Raw Meat 4K Review (Blue Underground)

Raw Meat (aKa Death Line) is a 1972 horror film directed by Gary Sherman (Dead and Buried, Vice Squad, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Poltergeist III, and Lisa). It was written by Ceri Jones. It was produced by Paul Maslansky (Police Academy franchise, Fluke, The Russia House, Sudden Terror, She Beast, Hard Times, Circle of Iron, Race with the Devil, Return to Oz, and Damnation Alley). When a prominent politician and a beautiful young woman disappear inside a London subway station, Scotland Yard’s Inspector Calhoun (played by: Donald Pleasence from the Halloween franchise, The Great Escape, You Only Live Twice, Phenomena, Prince of Darkness, Dracula, and Escape from New York) investigates the case that leads to a horrifying discovery. Not only did a forgotten group of 19th century tunnel workers survive a cave-in, but they lived for years in a secret underground enclave by consuming the flesh of their own dead. MI-5 agent Stratton-Villiers (played by: Christopher Lee from the Dracula franchise, The Lord of the Rings franchise, Star Wars franchise, Howling II, Gremlins 2, The Man with the Golden Gun, and The Wicker Man) interferes in this shocking situation. Now the lone descendant (played by: Hugh Armstrong from The Beastmaster, The Bill, and Girly) of this grisly tribe has resurfaced after all these years, prowling the streets for fresh victims and a new mate!!!! Raw Meat or Death Line which ever that you prefer is a underrated horror feature from the 70’s. Director Gary Sherman doesn’t get enough appreciation for all of his impressive films over his career. He didn’t stick to a single genre, he did a little bit of everything back in the day. Raw Meat tackles the cannibal sub-genre with some mystery added to the mix. The legendary Donald Pleasence is one of the main reasons to check this out. It’s one of his best performances. He’s the eager Inspector that goes into this weird case that just doesn’t add up at all. The more that he digs into it, the worse that the situation gets. He is very cynical but he lets the work speak for itself during his investigation. The iconic Christopher Lee is Stratton-Villiers. He’s a mysterious MI-5 representative that wants to get in the way of these bizarre set of events. Lee is always on point, he did this smaller role for scale because he wanted to work with Donald Pleasence. It’s just a cameo but he makes the best of his limited time here. The rest of the supporting cast includes Hugh Armstrong, Sharon Gurney (Crucible of Horror), David Ladd (The Treasure of Jamaica Reef), Norman Rossington (The Longest Day), Clive Swift (Frenzy), James Cossins (The Man with the Golden Gun), Hugh Dickson (House of Cards), Gerry Crampton (The Dirty Dozen), and Jack Woolgar (From Beyond the Grave). Raw Meat delivers some nasty blood soaked visuals. The special fx are very impressive for this one. I will say that Raw Meat does have a weird flow to it at times. It has those thrilling moments then it will drag for a little bit. It’s never boring but it likes to switch up it’s pace during it. The production design top notch here, it has some great locations that go with it’s creepy atmosphere. Raw Meat doesn’t exactly show it’s cannibal villain as a straight up monster. I appreciate that it shows that he only kills for his survival. Yeah, it’s still messed up but it gives logic to why it happens. I personally think Raw Meat is one of those horror features that you end up liking more after repeat viewings. It’s only gotten better for me after revisits, RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Blue Underground! This 2160p (1.85:1) unrated transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is from a brand new 4K 16-bit restoration from the original camera negative. I’ve owned Raw Meat on VHS, DVD, and Blu Ray before this newer UHD, it almost feels like watching it for the very first time here. The comparisons are night and day with the older versions. Especially with it’s impressive production design that has always looked amazing. It’s loaded with audio options which includes English: Dolby Atmos, English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono, and French: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono tracks on the UHD. Blue Underground not only improves it’s picture quality for this definitive home video release of Raw Meat / Death Line but it steps up when it comes to the audio also. That English: Dolby Atmos track is excellent. I wish all 70’s or older productions would get this kind of upgrade. That’s the thing that I notice with most 4Ks, they usually still have the exact same audio as before but not here. Everything is amped up, this really comes off impressive with the home set up. All of it’s insanity just hits harder now. All of the dialogue is crisp, the terror is elevated, and the music has a major boost to it. It has English SDH, French, and Spanish subtitles. It has an archive “Audio Commentary” with Gary Sherman, Paul Maslansky, and Lewis More O’Ferrall that’s moderated by David Gregory. They chat about the origins of the feature. They talk about the overall shoot. They got around certain spots with a different script. They bring up Donald Pleasance getting added to the cast gave a new found respect to the project and it made other actors wanting to join. They show appreciation for it’s special fx and they provide some stories. They share so much inside and personal information about Raw Meat here. It has the brand new exclusive “Audio Commentary” with critics Nathaniel Thompson and Troy Howarth. They share the different titles it’s had for it’s releases through AIP. They both give their honest thoughts on Raw Meat, both good and bad. They break down the cameo from the iconic Christopher Lee. They chat about the cast, locations, release history, music, 70’s London, similar movies, and anything else that you would want to know about it. It has various “Trailers” for Raw Meat. It has a variety of “TV Spots” and “Radio Spots”. These are the only extras located on the UHD, the rest of them are located on the Blu Ray disc. It has the almost 19 minute “Tales From The Tube”. It has interviews with Gary Sherman, Jay Kanter and Alan Ladd Jr. They go over how it was financed. The producers involvement with it and what got it made. They talk about the casting for this. At one point, they were thinking about Marlon Brando for it. They chat about it’s locations, schedule, and gruesome special fx. They repeat some of the stuff from the archive commentary also. It has the almost 13 minute “From The Depths”. It has interviews with David Ladd and Paul Maslansky. Ladd discusses getting the gig for big role in this. They go over it’s original script compared to what was actually shot for it. They bring up how it was like working with the late great Donald Pleasance. They go over their own experiences on the set. It has the little over 15 minute “Mind The Doors”. It’s an interview with actor Hugh Armstrong. He chats about how he got into the movie business. He brings up some earlier stuff that lead to this. He talks about playing the flesh hungry villain here. He brings up the different sides of his character. He gives his thoughts on working on this. He dives into it’s dark atmosphere. It has the almost 3 minute “Newly Expanded Poster and Still Gallery”. It comes with a slipcover and reversible artwork. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!