Notable Cast: Gerard Tichy, Leo Anchoriz, Ombretta Colli,
Helga Line, Iran Eory, Vanni Materassi, Paco Moran, Emilia Wolkowicz, Harry
Winter
Arrow Video has delivered another one of those classic
box sets they are known for unleashing with their latest: Gothic Fantastico:
Four Italian Tales of Terror. Pulling together four films under a common
thematic and stylistic aspect, this set contains some 1960s cult cinema finds
with brand new 2K restorations, gorgeous packaging, and enough new
commentaries, essays, and interviews to impress any movie collector.
After the messy, but highly entertaining aspects of the
previous film in this box set, Lady Morgan’s Vengeance, my expectations
were established for The Blancheville Monster. Like the rest of the
films in this set, this one was going to be a blind watch, but if it was as
entertaining as the last one, I was going to be in fine hands. Yet, while the
gothic tones, sets, and final 10 minutes are effective, The Blancheville
Monster feels like a very obvious Roger Corman-style Edgar Allen Poe movie
knock-off - and one that is burdened by its pace and mystery.