

Directed by Mario Bava (Planet of Vampires), Black Sabbath remains an influential horror film. It is, after all, where Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, and Ozzy Osbourne (who all marveled at the fact that people actually paid money only to leave theaters that scared) got their band name from. But one quick peek inside of Black Sabbath will have you understanding what they meant. The three stories that make up the movie are gothic in nature and effectively deal with matters of life and death in a beautifully frightening way.

Hosted by Boris Karloff (riffing on his success with Thriller), Bava’s frightfully fantastic trilogy of terror serves its audience well and, thanks to the efforts of Kino Lorber Studio Classics, is given a solid treatment in its debut on blu-ray. The film, in its current running order (different from its Italian premiere), opens with the deranged story of a nurse (Jacqueline Pierreux) who is asked to help prepare a dead medium’s corpse for her burial. Just one look at the corpse with her death grin expression stretched from ear to ear is enough to disturb the hell out of anyone. Bava, in his infinite wisdom, makes her corpse the star of the short and, when the nurse steals a sparkling ring from the corpse’s finger, there will be a haunted hell to pay.

The second story, featuring Michele Mercier as a call-girl haunted by a phone that won’t stop ringing, is purposefully confined to a basement-level apartment location. This provides audiences, as the girl literally has nowhere to go, with a sort of suffocating feeling as the voice on the other end of the phone promises revenge for what she has done. Help arrives as Lydia Alfonsi offers Mercier a shoulder to cry upon. Of course, all is not as it seems when revenge comes knocking.

The third story tackles the myth of the Russian vampire in the 19th century. Starring Karloff and Mark Damon, the final story in the collection might be, as scripted, the most elementary but, as filmed, is a spellbinding tale with dazzling uses of color and of the visual aspects of gothic storytelling. It has a vast environment and Bava effectively explores its deep caverns with dramatic lighting and the cinematography.

Originally released in 1963 after American International Pictures’ secured a release deal with the Italian film production company Galatea, Black Sabbath is the premiere film that first solidified the genre landscape that would go on to create the slasher flick. It’s all here. The stalker. The prey. The fight. The scares. Modern in its use of horror, Black Sabbath retains a solid footing in the past with its lavish production values; always a trademark of these AIP productions. Even on a tight budget they had the remarkable ability to design their features.

While the cinematography is credited to Ubaldo Terzano (Deep Red), there is little doubt that Bava shot a lot Black Sabbath. Now whether or not that was due to this being his first solo job at directing or the collaborative process with the camera operator is up for discussion, the fact remains that the film has his influential eye throughout. His use of deep shadows as they play ghastly tricks across the faces and bodies of his actors and actresses and dement the backgrounds is unmistakably at play throughout. And so are the colors with deep greens, reds, and strong blues standing out.

For a lot of Horror Hounds, Mario Bava’s Black Sabbath is where their journey into the dark begins, making this release a MUST OWN.  It is now a part of Shout Factory’s The Mario Bava Collection.

Shout Factory Exclusive / Limited Deluxe Edition / Blu-ray - 2,500 copies

Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - July 31, 2025
Screen Formats: 1.66:1
Subtitles: English SDH
Video: MPEG-4 AVC
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Twelve-disc set
Region Encoding: blu-ray locked to Region A

Boris Karloff is your host for Bava's 1963 classic triptych of terror which set new standards in graphic violence and spellbinding horror!  Michèle Mercier stars in "The Telephone" as a woman haunted by menacing phone calls. In "The Wurdalak," Karloff stars with Mark Damon as the patriarch of a family of bloodthirsty ghouls. And in "The Drop Of Water," Jacqueline Pierreux is a nurse stalked by the vengeful spirit of a dead medium.

VIDEO

The film is presented with a 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer using an aspect ratio of 1.66:1.  The ambitious scale of Bava's atmospherics is represented in absorbing style with an image that is surprisingly clean given the age of the film, without any over-processing lending the picture an artificial appearance.  Certainly, despite the clarity of the presentation, the film is still allowed to breathe and retains a level of grain that ensures an authentic and credible appearance.  Even dark scenes are rarely problematic, with the blacks proving extremely solid, and the level of accuracy ensuring that this gothic masterpiece is visually absorbing throughout.

AUDIO

The audio is presented in a solid English DTS-HD Master Audio English With English SDH Subtitles.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• There are several.  See the breakdown below!

Special Features:

Shout Factory includes several NEW commentaries, each one presenting the film with its long and labored release history.

BLACK SABBATH (INTERNATIONAL VERSION – 1.85:1, 92 MINUTES):

• Audio: Italian DTS-Master Audio Mono With English Subtitles
• NEW Audio Commentary With Film Critic Meagan Navarro
• NEW Audio Commentary With Film Critic Brian Keiper
• NEW Audio Commentary With Dr. Karen Stollznow, Matt Baxter, And Blake Smith
• NEW Audio Commentary With Film Critic Bill Bria
• Trailers From Hell – Interview With Filmmaker Mick Garris
• Trailers
• TV Spot
• Still Gallery

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	Extras
Composite 4K UHD Grade

Black Sabbath (1963)

MPAA Rating: Approved.
Runtime: 97 mins
Director: Mario Bava
Writer: Anton Chekhov
Cast: Michèle Mercier; Lidia Alfonsi; Boris Karloff
Genre: Horror
Tagline: This is the night of the nightmare...
Memorable Movie Quote: "You have no reason to be afraid."
Theatrical Distributor: American International Pictures
Official Site: https://shoutfactory.com/products/the-mario-bava-collection-limited-deluxe-edition#
Release Date: May 6, 1964
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: July 31, 2025
Synopsis: Boris Karloff hosts a trio of horror stories about a stalked call girl, a vampire-like monster who preys on his family, and a nurse who is haunted by her ring's rightful owner.