The late filmmaker George A. Romero is best known for his work within the zombie genre. His ‘…of the dead’ series revolutionised horror with Night of the Living Dead being one of the first films to feature the reanimated deceased. What many outside of the horror circle do not realise however, is that Romero was far more than just a couple of good zombie movies. During his fifty year career, Romero gave the horror community a wealth of genre content and one of his previously hard to track down titles, Martin, arrives on Blu-ray and UHD this week thanks to Second Sight.
Unless you have been living under a rock, you’ll know that Second Sight has been consistently dominating the world of boutique physical media labels. The team always pour their blood, sweat, and tears into each and every acquisition, determined to not only do the film justice, but the fans as well. Each of their releases are packed to bursting with insightful special features, making their version the definitive edition of any title. Martin is no exception. The new disc comes with several audio commentaries, including two brand new recordings made especially for the release.
Martin was originally released in 1976, eight years after the fantastic Night of the Living Dead, and two years ahead of Dawn of the Dead. The film explored the concept of vampirism from a very different direction. Titular character Martin (John Amplas) is a young man who believes himself to be a vampire. Convinced that he is in his eighties, he uses blood to sustain his youthfulness. He obtains his ‘food’ by drugging women and draining them whilst they are unconscious. After moving to Pennsylvania to live with his elderly cousin, Martin is told to curb his urges; Romero’s film follows Martin’s journey.
Sensibilities have changed somewhat since the original release of Martin and as such some elements will be unsavoury to some. These feelings will primarily be stirred by Martin’s method of capturing his victims. In addition to draining their blood, he strips the women and himself, before appearing to ravish their unconscious bodies. The scenes were controversial upon its debut, but are even more difficult to watch through modern eyes. These scenes may be especially triggering for some and so caution is advised before delving in.
As with many of Romero’s works, Martin has a very naturalistic, almost documentarian, visual style. The documentary tone is reinforced with Martin as the sole subject. The camera plays like a fly on the wall, chronicling the young man’s escapades, with few scenes without him. This method of storytelling subverts what had become standard for the vampire film. Martin was originally released in the wake of Hammer Horror vampires, which were all fancy capes and magical manifestations. As Martin explains at several points, he has no magical powers. He simply exists and consumes blood. It’s an interesting portrayal of vampirism that calls into question how much validity there is to his ramblings. The film hinges on the warring idea of fact versus fiction, the angle being a clear source of influence for films like Vampire’s Kiss that would follow.
A film that helped to reinvent and reshape the vampire mythos, Martin is another example of Romero at the top of his game. Romero’s hard-work has been painstakingly and respectfully restored by Second Sight, creating yet another essential purchase for fans of horror history.
Martin
Summary
Another victory for Second Sight, their release of Martin is set to educate those that only know George A. Romero as ‘the zombie guy’.
Martin is available to buy on Blu-ray and UHD now, via Second Sight.
