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THE PHANTOM OF THE MONASTERY/EL FANTASMA DEL CONVENTO
(Fernando de Fuentes, 1934)
Release date: 21 March 2022
Limited Edition Blu-ray (World Blu-ray premiere)

Pre-order here.

Made in the wake of La llorona’s success and directed with flair by Fernando de Fuentes (regarded as one of the masters of early Mexican cinema), The Phantom of the Monastery (El fantasma del convento) tells the macabre tale of a troupe of hikers who become lost in a forest and take refuge in a haunted monastery. There, they encounter shape-shifting shadows, ominous sealed doorways, and a cellar crowded with coffins...

An expressionistic Gothic triumph which has tragically languished in obscurity outside of Mexico, The Phantom of the Monastery has now been lovingly restored and is presented on Blu-ray at long last in a world debut edition, along with a selection of illuminating extras.


INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

• New 4K restoration from the original negative by the UCLA Film & Television Archive in collaboration with the Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project
• Original mono audio
• Video appreciation by Abraham Castillo Flores, head programmer of Mexico’s Morbido Fest (2022)
• Optional English subtitles
• Limited edition exclusive booklet featuring a new essay by Maricruz Castro Ricalde, an archival piece by screenwriter Juan Bustillo Oro, archival articles on the film’s production and promotion, an overview of the restoration process, and an overview of contemporary critical responses
• World premiere on Blu-ray
• Limited edition of 2,000 copies for the UK (4,000 copies for the world)
• All extras subject to change

#PHILTD244
BBFC cert: TBC
REGION FREE
EAN: 5060697922004

DeprongMori wrote: Thu Dec 09, 2021 2:42 pm Currently playing on the Criterion Channel as part of their “30 Years of the Film Foundation” program.

dwk wrote: Thu Dec 09, 2021 3:11 pm

DeprongMori wrote: Thu Dec 09, 2021 2:42 pm Currently playing on the Criterion Channel as part of their “30 Years of the Film Foundation” program.

Not only that, it opens with the Janus Films logo. So that Indicatornis releasing it in the US is a surprise.

Fernando de Fuentes' The Phantom of the Monastery is a total cinephile gem. The story involves a, romantically linked, trio of hikers who become lost and, conflictingly within the group, seek refuge in a monastery (actually shot on location at the Teotzotlan monastery - 25 miles northeast of Mexico City). When they are there they encounter mysterious monks, corridors to nowhere, skeletons, and ominously open coffins. It's a magnificent beauty of vintage horror and I am thrilled with the Indicator Blu-ray - from a new 4K restoration - what an image. Yes, they have done it again. Cinema joy perfection. Our strongest recommendation!