Eye For Film >> Movies >> Daughters Of Darkness (1971) Blu-Ray Review
Daughters Of Darkness
Reviewed by: Donald Munro
Read Donald Munro's film review of Daughters Of Darkness
Harry Kümel's 1971 vampire horror, Daughters Of Darkness, has been released by Radiance. The 4K restoration is of the high quality that has become normal in recent years. There have been a couple of bad ones, normally when something has had a its aspect ration changed (4x3 to 16x9) or it has been upscaled. There is nothing to worry about here. Kumel's colour palette in this film, with its heavy contrasts, is well served by HDR. Its impact is dramatic.
On the disc are both the original English language version and the French dub. As a French, Belgian, German co-production you might expect that it would be in one of those languages. It being made in English was a little unusual. Although the French dub is of a very high quality, you can see discrepancies in the lip syncing.
The audio commentary that accompanies the film focuses on a Gothic interpretation of the film, and on the film's sexual politics. It can unfortunately be a bit repetitive.
Only the first disc in the set was available for review, so I can't comment on most of the special features, the other written content, or the quality of the artwork and packaging.
Reviewed on: 28 Oct 2025
Product Code: B0FHBPL94P
Region: 0
Extras: 4K restoration from the original negative by Blue Underground, supervised by director Harry Kümel; 4K UHD with Dolby Vision HDR and Blu-ray presentation of the feature; audio commentary authors Virginie Sélavy and Lindsay Hallam (2025); new interview with director Harry Kümel and critic Anne Billson (2025); archival interview with Delphine Seyrig in which the actor discusses her career (1989); on set footage with Harry Kümel and stuntman Thierry Hallaert (1970); behind-the-scenes footage of Delphine Seyrig shooting a scene from the film and an interview with Harry Kümel (1971); interview with critic and author Kim Newman (2025); Immoral Tales: Daughters Of Darkness, Class, Cruelty, And The Cinematic Legacy Of Bathory - a visual essay by Kat Ellinger, author of the monograph on the film (2025, 25 mins); Anna The Maid - Harry Kümel’s short film based on a Jean Cocteau poem about a murderous maid (1958); Aether - Harry Kümel’s short film about the surreal visions of a man following an accident (1960, co-directed by Herman Wuyts); limited edition 80-page perfect bound booklet featuring new writing by Suzanne Boleyn, Martyn Conterio, Joseph Dwyer, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Mairéad Roche.
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