Celluloid Dreams, the intriguing indie label unearthing lost thrillers returns with their latest release, another deep-cut Italian Giallo – writer Aldo Lado directorial debut, Short Night of the Glass Dolls, AKA Paralyzed. The pulpy thriller’s inventive narrative premise is what makes it stand out in a subgenre that is as complex in its convoluted mysteries as it is transgressive. The film begins as most of these films do with the discovery of a corpse, American journalist Gregory Moore (Jean Sorel) who was working in Prague and appears to have died of a heart attack. The only problem is we soon realize that Greg is indeed very much alive, but unable to move as he begins to try and piece together what got him incapacitated and hopefully break out of it before he is embalmed.
The film then sidetracks into another mystery, as Greg begins to recount how his beautiful young girlfriend, Mira (Barbara Bach) was kidnapped one night from his apartment, while he was dispatched to check out a hot tip that turned out to have been a distraction to get him to leave her alone. It’s how the film flip flops between the whodunit mystery of Greg’s girlfriend’s abduction and the question of will Greg be able to prove he’s alive, before his autopsy that drives the suspense and ramps up the tension throughout the runtime. It’s a slow yet feverish burn as the pieces fall into place. But once things get moving in the back half of the film, it’s definitely a unique and gripping take on the Giallo formula.
Like their previous release the feminist Giallo The Case of the Bloody Iris, this release is packed to the gills with extras, both physical and digital. Along with lobby card reproductions – true to size, and a piece of what appears to be an actual theatrical print of the film, also included is a 64 page booklet that is packaged along with the discs in a sturdy hard box. Contained inside are 3 unique versions of the film across 4 discs, the VHS (Standard Def) version of Paralyzed, the 4K UHD restoration and my personal favorite an un-retouched HD scan of the film. For fans that appreciate the look of a well worn piece of celluloid, this is the closest most will get to seeing in a darkened theater and I appreciate that they offer that as an option.
There over 4 hours of interviews with cast, crew and critics allows Celluloid Dreams to really help to contextualize the film in a way that gives anyone with the time the ability to fully appreciate the many nuances of this title. I got about 50% through these extras for this review and I wished this was the norm rather than the exception when it comes to releases. The film is presented in a new 4K UHD transfer and a restoration that was over a year in the making and looks it. The film presentation is nothing short of flawless, with a pleasant contrast and pleasing grain presence throughout the image. There is HDR, but it’s used minimally to highly the existing colors, not to overhaul them. This was shot of film and it’s great to see labels embrace the look of celluloid, not just as a filter for their intros.
To be honest, I had never heard of Short Night of the Glass Dolls before watching this 4K UHD, but like their previous release, I haven’t shut up about it since. As someone who’s seen his fair share of these Italian thrillers, it’s not often something like this comes along and grabs you like Glass Dolls does. I think Celluloid Dreams has carved out a great niche for themselves thanks to this second release by not only digging up these underseen titles, but delivering them in a presentation usually reserved for an Argento or Bava release.
The full disc breakdown is as follows.
Disc 1 (4K UHD)
- Brand new 4K transfer and full restoration
- HDR-10
- Isolated Score
- Commentary Track by writer/director Aldo Lado and Federico Caddeo
- (NEW) Commentary Track by film critic Guido Henkel
- (NEW) English Trailer in 4K resolution
- (NEW) Italian Trailer in 4K resolution
- (NEW) Grindhouse Trailer in 4K resolution
- (NEW) Unreleased English Trailer (as “Catalepsis”) in 4K resolution
Disc 2 (Blu-ray)
- Brand new transfer from 4K master and full restoration
- Isolated Score
- Commentary Track by writer/director Aldo Lado and Federico Caddeo
- (NEW) Commentary Track by film critic Guido Henkel
- (NEW) English Trailer
- (NEW) Italian Trailer
- (NEW) Grindhouse Trailer
- (NEW) Unreleased English Trailer (as “Catalepsis”)
Disc 3 (Blu-ray)
- “The Nights of Malastrana” 2015 Interview with writer/director Aldo Lado and actor Jean Sorel (97 mins)
- (NEW) “All About Lado” 2018 Interview with writer/director Aldo Lado (32 mins)
- “The Most Beautiful Voice in the World” Interview with soprano Edda Dell’Orso (21 mins)
- “The Quest for Money” Interview with producer Enzo Doria (20 mins)
- “Cuts Like a Knife” Interview with film editor Mario Morra (23 mins)
- “To Italy and Back” Interview with co-producer Dieter Geissler (29 mins)
- (NEW) “The Man on the Bridge” Featurette by Howard Berger (23 mins)
- (NEW) Image Gallery
- (NEW) Long-lost, export “Malastrana” credits
Disc 4 (Blu-ray)
- (NEW) Grindhouse Version from 35mm archival lab print
- (NEW) US VHS Pan&Scan Version (as “Paralyzed”)
Booklet
(NEW) A 64-page booklet with a commemorative essay on Aldo Lado by Andy Marshall-Roberts, additional information and many photographs.
