Hammer Studios, best known for the gothic horror films it produced in the 1960s and 70s, has announced a global restoration project for a number of titles in its catalog. The studio will be teaming with Studiocanal, Pinewood and others to clean up and transfer more than 30 films to HD for blu-ray release and streaming platforms.
The good news is that the first title to be released from this initiative is Dracula, Prince Of Darkness, starring Christopher Lee, hitting store shelves in March. The Reptile and The Plague Of The Zombies will follow later on in the spring and The Devil Rides Out, Rasputin The Mad Monk and The Mummy’s Shroud all becoming available throughout the rest of 2012.
In addition to the HD conversions of the films, Hammer is looking to round out the blu-ray packages with an number of extras of interest to Hammer fans including newly filmed interviews with cast members. Additional, title-specific extras from Hammer’s vaults will also be added including cut scenes and on-set footage from Dracula, Prince Of Darkness, The Curse of Frankenstein, The Mummy and others.
Unfortunately, the bad news is that those store shelves the discs will be appearing on are all in the UK and that there are no US release dates accompanying Hammer’s announcement. States-side fans will either have to hope and wait for a US release announcement or else look into investing in an all-Region blu-ray player.
Via Deadline.
