Creature with the Blue Hand & Web of the Spider (Film Masters Blu-ray Review)

Klaus Kinski is probably best known for his many exploitation films, but he was in many amazing films in his career. There was 1965's For a Few Dollars More and Doctor Zhivago. He even played Renfield in 1970 film Count Dracula.

He could have been more than a cult actor he could have been a legend, but for one missed opportunity. In 1980, Kinski was offered the lead villain role of Major Arnold Toht in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but he refused the role telling director Steven Spielberg that the script was "boring" among other things.

Film Masters have been taken many of the public domain classics and restoring them in 4K and releasing them on Blu-ray. So, as we are coming into Halloween season what better than a double feature of horror and a double feature of Klaus Kiniski, even better!

Our Rating System:

****=Don’t Miss it!

***=Worth a look.

**=An Ok way to spend an evening.

*=You haven’t missed anything.

Creature with the Blue Hand (1967) Scotland Yard is trying to solve a series of grisly murders committed by a homicidal maniac called The Blue Hand. ***

Web of the Spider (1971) A journalist makes a bet than he can spend one night at the haunted Blackwood Castle. He soon realizes the rumors of ghosts at the castle are true. **

Now no one will ever consider Klaus Kinski in the same league as Humphery Bogart, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, or Cary Grant. But one thing was for sure when you see Klaus Kinski in a film you are getting everything he has. I respect that about him. He never seemed to phone in a performance. This is a wonderful combination a German and Italian horror films. It is really nice Kinski double feature.

Not only does Film Masters give you a newly restored Creature with the Blue Hand, but the alternate version entitled The Bloody Dead. Creature With the Blue Hand and The Bloody Dead have been transferred to Blu-ray in 1080p and are presented with an aspect ratio of 1.66:1; and Web of the Spider is presented with an aspect ratio of 2.35:1. There are two audio track options for these films an English DTS-HD Master audio 2.0 and an English Dolby Digital 2.0. There are also English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.

These films have been scanned in 4k and boy do they look amazing. The crispness and clarity of these prints are just wonderful. It is easy to just watch these films on Youtube or some of the many free streaming services, but you are not going to get the picture quality you are going to find here.

Now as we have seen with previous Film Masters Blu-ray releases, they go above and beyond to give these public domain films a release they so richly deserve and this release is no different. Take a look at the bonus features included on this 2 disc Blu-ray set.

* Stephen Jones and Kim Newman commentary track for Web of the Spider
* Samuel M. Sherman archival commentary track for The Bloody Hand
* New Commentary for Creature with the Blue Hand by Stephen Jones and Kim Newman
* The Bloody Hand raw footage and behind the scenes
* Ballyhoo Motion Pictures presents two new documentaries:
- "A Man of Mystery: Inside the World of Edgar Wallace"
- "Kinski Krimis: Inside the Rialto Film Adaptations"
* New 4K transfer of "The Bloody Dead," the alternate version of "Creature with the Blue Hand."
* Creature with the Blue Hand original film trailer
* Creature with the Blue Hand recut trailer using restored film elements.
* New 2024 trailer of "Web of the Spider"
* The original English trailer for "Castle of Blood."
* A booklet insert with liner notes by Christopher Stewardson, and Nick Clark

Audio commentaries are always a welcomed addition to any Blu-ray as the hosts give us so much information about the film. But the ballyhoo Motion Pictures featurettes are always my favorite bonus. And here they don't disappoint. I also love the original and new trailers. Very cool! Every aspect of this release is just amazing!

Film Masters has done it yet again. They have rescued these two Klaus Kinski films from public domain purgatory and given it a deluxe Blu-ray release they deserve. This release is prefect, just in time for Halloween season. It will make great viewing for a spooky party or just a night at home!

So, if you love the B horror movies of Klaus Kinski you need to see this double feature Blu-ray. Forget the free streaming, see these newly restored versions. You will be pleasantly surprised at how great they look! Head over to MVDShop and order your copy today!