The film “The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism” (German title: “Die Schlangengrube und das Pendel“) is available from today on the label “M-Square Pictures” on Blu-Ray, DVD and digitally. The film was outstandingly cast in 1967 with Lex Barker (Old Shatterhand), Karin Dor (Edgar Wallace movies) and Christopher Lee (Dracula) and is still one of the most sought-after films from this period. The director was the famous Austrian Harald Reinl, who created absolute milestones with “Winnetou 1-3“, “Schatz im Silbersee” or various Edgar Wallace films such as “The Frog with the Mask” or the war film “U 47 – Kapitänleutnant Prien“. One of the most legendary horror classics in German film history appears for the first time completely digitally revised by moviemax and re-scanned in HD on DVD and Blu-Ray! After the limited Mediabooks, the normal versions are now also available.
The film begins in 1801. Frederick Count Regula (Christopher Lee) is quartered for the murder of twelve virgins. Many years later the lawyer Roger Mont-Elise (Lex Barker) and the attractive baroness Lilian von Brabant (Karin Dor) received an invitation to the infamous Sander Valley. The drive through ghostly forests takes you directly into the ruins of Count Regula’s castle and his torture chamber. Nobody can yet suspect that the count’s resurrection is being prepared here, but for this he still needs the blood of a thirteenth virgin. While Regula and Anatol try to frighten Lilian to death with snakes and other horrible monsters, Roger is facing execution with a razor-sharp pendulum…
The idea of making a Edgar Allan Poe film came to Harald Reinl through the success of Roger Corman‘s films „The Fall of the House of Usher“, „Pit and the Pendulum“ and „The Masque of the Red Death“. However, the plan was not to make a faithful film version of Edgar Allan Poe‘s story ‘The Pit and the Pendulum‘. Screenwriter Manfred R. Köhler‘s treatment of the original story was therefore very carefree and generous.
Reversible cover
Equipment and technical data of the Blu-Ray
Image format WS 1.66: 1 / 1080p 24fps | Total running time of the Blu-Ray: 84 min | Sound: German DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (mono), English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Audio commentary on the film with Gerne Naumann, Christopher Klares & Matthias Künnecke DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (mono) | Subtitles: German, English, Spanish | Bonus material: Original cinema trailer & teaser trailer (3, 11 min. / 01 min.), Reconstruction slideshow (before / after) (10 min.), Location search in Rothenburg ob der Tauber (7.30 min.), Reversible cover | FSK 12
Equipment and technical data of the DVD
Image format WS 1.66: 1 (anamorphic) | Total running time 81 min | Sound: German DD 2.0 (mono), English DD 2.0 (mono), audio commentary on the film with Gerne Naumann, Christopher Klares & Matthias Künnecke DD 2.0 | Subtitles: German, English, Spanish | Bonus material: Original cinema trailer & teaser trailer (3, 11 min. / 01 min.), Reconstruction slideshow (before / after) (10 min.), Location search in Rothenburg ob der Tauber (7.30 min.), Reversible cover | FSK 12
More information about the film and the release: The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism
