The Criminal Acts of Tod Slaughter: Eight Blood-And-Thunder Entertainments (Blu-ray)

The Criminal Acts of Tod Slaughter: Eight Blood-and-Thunder Entertainments, 1935-1940 (US Limited Edition Blu-ray Box Set)

Directors: George King, David MacDonald, Milton Rosmer

Cast: Tod Slaughter, Eric Portman, David Farrar

The terrifying talents of Newcastle’s Norman Carter ‘Tod’ Slaughter – the first true icon of British horror cinema – are showcased in this long-overdue box set. Featuring the eight films which ‘Europe’s Horror Man’ made in collaboration with British producer-director George King (Tomorrow We Live), this comprehensive collection also includes a number of rare shorts and newsreel items.

Unlike his contemporaries, such as Boris Karloff and Charles Laughton, Tod Slaughter never left his native shores. Instead, he chose to make his mark in Britain by transferring his most sensational theatrical performances to the screen. Portraying every kind of cruel and cunning criminal – from petty thief to murderer – he became the first great villain of British horror, at a time before the Grand Guignolof Hammer Films began to take hold, without once donning monster make-up.

Criminally overlooked by film historians, and only previously seen in compromised versions, these fascinating films have been newly restored using original film materials preserved at the British Film Institute (BFI) National Archive, and are accompanied by an array of essential contextualizing extras, including archival short films and radio plays presented with optional soundtracks by British music legends Current 93, newly recorded commentaries, critical appreciations and personal recollections, and a 12

The set includes:

• MARIA MARTEN, OR THE MURDER IN THE RED BARN (Milton Rosmer, 1935)
• SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET (George King, 1936)
• THE CRIMES OF STEPHEN HAWKE (George King, 1936)
• IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND (David MacDonald, 1937)
• THE TICKET OF LEAVE MAN (George King, 1937)
• SEXTON BLAKE AND THE HOODED TERROR (George King, 1938)
• THE FACE AT THE WINDOW (George King, 1939)
• CRIMES AT THE DARK HOUSE (George King, 1940)

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 4 x BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

• New 2K restorations of Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, The Crimes of Stephen Hawke, It’s Never Too Late to Mend, The Ticket of Leave Man, and Crimes at the Dark Housefrom original nitrate negative elements
• Limited edition exclusive 120-page book with new essays by Jean-Claude Michel, Ania Goszczyn´ska and David Tibet, Doug Young and Kip-Xool, excerpts from Slaughter’s unpublished memoirs, archival essays and reviews, and film credits
• 2K restoration of Sexton Blake and The Hooded Terror from 35mm dupe positive
• HD remaster of The Face at the Window
• Original mono soundtracks
• Audio commentary with film historians Josephine Botting and Vic Pratt on Maria Marten, or Murder in the Red Barn (2023)
• Audio commentary with critics and authors Stephen Jones and Kim Newman on Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2023)
• Audio commentary with critics and authors David McGillivray and Kim Newman on The Crimes of Stephen Hawke (2023)
• Audio commentary with film historian Josephine Botting and podcaster Dave Thomas on The Ticket of Leave Man (2023)
• Audio commentary with critics and authors Stephen Jones and Kim Newman on Sexton Blake and The Hooded Terror (2023)
• Audio commentary with film historians Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby on The Face at the Window (2023)
• Audio commentary with film historians Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby on Crimes at the Dark House (2023)
• New interviews with Imogen Slaughter, great-niece of Tod Slaughter, and her father Giles, in which they discuss their famous relative’s life off stage and off camera (2023)
• New interview with artist and illustrator Ania Goszczynska and Current 93 channeller and trance scribbler David Tibet, in which the pair delve into their long-term obsession with the life and work of the first British villain (2023)
• Maria Marten and Sweeney Todd radio plays (1932): newly remastered from original 78 rpm shellac discs, these original recordings are presented with optional, newly recorded Current 93 scores
• London After Dark (1926): first known film footage of Slaughter, captured on stage at the Elephant and Castle Theatre, presented with optional, newly recorded Current 93 score
• Tod Slaughter at Home (1936): mock interview with Sweeney Todd, recorded for the Pathétone newsreel
• Pots of Plots (1938): short film in which Slaughter, sitting at the make-up station in his dressing room, reprises three of his infamous villainous roles, including Sweeney Todd
• Image galleries: promotional and publicity material for all eight films
• Puzzle Corner No. 14 (1954): Slaughter’s last appearance on camera, delivering a Sweeney Todd monologue
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Limited edition box set of 6,000 numbered units for the UK and US

Starring: Eric Portman, Tod Slaughter

Rating: NR