The Film Detective has another Blu-ray lined up in the form of Francis Ford Coppola’s Dementia 13 for release on July 26. Like a number of previous releases from The Film Detective Dementia 13 was previously released on Blu-ray by HD Cinema Classics/Film Chest Media Group. The hope here is that The Film Detective will improve on the release much like they have with their past films.

I’m a big fan of Dementia 13 and very much looking forward to this release. There were a number of DVDs released over the years, each one with rather poor quality. The HD Cinema Classics Blu-ray was definitely the best, but it did suffer from too much DNR that removed basically all grain and detail. Fingers crossed that The Film Detective is able to deliver on something better, however, expectations shouldn’t be too high as it doesn’t seem like any source materials available are actually in great shape. Given their track record up to this point, I trust The Film Detective will give us something that will be an upgrade.

Official Press Release:
Written and directed by Coppola (The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation) at just 24-years-old, Dementia 13 is considered his first mainstream, “legitimate” directorial effort. Backed by funds leftover from one of Corman’s (Death Race, The Terror, The Little Shop of Horrors) other projects – on which Coppola worked as a sound technician – the fledgling director wrote the screenplay in one night, bringing Corman’s idea for a low-budget, extremely brutal, gothic-themed Psycho knockoff to life.

Although Coppola promised “lots of sex and violence,” Corman later battled with Coppola and hired the “exploitation master,” director Jack Hill (Foxy Brown, Coffy, Spider Baby), to shoot additional scenes of carnage.

For years, it was rumored the film’s print had mysteriously disappeared. Now, the horror classic has received The Film Detective touch, delivering a crisp picture with quality sound.

Commented film industry veteran Phil Hopkins, owner of The Film Detective, “As a huge enthusiast of Dementia 13, I’m very proud to be releasing the film on Blu-ray for the first time in its correct aspect ratio. The Film Detective team took great care improving the picture and sound quality and the restored 35mm HD transfer looks incredible. I hope fans old and new will appreciate it!”

Synopsis:
Dementia 13 centers on the dysfunctional Haloran family, which has converged at the family castle in Ireland to enact a morbid ritual in remembrance of the deceased daughter of Lady Haloran (Ethne Dunn, The Mutations, No Resting Place). Secrets abound and soon there is a mysterious interloper prowling the grounds with a big axe to grind. Extremely engaging and well-photographed, Dementia 13 is a bone-chilling classic sure to thrill horror enthusiasts and Coppola fans alike.