Castle Freak (1995) (Blu-ray Review)
Directed By: Stuart Gordon
Starring: Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, Jonathan Fuller
Rated: R/Region: A/Widescreen/1080p/Number of disc: 1
Available from Full Moon
A troubled couple and their blind daughter come to Italy to visit a 12th Century castle they’ve inherited. Soon they are plagued by unexplained noises, mysteriously broken objects, and the daughter’s claims of an unknown nocturnal visitor to her bedroom. When the housekeeper and a local prostitute and are discovered savagely murdered in the castle’s dungeon, John must unlock the castle’s secret to save himself from jail and his family from the castle’s secret inhabitant.
I like just about every Stuart Gordon film I have ever seen, but I knew something wasn’t right when this movie wraps up with Barbra Crampton still fully clothed. All jokes aside the movie is still a keeper overall. We have Crampton and we also have Jeffery Combs. Those two actors always make for a winning combination in a film. Together, they play a couple having some very bad issues. They also have a cute blind daughter. The best part of the film however is the “freak” in the basement that also has the hots for their little girl. This leads to some cool gore and some graphic shots of this monster of a man’s junk, but it is still entertaining in that Stuart Gordon fashion.
The only negative side to this film is its pacing. This is one film that does try to work on a slow burn method and I feel it hurts it more than it helps it. We have the freak of the castle waiting far too long to go on his rampage. I enjoy what happens when the mess hits the fan, but it does take a little while to get to that point. The stuff with the cops and Comb’s character are also a little typical but ultimately harmless. This still ranks as one of Full Moon Entertainment’s best offerings of the time and by a large majority it blows away most if not all of their current stuff. The transfer won’t blow you away, but it looks way better than my DVD of it.
– Castle Speak with Stuart Gordon
– Original Castle Freak VideoZone
– William Shatner Interviews with Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, and Stuart Gordon
– Trailers
