Emilio P Miraglia certainly earned his stripes before moving behind the camera. The Italian director only made six films but spent almost two decades working behind the scenes on Italian horror and B-movies before stepping forward. Today, he’s best known by euro horror fans for the early gialli The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave and The Red Queen Kills Seven Times. Both are linked by a central premise, and Arrow Video brings them to Blu-ray in a sumptuous package, Killer Dames: Two Gothic Thrillers by Emilio P Miraglia.
The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave
Alan (Anthony Steffen) is a rich aristocrat who has recently been discharged from a mental asylum after suffering trauma relating to the death of his wife, Evelyn. Obsessed by redheads, his cousin (Umberto Raho) advises him to move on and find another wife. When he meets Gladys (Marina Malfatti) it’s love at first sight, but when a string of grizzly murders begin to happen Alan is convinced Evelyn has returned to haunt him.
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
Kitty (Barbara Bouchet) and Evelyn are told by their grandfather of a curse placed upon them of a Red Queen who is raised from the dead every 100 years to kill seven people. Evelyn disappears, which is followed by a spate of killings, leading their niece Franziska (Marina Malfatti) and Kitty to suspect that she is the Red Queen.
Miraglia projects his own obsession with redheads into his films. The look and plot-lines are similar for both, as is the air of ’70s Italian oddness we’ve come to expect from the genre. What is also consistent is the beautiful camerawork and glorious colours. As for the films, they’re both entertaining, with Red Queen shading it in terms of mystery and action. As we’ve come to expect from Arrow, the package itself, and the restorations, are beautiful.
Limited Edition Contents:
Limited Edition box set (3000 copies) containing The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave and The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
Brand new 2K restorations of the films from the original camera negatives
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
Original Italian and English soundtracks in mono audio (lossless DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray Discs)
Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtracks
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtracks
Limited Edition 60-page booklet containing new writing by James Blackford, Kat Ellinger, Leonard Jacobs and Rachael Nisbet
The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave
New audio commentary by Troy Howarth
Exclusive introduction by actress Erika Blanc
New interview with critic Stephen Thrower
The Night Erika Came Out of the Grave – exclusive interview with Erika Blanc
The Whip and the Body – archival interview with Erika Blanc
Still Rising from the Grave – archival interview with production designer Lorenzo Baraldi
Original Italian and US theatrical trailers
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
New audio commentary by Alan Jones and Kim Newman
Exclusive new interview with Sybil Danning
New interview with critic Stephen Thrower
Archival introduction by production/costume designer Lorenzo Baraldi
Dead à Porter – archival interview with Lorenzo Baraldi
Rounding Up the Usual Suspects – archival interview with actor Marino Masé
If I Met Emilio Miraglia Today – archival featurette with Erika Blanc, Lorenzo Baraldi and Marino Masé
My Favourite… Films – archival interview with actress Barbara Bouchet
Alternative opening
Original Italian theatrical trailer
Killer Dames: Two Gothic Thrillers by Emilio P Miraglia is released on Dual Format Blu-ray and DVD by Arrow Video on Monday.
