Radiance Films

[Susan Foreman]

'Tattooed Life' (1965)

Release date: September 23

"Tetsuo (Hideki Takahashi, Fighting Elegy), a low-level yakuza is double-crossed by his boss and attacked. His younger brother Kenji (Kotobuki Hananomoto, This Transient Life), an aspiring artist with no connections to crime, comes to his aid and kills Tetsuo's assailant. Fearing repercussions from the yakuza they flee to Manchuria where they risk coming under suspicion of rival gangs. Seijun Suzuki (Branded to Kill) remains loyal to the conventions of the yakuza film, but Tattooed Life contains flashes of his later creative genius, including a final act of explosive visual excess that has become one of the director?s all-time classic scenes."

Special features:

• High-Definition digital transfer
• Uncompressed mono PCM audio
• Audio commentary by William Carroll, author of Seijun Suzuki and Postwar Cinema (2024)
• Newly edited archival interview with Seijun Suzuki
• Newly edited archival interview with art director Takeo Kimura
• Trailer
• Newly improved English subtitle translation
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
• Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by Tom Vick and a newly translated archival review of the film
• Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

[Susan Foreman]

'Daiei Gothic - Japanese Ghost Stories' - Limited edition Blu-Ray pre-order available from Radiance Films direct - UK$44:99

Release date: October 28

"A collection of three of Japan's most famous ghost stories that have haunted people for centuries.

Kenji Misumi (Lone Wolf and Cub) directs The Ghost of Yotsuya, in which a woman returns from the grave as a horribly disfigured phantom to torment her husband and his new bride. In The Snow Woman, directed by Tokuzo Tanaka (Zatoichi), a woodcutter must keep his oath to a vengeful female spirit or pay the ultimate price. The Bride from Hades by Satsuo Yamamoto (Shinobi) sees a handsome samurai so enchanted by a courtesan's beauty that he fails to realise she is a ghost.

These three film versions from the Daiei studio form a pinnacle of atmospheric Japanese horror. Their elegant visuals and ominous shadows rival the best of Terence Fisher or Mario Bava, while their iconic female ghosts would greatly influence Asian genre cinema, from Hong Kong fantasy spectacles such as A Chinese Ghost Story to J-horror."

Limited Edition Contents

• New 4K restorations of The Bride from Hades and The Snow Woman
• High-Definition digital transfer of The Ghost of Yotsuya
• Uncompressed mono PCM audio for each film
• Optional English subtitles for all films
• Newly designed box and booklet artwork by Time Tomorrow
• Six postcards featuring original archive imagery from the films
• Limited edition 80-page perfect bound book featuring new writing by authors Tom Mes and Zack Davisson, newly translated archival reviews and ghost stories by Lafcadio Hearn
• Limited Edition of 4,000 copies presented in a rigid box with full-height Scanavo cases for each film and removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

Special features:
THE GHOST OF YOTSUYA

• New interview with filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa
• A visual essay on the history and adaptations of the classic Ghost of Yotsuya story by author Kyoko Hirano
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Filippo Di Battista

THE BRIDE FROM HADES

• Audio commentary by author Jasper Sharp
• New interview with filmmaker Hiroshi Takahashi
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Filippo Di Battista

THE SNOW WOMAN

• New interview with filmmaker Masayuki Ochiai
• A visual essay on writer Lafcadio Hearn
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Filippo Di Battista

[Susan Foreman]

'Dogra Magra' (1988) - Limited edition Blu-Ray pre-order available from Radiance Films direct - UK$17:99

Release date: October 28

"A man wakes in an asylum with no memory. Dr Wakabayashi helps him to recall his past in which he killed his bride on their wedding day. Part of his memory becomes linked to another doctor, Dr Masaki, and a manuscript, Dogra Magra. As the two doctors treat him, reality and fantasy become blurred and the patient becomes unsure of his identity or his doctors' experiments.

The final feature film by Toshio Matsumoto (Funeral Parade of Roses) is an adaptation of the celebrated novel by Kyusaku Yumeno, a period set gothic tale with a sense of dreamy dread that recalls Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Cure and the locked room mystery of Shutter Island.

A stunningly shot phantasmagoria by Tatsuo Suzuki (Pastoral: To Die in the Country), Dogra Magra is presented on Blu-ray for the first time outside of Japan."

Special features:

• High-Definition digital transfer supervised by director of photography Tatsuo Suzuki and producer Shuji Shibata
• Audio commentary by director Toshio Matsumoto (2003)
• Interview with Toshio Matsumoto (2003, 21 mins)
• A visual essay by programmer and curator Julian Ross (2024)
• Instructions on Ahodara Sutra (a popular Japanese chant delivered by Dr. Masaki in the film) by legendary street performer Hiroshi Sakano (16 mins)
• Trailer
• New and improved English subtitles
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
• Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by Hirofumi Sakamoto, president of the Postwar Japan Moving Image Archive and author Jasper Sharp on screenwriter Atsushi Yamatoya plus an interview with producer Shuji Shibata and Matsumoto?s director?s statement
• Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

[Susan Foreman]

'Haxan' (1922) - Limited edition Blu-Ray pre-order available from Radiance Films direct - UK$22:99

Release date: October 28

"A series of eerie vignettes depict images of sorcery and evil on screen, from representations of occultism and religious hypocrisy to a chilling witch hunt in the Middle Ages.

Directed by and starring Benjamin Christensen as the Devil, Haxan mixes documentary and fiction forms to create an unsettling brew that prefigures everything from Gothic horror to the found footage film.

This legendary horror film was released in numerous edits and this edition collects four such versions of the film for the first time in the UK, including a 2K restoration by the original production company Svensk Filmindustri."

Special features:

• 2K restoration by Svensk Filmindustri, presented with three optional scores, by Matti Bye (2006), Bronnt Industries Kapital (2007), and Geoff Smith (2007)
• Witchcraft through the Ages - an alternate cut of the film featuring narration by William S. Boroughs and soundtrack by Jean-Luc Ponty (1968, 77 mins)
• Haxan - The Esoteric Cut - an alternate cut of the film featuring English intertitles and soundtrack by Lawrence Leherissey (Date unknown, 84 mins)
• Witchcraft through the Ages - a French version of the film featuring narration by Jean-Pierre Kalfon (1990, 82 mins)
• Introduction by director Benjamin Christensen (1941, 8 mins)
• Outtakes (1922, 12 mins)
• Recently discovered costume screen test (1922, 2 mins)
• Visual essay by Vito A. Rowlands, author of the forthcoming BFI Film Classics edition of Haxan (2024)
• Audio commentary by Guy Adams and A.K. Benedict (2024)
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
• Six postcards of original promotional stills
• Limited edition 80-page book featuring new writing by Pamela Hutchinson, Daniel Bird, Kat Ellinger, Brad Stevens plus archival writing and extracts from the press book
• Limited edition of 6000 copies, presented in rigid box and full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

[Susan Foreman]

'I Vampiri' (1957) - Limited edition Blu-Ray pre-order available from Radiance Films direct - UK$17:99

Release date: October 28

"A mad scientist captures young women in Paris and drains them of their blood in service of an evil Duchess.

Also known as Lust of the Vampire, Riccardo Freda's I vampiri mixes the Bathory and Frankenstein stories to create its gothic tale, Italy's first horror film.

Made as a challenge by Freda at breakneck speed, cinematographer Mario Bava would complete direction and post-production of the film, adding his signature in the process. With its baroque imagery and stunning visuals, I vampiri forged the path for Italian horror and remains a landmark of Italian cinema history."

Special features:

• 2K restoration of the film presented with Italian and English audio
• Audio commentary by Tim Lucas (2023)
• Thirst of Blood - a featurette on the making of the film with Fabio Melelli, Mario Bava and Dario Michaelis
• Interview with Lamberto Bava
• Interview with Leon Hunt, author of Mario Bava: The Artisan as Italian Horror Auteur (2024)
• Trailers
• Reversible sleeve featuring artwork based on original posters
• Booklet featuring new writing by Roberto Curti, author of Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1957-1969
• Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

[Susan Foreman]

'Planet of the Vampires' (1965) - Limited edition Blu-Ray - UK$22:99

Release date: May 27

"In the outer reaches of deep space, the spaceship Galliott answers a distress signal from Aura, an unexplored planet. As the ship attempts to land, members of the crew inexplicably begin to attack one another. This is the start of a terrifying expedition into the unknown, one plagued by paranoia, possession and violent mayhem wrought upon the unsuspecting explorers by the planet's mysterious inhabitants.

A sci-fi horror hybrid from genre master Mario Bava (Blood and Black Lace), Planet of the Vampires is widely regarded as one of the most influential genre films ever made, with a clear influence on films such as Alien and Pitch Black.

With a uniquely chilly atmosphere and fantastic production design that belies its low budget origins, Planet of the Vampires is a true genre classic."

Special features:

• 4K scan of the film from the original negative under the supervision of Lamberto Bava and carried out at Fotocinema in Rome in collaboration with CSC Cineteca Nazionale
• High-Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the Italian (90 mins) and English (88 mins) versions of the film
• Uncompressed mono audio
• Archival audio commentary by Tim Lucas, author of Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark (2014)
• A documentary feature which explores Planet of the Vampires, Mario Bava and the connection between gothic and science fiction. Co-directed by Dima Ballin and Kat Ellinger; featuring interviews with Guy Adams, Xavier Aldana Reyes, Alexandra Benedict, Johnny Mains and John Llewellyn Probert (2024)
• Archival interview with Lamberto Bava
• Super 8 Version - a reconstruction of the cut-down version distributed as Planet der Vampire (17 mins)
• Joe Dante and Josh Olsen trailer commentaries - the filmmakers provide a short overview of the film (2013)
• Trailers
• Press and image gallery from the Tim Lucas / Alan Y. Upchurch collection
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
• Limited edition 80-page book featuring new writing by Kyle Anderson, Martyn Conterio, Barry Forshaw, George Daniel Lea and Jerome Reuter plus archival materials
• A collection of six exclusive postcards featuring promotional material
• Limited edition of 5000 copies, presented in rigid box and full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

Standard Edition pre-order - UK$17:99

Release date: October 28

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

The documentary on Planet of the Vampires got me thinking.

There were some beautifully restored clips from Black Sunday and Black Sabbath, not to mention I' Vampirii.

As the doc ended there was no credit to any other company for these clips unlike some of the other clips on the disc.

Makes me think Radiance also have those three Bava's to release as well.

Well, well, well. My thinking was correct after seeing those clips on the Planet of the Vampires disc.

[g053584398]

It seems incredible to me that in a very short period time Radiance has become one of the finest Blu-ray labels in the world.

[Susan Foreman]

According to MelonFarmers, Fernando di Leo's 'Manhunt in Milan' (1972) has been passed '15' (uncut) by the BBFC, and is due to be released by Radiance Films in 2024

"When a shipment of heroin disappears between Italy and New York, a small-time pimp in Milan is framed for the theft. Two professional hitmen are dispatched from New York to find him, but the real thieves want to get rid of him before the New York killers get to him to eliminate any chance of them finding out he's the wrong man. When the pimp's wife and daughter are murdered in the course of the "manhunt", he swears revenge on everyone who had anything to do with it. "

[Rob4]

I lobbied Arrow to have a look at releasing Daiei horror films around 8 years ago. I'd like to think that Fran filed that away as a future possibility and this is the fruition of that...