Completely devilish in its ultra disturbed presentation, Alucarda IS a lost horror classic. What was once lost in a black hole of eternity is now only a quick web order away. Previously only available in the UK as a Region 0 PAL disc, Alucarda is now available in the US in a superior Region 0 NTSC edition. Is it worth the upgrade? Let's take a look and find out.

If you feel as if you're beginning to experience a bit of deja vu, don't worry, it's not just you. You'll find that I've lifted excerpts from my previous review of Alucarda to make my life just a little bit easier here.

Justine (Susana Kamini) and Alucarda (Tina Romero) are two teenage girls holding up residence in a convent/orphanage. What starts out as a casual relationship slowly blossoms into something that's a bit more (I think you know what THAT means). The two spend their down time skipping through forests, rolling in the grass and doing A LOT of giggling...that is until one day curiosity gets the best of them. After happening upon an abandoned tomb, Alucarda persuades Justine to take a peek (just a peek now) inside with her. Well needless to say the winds start a blowin' and all hell breaks loose as the girls embark on a frenetic journey that includes bizarre premonitions, whipping nuns, lesbianism and possession (of course there also happens to be lots o' violence and nudity thrown into the mix as well). In other words, the shit hits the fucking fan!

It's no surprise to discover that director Juan Lopez Moctezuma was an Alejandro Jodorowsky protégé and worked as a producer on such films as El Topo and Fando y Liz. The Jodorowsky influence is certainly oozing out of every pore of Alucarda. While not nearly as accomplished a director as Jodorowsky, Moctezuma certainly holds his own. It's evident that a large amount of care went into the production of this film and every detail was accounted. Most importantly, Moctezuma made the flick that HE wanted to make, for better or for worse. From the incredibly detailed sets to the outlandish costume design and the dead on performances, Alucarda is extremely detailed in every aspect of is creation. I'm sure that some folks will try to tell you otherwise, but there is absolutely nothing cheesy about Alucarda. The fact that this film did so poorly during its initial run comes as no surprise. Alucarda is a beautifully crafted film but still remains a film that is certainly NOT designed for the masses.

Extremely original in its delivery Alucarda was also quite an influential film as well. The fiery finale will seem oddly familiar to those who have witnessed films like Firestarter and even more so Carrie, both of which were made AFTER Alucarda. One gains a true appreciation for the craft of filmmaking after seeing these familiar scenes presented here for the first time.

As with the PAL edition, this NTSC disc of Alucarda is presented full frame and pretty much from the get go it's evident that this edition is vastly different from its European PAL counterpart. While the previous transfer was impressive, it still wasn't without its problems. The US edition does retain some of the print damage found in the previous PAL edition (some light scratches and specs). However, in pure clarity and depth of color the difference is quite noticeable. The US edition sports a much clearer image and colors do seem to hit on a more accurate level. As evidenced by the screenshot comparison page, reds LOOK more like reds in the US edition (fleshtones are more accurate as well) rather than a murky orange (I guess it goes without saying but red is a very important color in this film).

Audio is vastly improved in the US edition as well sporting a very clean Dolby Stereo track. The previous PAL edition's mono track had a bit of that pesky snap, crackle and pop from time to time. The US edition eliminates a lot of the hiss and pops with much clearer dialogue and nice depth for the ambient sounds.

Extras differ a bit between the two editions as well. Gone is the neato 20-minute documentary on Mexican horror films, but in its place is a nifty 14-minute featurette on director Juan Lopez Moctezuma along with an exclusive 7-minute interview with director Guillermo del Toro (Blade, Cronos, Devil's Backbone). Extras carried over from the PAL edition include the still gallery, bio, filmography and text interview with director Moctezuma.

Alucarda is no doubt a horror classic that begs for a spot in the collection of every true fan of the macabre. Mondo Macabro has done an admirable job in bringing Alucarda to DVD (once again) as one of their maiden US NTSC titles. Alucarda has tremendous replay value, if you haven't picked it up yet, you really oughta do yourself a favor and check it out. If you've already purchased the PAL disc, look at it this way; The US edition can be purchased online for less that 15 bucks, instead of buying Army of Darkness for the fourth time give the US edition of Alucarda a shot, you won't be disappointed. Alucarda is definitely a flick that's worth picking up twice.

Word is there may be some sort of a discount program set up for folks who had previously purchased the PAL edition of Alucarda. No details yet, but keep your eyes peeled, and of course we'll keep you posted on any updates if we hear anything.

For more info on Mono Macabro visit their UK site by clicking here. There will also be a US based site up real soon located here.