Elvira: Mistress Of The Dark 4K Ultra HD

In "Elvira: Mistress Of The Dark," Elvira (Cassandra Peterson) receives the unexpected news that she's set to inherit part of her great aunt Morgana's estate. Arriving in the small town of Fallwell, Massachusetts to claim her inheritance, Elvira receives a less than enthusiastic reception from the conservative locals –– amongst them, her sinister uncle Vincent, who, unbeknownst to Elvira, is in fact an evil warlock secretly schaming to steal the old family spellbook for his own nefarious ends. (Gary Reber)

Special features include introduction to the film by Director James Signorelli; 2017 commentary with Signorelli; 2017 commentary with Patterson Lundquist; archival commentary with Actors Cassandra Peterson, and Edie McClung and Writer John Paragon; the featurette "Too Macabre –– The Making Of Elvira: Mistress Of The Dark" (HD 01:37:03) and "Recipe For Terror: The Creation Of The Pot Monster" (HD 22:12); original storyboards; extensive image galleries; original theatrical and teaser trailers; reversible sleeve and illustrated collector's booklet.

The 1.85:1 2160p HEVC/H.265 4K Ultra HD Dolby Vision/HDR10 picture, reviewed on a VIZIO Quantum X P85QX-JI UHD/HDR display, was photographed on 35 mm film stock using the Ultracam 35 camera system and sourced from a new 4K restoration by Arrow Video in 4K master Digital Intermediate format. Film grain is prominent at times but never objectionable. The color palette exhibits saturated hues that are rich and warm yet perfectly natural. Primaries are strong. Elvira's inherited house is transformed from a dull brown deterioration to bright primary-based colors. The Fallwell townscape is realistic. Interiors are colorful, Flesh tones are naturally hued. HDR contrast is excellent. Elvira's all black attire and black wig are stunning throughout and project dimension in every frame. Anything black is deep and solid. Shadow delineation is excellent. White levels appear natural. Resolution also is excellent with fine detail exhibited in Elvira's makeup, and otherwise in skin pores, lines, beard stubble and hair. Clothing exhibits fine fabric texture. Building features and objects are texturally detailed. This is a bright visually fun picture that will please fans of Cassandra Peterson's classic wacky iconic character Elvira. (Gary Reber)

The Dolby Stereo LPCM 2.0 soundtrack is undistinguished and sounds monaural with no stereo separation. Otherwise, fidelity is generally good across all sound elements. Dialogue is intelligible throughout, which is the major sound element. This is a really fun soundtrack. (Gary Reber)