A film by Leslie Megahey
THE FLIPSIDE: rescuing weird and wonderful British films from obscurity and presenting them in new high-quality editions.
World premiere of this highly sought-after ghost story from the BBC, released in the BFI's acclaimed Flipside series.
An aspiring young painter falls for his patron's niece but forsakes love for ambition when a ghoulish stranger demands her for himself. Adapted from the chilling ghost story by J Sheridan Le Fanu, Schalcken the Painter weaves a fictional tale of terror around the work of real life seventeenth-century Dutch painter, Godfried Schalcken.
Originally screened by the BBC during the dying hours of 23 December 1979 this exquisitely shot, atmospheric horror film explores the uneasy relationship between art, commerce and erotic desire. The superb cast includes Jeremy Clyde (Supernatural) and Maurice Denham (Torture Garden).
Special Features
Presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition
The Pit (Edward Abraham, 1962, 27 mins): experimental gothic short, adapted from Edgar Allen Poe's 'The Pit and the Pendulum'
Original production sketches for The Pit
The Pledge (Digby Rumsey, 1981, 21 mins): three criminals pledge to free the soul of their friend from his gibbeted corpse in this short film based on 'The Highwaymen' by Lord Dunsany
Look Into the Dark (2013, 39 mins): interviews with director/writer/producer Leslie Magahey and director of photography John Hooper on the making of Schalcken the Painter
Fully illustrated booklet with new essays by Ben Hervey, James Bell and Vic Pratt, complete with film credits
UK | 1979 | colour | English language, with optional hard-of-hearing subtitles | 70 minutes | Original aspect ratio 1.33:1 | Region 2 DVD | Region B Blu-ray
Disc 1: BD50 | 1080p | 24fps | PCM mono audio (48k/16-bit)
Disc 2: DVD9 | PAL | Dolby Digital mono audio (320kbps)