THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE
THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE
THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE
THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE
THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE
THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE

THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF TOD SLAUGHTER: EIGHT BLOOD-AND-THUNDER ENTERTAINMENTS, 1935-1940 - LE

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MARIA MARTEN, OR THE MURDER IN THE RED BARN (Milton Rosmer, 1935)
SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET (George King, 1936)
THE CRIMES OF STEPHEN HAWKE (George King, 1936)
IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND (David MacDonald, 1937)
THE TICKET OF LEAVE MAN (George King, 1937)
SEXTON BLAKE AND THE HOODED TERROR (George King, 1938)
THE FACE AT THE WINDOW (George King, 1939)
CRIMES AT THE DARK HOUSE (David MacDonald, 1940)

Release date: 20 November 2023
Limited Edition Blu-ray Box Set (World and UK Blu-ray premieres)

The terrifying talents of Newcastle’s Norman Carter ‘Tod’ Slaughter – the first true icon of British horror cinema – are showcased in this long-overdue box set. Featuring the eight films which ‘Europe’s Horror Man’ made in collaboration with British producer-director George King (Tomorrow We Live), this comprehensive collection also includes a number of rare shorts and newsreel items.

Unlike his contemporaries, such as Boris Karloff and Charles Laughton, Tod Slaughter never left his native shores. Instead, he chose to make his mark in Britain by transferring his most sensational theatrical performances to the screen. Portraying every kind of cruel and cunning criminal – from petty thief to mass murderer – he became the first great villain of British horror, at a time before the Grand Guignol of Hammer Films began to take hold, without once donning monster make-up.

Criminally overlooked by film historians, and only previously seen in compromised versions, these fascinating films have been newly restored using original film materials preserved at the BFI National Archive, and are accompanied by an array of essential contextualising extras, including archival short films and radio plays presented with optional soundtracks by British music legends Current 93, newly recorded commentaries, critical appreciations and personal recollections, and a 120-page book. Strictly limited to 6,000 individually numbered units for the UK and US.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 4 x BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

DISC ONE

  • Brand-new restorations from 4K scans of the original nitrate negatives of Maria Marten, or The Murder at the Red Barn and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Powerhouse Films
  • Original mono audio
  • Audio commentary with film historians Josephine Botting and Vic Pratt on Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn (2023)
  • Audio commentary with critics and authors Stephen Jones and Kim Newman on Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2023)
  • A Long Shadow (2023, 11 mins): interview with artist and illustrator Ania Goszczyńska and Current 93 channeller and trance scribbler David Tibet, in which the pair delve into their obsession with Tod Slaughter and the Red Barn Murder
  • Original 78 rpm audio-play recordings of Maria Marten, or The Murder at the Red Barn (1932, 13 mins) and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1932, 13 mins), performed by Tod Slaughter and Company, and presented with new, optional alternative Current 93 scores
  • Tod Slaughter at Home (1936, 4 mins): mock interview with Sweeney Todd, recorded for the Pathétone newsreel series
  • Pots of Plots (1938, 4 mins): short film in which Slaughter, sitting at his make-up station in his dressing room, reprises three of his famous villainous roles, including Sweeney Todd
  • Bothered by a Beard (1946, 35 mins): light-hearted short educational film about the history of shaving, featuring a scene in Sweeney Todd’s famous barber shop
  • Puzzle Corner Number Fourteen (1954, 19 mins): Slaughter’s last big-screen appearance on camera, delivering a Sweeney Todd monologue
  • Image galleries: promotional and publicity materials
  • New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • World premieres on Blu-ray

DISC TWO

  • Brand-new restorations from 4K scans of the original nitrate negatives of The Crimes of Stephen Hawke and It’s Never Too Late to Mend by Powerhouse Films
  • Original mono audio
  • Audio commentary with critics and authors David McGillivray and Kim Newman on The Crimes of Stephen Hawke (2023)
  • Audio commentary with film historians Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby on It’s Never Too Late to Mend (2023)
  • London After Dark (1926, 7 mins): first known film footage of Tod Slaughter, captured whilst performing on stage at the Elephant & Castle Theatre, presented with new, optional Current 93 score
  • Image galleries: promotional and publicity materials
  • The Crimes of Stephen Hawke script treatment gallery
  • New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • World premieres on Blu-ray


DISC THREE

  • Brand-new restoration from a 4K scan of the original nitrate negative of The Ticket of Leave Man by Powerhouse Films
  • Brand-new restoration from a 4K scan of a 35mm dupe positive of Sexton Blake and the Hooded Terror by Powerhouse Films
  • Original mono audio
  • Audio commentary with film historian Josephine Botting and podcaster Dave Thomas on The Ticket of Leave Man (2023)
  • Audio commentary with critics and authors Stephen Jones and Kim Newman on Sexton Blake and the Hooded Terror (2023)
  • Shock Factor (2023, 11 mins): interviews with Imogen Slaughter, greatniece of Tod Slaughter, and her father Giles, in which they discuss their relative’s life off stage and off camera
  • Slaughter’s Stock (2023, 12 mins): visual essay detailing the actors who worked with Slaughter time and again during his collaborations with George King
  • Image galleries: promotional and publicity materials
  • New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • World premieres on Blu-ray


DISC FOUR

  • 2020 restoration from a 4K scan of the original nitrate negative of The Face at the Window
  • Brand-new restoration from a 4K scan of the original nitrate negative of Crimes at the Dark House by Powerhouse Films
  • Original mono audio
  • Audio commentary with film historians Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby on The Face at the Window and Crimes at the Dark House (2023)
  • Full-Blooded (2023, 59 mins): author and musician Stephen Thrower explores Tod Slaughter’s Victorian villainous incarnations across his collaborations with George King
  • Image galleries: promotional and publicity materials, and a miscellany of items from Slaughter’s life and theatrical career
  • New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • UK premiere on Blu-ray of The Face at the Window
  • World premiere on Blu-ray of Crimes at the Dark House


  • Limited edition exclusive 120-page book with new essays by Jean-Claude Michel, Ania Goszczyńska and David Tibet, Doug Young and Kip-Xool, excerpts from Slaughter’s unpublished memoirs, archival articles and reviews, and full film credits
  • Limited edition box set of 6,000 individually numbered units for the UK and US


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BBFC cert: 12
REGION FREE
EAN: 5060697922073

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