8mm Forum


  
my profile | my password | search | faq | register | forum home
  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» 8mm Forum   » 8mm Print Reviews   » Curse Of The Crimson Altar - Walton 200ft.

 - UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!    
Author Topic: Curse Of The Crimson Altar - Walton 200ft.
Kevin Wardle
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 136
From: Durham - England
Registered: Jul 2009


 - posted August 01, 2009 06:23 AM      Profile for Kevin Wardle     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
 -

Curse Of The Crimson Altar - Walton 200ft Colour/Sound.

I got this copy with my 'Castle Of Death' Walton print, it was from the same seller and was sealed, too! I think it cost me £9, which was a bargain!

Now, there are two versions of this film on super 8. This one from Walton and one called 'The Crimson Cult' which was from Ken films in the USA. Both are very different and are well worth finding.

For now I will review the Walton version, as I haven't seen the Ken version in ages.

Robert Manning, played by Coronation Street's bad boy, Mark Egan pays a visit to a country house to look for his missing brother. While he's there he has weird dreams, finds stab marks on his body, blood tracks all over the house and Boris Karloff. Karloff tells him that there is a Curse on the house, that of Lavinia Morley (played by horror legend Barbara Steele), who was burned as a witch years ago! Enter Christopher Lee who may or may not be responsible? You will have to see the movie to find out! The full length feature, witch, sorry "which" was directed by Vernon Sewell is very rambling at times, and gives more in the way of suspense rather than out and out horror. Walton released a 2x400ft version of this and a very good trailer, which I still have in my collection & with excellent colour.

The Walton print is much better than the Ken version and has better colour. The Walton print is longer, too. If you have both versions or can get them, you might want to edit them together to make a more complete and longer version. However, before you start, make sure you really want to do this as both films have very different print stocks and sound tracks, etc..

Colour and sound are very good and the film come on a full reel! Walton always gave you a good full reel of film!

Picture A/B Sound A

 -
Ken Films version, note the film is in B/W Sound. You could get the Walton version in Colour/Sound and B/W Silent & B/W Sound!

[ August 01, 2009, 02:19 PM: Message edited by: Kevin Wardle ]

 |  IP: Logged

John Hourigan
Master Film Handler

Posts: 301
From: Colorado U.S.A.
Registered: Sep 2003


 - posted August 01, 2009 06:06 PM      Profile for John Hourigan   Email John Hourigan       Edit/Delete Post 
Several years ago, I had the Ken (color) version and only watched it once before giving it away. The digest made absolutely no sense and didn't have much in terms of entertainment value.

 |  IP: Logged

Kevin Wardle
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 136
From: Durham - England
Registered: Jul 2009


 - posted August 02, 2009 02:59 AM      Profile for Kevin Wardle     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Sometimes Ken films were badly edited. Just shows you how good Walton's releases were! [Big Grin]

 |  IP: Logged

Paul Spinks
Master Film Handler

Posts: 453
From: Barking, Essex, UK
Registered: Mar 2006


 - posted August 02, 2009 08:37 AM      Profile for Paul Spinks   Email Paul Spinks   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The problem with the Ken release is the awful narrator (not in the Walton versions) making factual errors. He refers to Professor Marsh as "Mr. Boris" and when Robert Manning finds Elder's body he says it is the body of his missing brother, Peter. It does have scenes that are not in the Walton versions however. I have the 2X400ft Walton mini feature of this film which is an excellent edit, however by adding the scenes from Ken Films "The Crimsom Cult" you get a slightly longer version. These scenes include Robert Mannings visit to the Police station, longer scenes with Barbara Steele and the finding of Elder's body. You need to re record the sound where the narrator appears but as these are non dialogue scenes it is a very easy job to do by just using the background action music from the Walton print. It's a great film and luckily my prints have held up rather well, which is just as well as Lavinia Morley wouldn't look good in any other colour but green. I always show it as part of a double bill with "Horror Hotel" (1960).

Paul.

 |  IP: Logged

Douglas Meltzer
Moderator

Posts: 4554
From: New York, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted August 02, 2009 05:02 PM      Profile for Douglas Meltzer   Email Douglas Meltzer   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Kevin,

Thanks for the review. The Ken Films' version is absolutely one of their worst releases. I did edit the Walton 2x400' and the Ken 200 footer together, but in my case the color on the Ken print has held up much better than the Walton.

Doug

--------------------
I think there's room for just one more film.....

 |  IP: Logged

Kevin Wardle
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 136
From: Durham - England
Registered: Jul 2009


 - posted August 03, 2009 04:22 PM      Profile for Kevin Wardle     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I ran my two extracts today and the Ken print has faded quite badly, but has part of the original titles. The Ken version is badly edited. My Walton print has excellent colour and sound and is very well edited. Karloff gets much more screen time than in the Ken version. I love the box art of the Ken version.

 |  IP: Logged

Brad Kimball
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1171
From: Highland Mills, NY USA
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted August 03, 2009 10:29 PM      Profile for Brad Kimball   Email Brad Kimball   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I hate the KEN version - OMG it's such a piece of crap. I remember having to run to my local video store to rent a copy on VHS (which was a bottlegged copy the proprietor taped off of cable) in order to understand what the heck was going on. And you're right, the narration is all wrong. Speaking of which, has anyone else noticed that it's the same narrator for both the KEN and COLUMBIA digests - were the KEN sound digests out-sourced to COLUMBIA? I mean how else do you explain the identical narrator?

 |  IP: Logged

Mark Williams
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 846
From: West Sussex
Registered: Mar 2007


 - posted August 04, 2009 05:09 AM      Profile for Mark Williams   Email Mark Williams   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I agree that Ken cutdown was truly appalling,both extracts are actually availiable as extras on the German dvd of CRIMSON ALTER and surprise,surprise the Walton extract is the best looking of the two,this release is mostly in english too.

 |  IP: Logged

Joe Taffis
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1592
From: United States
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted December 19, 2009 06:46 PM      Profile for Joe Taffis   Email Joe Taffis   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I really like this Walton 200 footer and just ran it again. The color is still very good. As Kevin stated, you get your moneys' worth with this full reel of film! What a treat to see screen legends Boris Karloff and Christopher Lee together again! I'll be after the extended version now. [Smile]

--------------------
Joe Taffis

 |  IP: Logged

Hugh Thompson Scott
Film God

Posts: 3063
From: Gt. Clifton,Cumbria,England
Registered: Jan 2012


 - posted January 25, 2012 08:22 PM      Profile for Hugh Thompson Scott   Email Hugh Thompson Scott       Edit/Delete Post 
Don't know if anyone's aware but there was a 2x400 version put
out in the USA some years ago.I got this from Phil Sheard some
twenty years ago and finally got around to editng it into the old
Walton print and the 200' from Ken, which gives a nice running
time of about an hour.There are a couple of scenes in the trailer
I could have added but why ruin a nice trailer.Quality wise the
Walton print has better colour and definition but the USA 2x400
does have the complete front and end titles plus lots of different
scenes.

 |  IP: Logged

Paul Spinks
Master Film Handler

Posts: 453
From: Barking, Essex, UK
Registered: Mar 2006


 - posted January 31, 2012 09:01 AM      Profile for Paul Spinks   Email Paul Spinks   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
That alternative 2X400ft version sounds very interesting, I had never heard of it. Can you remember if it uses the original title or the US title on the opening credits?

 |  IP: Logged

Adrian Winchester
Film God

Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004


 - posted January 31, 2012 07:44 PM      Profile for Adrian Winchester     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Hugh - I'm also intrigued by the US 2 x400', which I've heard mentioned by one collector but have never seen. Any idea who released it?

--------------------
Adrian Winchester

 |  IP: Logged

Brian Hendel
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 902
From: New York, New York
Registered: Jun 2003


 - posted February 01, 2012 08:55 PM      Profile for Brian Hendel     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The 2 X 400' reel version was also put out by Walton. Maybe it was distributed by someone in the U.S... but it wasn't printed here. I have two prints - one with gorgeous color - one turned red... so they vary.

 |  IP: Logged

Hugh Thompson Scott
Film God

Posts: 3063
From: Gt. Clifton,Cumbria,England
Registered: Jan 2012


 - posted March 03, 2012 03:15 PM      Profile for Hugh Thompson Scott   Email Hugh Thompson Scott       Edit/Delete Post 
Hi Brian,the version I have edited in the Walton print is a totally
different edit to the Walton 2x400,including the American title
"The Crimson Cult".I got it from Phil in 1993 and remember him
saying it was better than Walton's print,which I didn't think it was
be it editing,definition or colour.The print is very similar to the
little Ken films 200' reel, but I have checked the leader and
that had been replaced, however the tail does say "part 2, long,
MOVIES INC. whoever they may be but Phil did say it was a U.S.
release and I have no reason to doubt him.That aside,the
version I have is very good and even has the part where during
the outdoor celebrations for the witch Lavinia Morley, poor old
Boris Karloff has a firework land in his lap! somehow I don't think that was supposed to happen but they left it in.I can't
believe that Walton had any thing to do with this 2x400 as
their prints were exemplary, case in point "WITCHFINDER
GENERAL" & "ONE MILLION YEARS BC" which I like to think I
might have had something to do with,because the Distributors
in the UK were tortured by me for years asking for this film to
be put out on 8mm,even 4x200 as the "Sinbad"&"Jason" had
been very popular and I was not too impressed with what was
on offer at the time,the callowness of youth.A similar thing
ensued with"Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" which wasn't going
to be released until after much armtwisting from yours truly
and a 35mm print from a certain well known reviewer and
success was at hand.

 |  IP: Logged



All times are Central  
   Close Topic    Move Topic    Delete Topic    next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:

Visit www.film-tech.com for free equipment manual downloads. Copyright 2003-2019 Film-Tech Cinema Systems LLC

Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM 6.3.1.2