NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST / ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES. (DVD Artwork). ©Film Masters.
Producer Roger Corman and director Bernard Kowalski’s “Night of the Blood Beast” and “Attack of the Giant Leeches” will be available on Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday, Nov. 12, as a two-disc special collector’s edition from Film Masters.
Executive producer Roger Corman (“The Little Shop of Horrors”) unleashes hideous aqua beasts and horrors from outer space in two of his most memorable thrillers. In 1958’s “Night of the Blood Beast,” now restored from a new 4K scan of original 35mm archival elements, astronaut John Corcoran (Michael Emmet, “Boots and Saddles”) dies upon returning to Earth following a space mission, but mysteriously comes back to life. As the scientists at a remote space research station investigate Corcoran’s revival, they discover that a parasitic, alien lifeform is utilizing his body as a host to incubate its offspring.
Meanwhile, in 1959’s “Attack of the Giant Leeches,” newly restored in HD, massive, bloodsucking monsters are at large. Legendary Yvette Vickers (“Attack of the 50-Foot Woman”) stars along with Jan Shepard (“Paradise, Hawaiian Style”), Ken Clark (“None but the Lonely Spy”) and some very nasty, giant leeches!
Both films are presented with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, with “Night of the Blood Beast” also available with a TV aspect ratio of 1.37:1. Special features on the release include “Made From TV: Bernard Kowalski as a Director,” a new featurette from Ballyhoo Motion Pictures with film historian/screenwriter C. Courtney Joyner and audio readings by Andrew Fenady, Jr.; “Mystery Science Theater 3000” episodes featuring “Night of the Blood Beast” and “Attack of the Giant Leeches;” an 8mm silent digest version of “Night of the Blood Beast;” feature-length commentary tracks by Tom Weaver and The Weaver Players for both films; a Yvette Vickers slideshow from the private collection of Tom Weaver; re-cut trailers for both films using restored elements; publicity and still slideshows of both films, courtesy of Mike Barnum; a before/after film restoration comparison for “Night of the Blood Beast;” and a full-color, inserted booklet with original essays by Tom Weaver.
