Written by: Michael Den Boer on October 12th, 2009
Theatrical Release Date: France, 1980
Director: Raphaël Delpard
Writer: Raphaël Delpard, Richard Joffo
Cast: Isabelle Goguey, Charlotte de Turckheim, Betty Beckers, Michel Debrane, Ernest Menzer, Georges Lucas, Germaine Delbat, Michel Duchezeau, Jeannette Batti, Jean-Paul Lilienfeld, Nicole Landan
DVD released: October 27th, 2009
Approximate running time: 94 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Rating: NR
Sound: Dolby Digital Mono French
Subtitles: English
DVD Release: Synapse Films
Region Coding: Region 0 NTSC
Retail Price: $19.95
Synopsis: Unhappy with her life a young woman named Martine returns to work after a long absence. She finds employment at Deadlock House a retirement home as a nurse. Shortly after her arrival she befriends a young woman named Nicole who also works as a nurse at Deadlock House. Having arrived a day earlier then she was expected Martine decides to spend her last night before she begins work at Deadlock House with her boyfriend Serge. When Martine arrives in the morning Nicole has vanished and the directress who is in charge of Deadlock House tells her that Nicole was fired. Not satisfied with the directresses answer, Martine digs deeper for the truth behind Nicole’s disappearance. Will Martine’s search for the truth put her in danger?
From its opening moments right until its conclusion Night of Death never strays too far away from your standard horror cliches. There are a few red herrings (even if they are painfully obvious) that keep things moving along. The secret as to what that residents of Deadlock House are up to is revealed in the first act and the last two acts is spent trying to keep the Martine character from discovering too much before she is ready for the fate that befell all the women who preceded her. One of things that makes this film as well as it does is its rogue gallery of oddball characters, especially the crippled groundskeeper Flavian. The films claustrophobic visual style fully exploits the films main location, Deadlock House. The cinematographer on Night of Death was Marcel Combes (Don’t Deliver Us from Evil). Another area where the film excels it is piercing string driven score. Performance wise the cast are more than adequate in their respective roles. Ultimately Night of Death is a creepy film that has satisfying amount of bloodshed.
The DVD:
Synapse Film’s presents Night of Death in an anamorphic widescreen that preserves the film’s original aspect ratio. This transfer has been flagged for progressive playback. Colors look vibrant and nicely saturated, flesh tones look healthy, black levels and details remain strong throughout. Edge enhancement is kept in check and print damage is minimal.
This release comes with one audio option a Dolby Digital mono mix in French and removable English subtitles have been provided. The audio is in good shape as dialog is always clear and everything sounds balanced.
This release comes with no extra content. Overall Night of Death gets a solid audio / video presentation from Synapse Films.