Plot Synopsis:
Jean Rollin's startling debut feature, 1968's The Rape of the Vampire (Le Viol du vampire), introduces his unique take on vampirism, establishing the blend of surrealism, eroticism, and horror that would become his trademark.
In the film's first part, four strange women living in a decrepit château – and all believing themselves to be ancient vampires – are visited by a psychoanalyst who attempts to rid them of their apparent delusion. In the second, the Queen of the Vampires presides over a diabolical clinic, unaware that the head doctor is plotting against her.
With its surreal black-and-white images and riveting free-jazz score by François Tusques, The Rape of the Vampire was released in Paris to a scandalised response during the chaos of May '68, heralding the arrival of a major new talent in the fantastique cinema. This new edition also includes Rollin's 1965 short The Far Countries (Les Pays loin) restored in 4K.
- NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
- Original French mono soundtrack
- Selected scenes audio commentary with writer-director Jean Rollin (2006)
- Selected scenes audio commentary with actor Brigitte Lahaie and Jean Rollin (2006)
- Audio commentary with film expert and author Tim Lucas (2023)
- Jean Rollin Introduces 'The Night of the Hunted' (1998): filmed appraisal
- Jean Rollin on the 'The Night of the Hunted' (2007): the director in conversation with festival programmer and journalist Joshua T Gravel at the Fantasia Film Festival, Montreal
- Perdues: 'La Nuit des traquées' (2023): updated documentary on the making of The Night of the Hunted, directed by Rollin's personal assistant, Daniel Gouyette, and including interviews with Lahaie, critic Daniel Bird, and key collaborators Jean-Pierre Bouyxou and Natalie Perrey
- Le Pont (2023): short film revisiting the aqueduct seen in The Night of the Hunted
- Newly edited archival interview with Lahaie (2023)
- Newly edited archival interview with producer Lionel Wallmann (2023)
- Archival interview with porn performer Alain Plumey, who acted in The Night of the Hunted and Fascination, filmed at the Museum of Eroticism (2006)
- Filmed critical appreciation by author and musician Stephen Thrower (2023)
- Alternative sex scenes
- Original theatrical trailer
- Image galleries: promotional and publicity material, and behind the scenes
- New and improved English translation subtitles
- Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with a new essay by Ruairí McCann, archival writing by Jean Rollin on the making of the film, an archival interview with actor Brigitte Lahaie, and full film credits
