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Kino Lorber Releases Mario Bava’s The Evil Eye (with the alternate European cut, The Girl Who Knew Too Much), and Jean Rollin’s The Escapees on Blu-ray and DVD in May

Kino Lorber announces the Blu-ray and DVD releases of two films by masters of European horror: Mario Bava’s THE EVIL EYE (along with the alternate European cut, THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH), about a young woman who launches her own investigation of a murder only to learn that she might be next on the killer’s list, and Jean Rollin’s THE ESCAPEES, which follows two female mental patients who have escaped from a hospital and embark on a dreamlike journey across the French countryside.

THE EVIL EYE (the AIP American release version featuring a score by Ultra-lounge composer Les Baxter) and THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (the alternate European cut) street on May 19, with a SRP of $29.95 for the Blu-ray and $24.95 for the DVD. Special features include an audio commentary by Tim Lucas, author of Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark, and the original theatrical trailers.

THE ESCAPEES streets on May 26, with a SRP of $29.95 for the Blu-ray and $19.95 for the DVD. The disc includes “One Day in Paris: An Interview with Jean Rollin” (2008, 28 minutes) as a bonus feature.

Kino Lorber is proud to bring these films to Blu-ray and DVD in stunning new transfers, mastered in HD from the original 35mm negatives, that showcase the distinctive and powerful visual styles of genre masters Mario Bava and Jean Rollin.

25th September 1928:  American comic actor Buster Keaton (1895 - 1966) wearing a baseball strip and boots.  (Photo by John Kobal Foundation/Getty Images)
25th September 1928: American comic actor Buster Keaton (1895 – 1966) wearing a baseball strip and boots. (Photo by John Kobal Foundation/Getty Images)

Mario Bava’s THE EVIL EYE/THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH
Blu-ray and DVD Street Date: May 19, 2015
Blu-ray SRP: $29.95
DVD SRP: $24.95
Blu-ray UPC: 738329172022
DVD UPC: 738329171926

While vacationing in Italy, a young woman with a passion for crime fiction (Leticia Román) witnesses a brutal murder. With the help of a handsome young doctor (John Saxon), she launches her own investigation and uncovers a series of crimes known as the “Alphabet Murders”, only to realize that she may be next on the killer’s list.

This Kino Classics edition includes both the original Italian-language version (The Girl Who Knew Too Much) as well as the American cut (Evil Eye, featuring a score by Les Baxter and alternate footage). The last of Bava’s features to be shot in black-and-white, Evil Eye is considered one of the earliest gialli, and opened the door for Bava to indulge in a more violent and provocative flavor of films.

Special Features:
Audio Commentary by Tim Lucas, author of Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark
Original Theatrical Trailer

The Evil Eye
The AIP American release English-language version, mastered in HD from the original 35mm negative
Italy/1963/B&W/92 minutes/1.78:1/1920x1080p

The Girl Who Knew Too Much (Le ragazza che sapeva troppo)
The Alternate European cut in Italian with optional English subtitles
Italy/1963/B&W/85 minutes/1.66:1

Director: Mario Bava
Produced by Massimo DeRita
Screenplay by Mario Bava, Enzo Corbucci, Ennio De Concini, Eliani De Sabata, Mino Guerrini, Franco Prosperi
Photographed by Mario Bava
Music by Les Baxter (EVIL EYE) and Roberto Nicolosi (THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH)
With John Saxon, Leticia Román, Valentina Cortese, Titti Tomaino

KINO-DVD-Master5Jean Rollin’s THE ESCAPEES
Blu-ray and DVD Street Date: May 26, 2015
Blu-ray SRP: $29.95
DVD SRP: $19.95
Blu-ray UPC: 738329173029
DVD UPC: 738329172923

Jean Rollin’s The Escapees revisits the director’s fascination with pairs of women who wander, dreamlike, through a modern dystopia (Requiem for a Vampire, Two Orphan Vampires). Two female patients — one rebellious (Laurence Dubas), the other despondent (Christiane Coppé) — flee the grounds of a mental hospital and drift across the French countryside. After finding refuge among a band of gypsy-like exotic dancers, they cross paths with a petty criminal (Marianne Valiot), an aging fortune-teller (Louise Dhour) and a quartet of swingers (including Brigitte Lahaie) with sinister intentions.

Punctuated by moments of unexpected violence and lyrical beauty (as when the emotionless Marie returns to life in a vacant ice rink), The Escapees is among Rollin’s most personal films, and has been remastered in HD from the original 35mm negative.

Special Features:
“One Day in Paris: An Interview with Jean Rollin” (2008, 28 minutes)

The Escapees (Les Échapées, The Runaways, Les Paumées du petit matin)
France/1981/Color/107 minutes/1.78:1/1920x1080p
Director: Jean Rollin
Screenplay by Jean Rollin and Jacques Ralf
Director of Photography: Claude Bécognée
Music by Philippe D’Aram
With Laurence Dubas, Christiane Coppé, Marianne Valiot, Brigitte Lahaie, Louise Dhour, Natalie Perrey, Patrick Perrot, Jean-Philippe Demararre

Dedman13

Owner of Slit of the Wrist FX and producer, actor, FX artist and writer.

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