Malpertuis | Blu-ray

Following closely on the heels of his cult hit Daughters of Darkness, Flemish director Harry Kümel took on an adaptation of Jean Ray's gothic horror novel Malpertuis. The result is one of the most singular fantasy film works of the 1970s.

Featuring Orson Welles—who reportedly demanded he be paid in a briefcase full of cash, and that he do all his own makeup—Kümel's treatment of the story is a labyrinthine, surrealist, philosophical text. On its surface, the story of a young man who returns home after years abroad to find his uncle dying and the family estate in turmoil, Malpertuis entraps the viewer in its web every bit as much as our protagonist.

For years this film languished in obscurity. Released in a trimmed down English dub as The Legend of Doom House, with a notoriously difficult to obtain DVD release containing the director's original cut. This Radiance edition brings Malpertuis back to its intended glory. A beautiful restoration for a one-of-a-kind cinematic text.

Special Features (via radiancefilms.co.uk)

• New 4K restoration of the film overseen by director Harry Kümel
• Audio commentary by Harry Kümel and assistant director Françoise Levie (2005)
• New interview with Harry Kümel (2025, 20 mins)
• New interview with author and gothic horror expert Jonathan Rigby (2025, 26 mins)
• Malpertuis Archive - an archival documentary on the making of the film featuring Kümel, actor Mathieu Carrière and director of photography Gerry Fisher among others (2005, 37 mins)
• Orson Welles Uncut - a featurette on the casting of Welles, including rare outtakes of the actor (2005, 26 mins)
• Susan Hampshire: one actress, three parts - an archival interview with the actress, including screen tests and contributions from cast and crew (2005, 12 mins)
• Archival interview with Michel Bouquet and Harry Kümel from Belgian television (1971, 14 mins)
• Jean Ray, John Flanders 1887 - 1964 - an archival interview with the source novelist and co-writer of Malpertuis (2005, 8 mins)
• Malpertuis Revisited - Harry Kümel revisits locations from the film (2005, 4 mins)
  
• Malpertuis: The Cannes cut - the rejected version of the film which premiered in Cannes, viewable in French or English (100 mins, SD)
• The Warden of the Tomb - Kümel’s early film based on Franz Kafka’s play (1965, 37 mins)
• Trailer