According to Variety, 2024 was the first year that the DVD (physical media) business dipped below a billion dollars in revenue. To read Variety’s article, one would be led to believe that the physical home video market is all but extinct, but that’s just hyperbole. What can be said is that it has become more niche, in large part because of streaming services and VOD. Add into the mix an economy teetering on recession, and it can be a recipe for disaster to see something so many of us cherish possibly go extinct, but we don’t really think that will happen, and if it does we have boutique labels like Severin Films to keep us afloat. Their 2018 box set for “The Blood Island Collection” has been out-of-print for some time, but Severin has revived it with some new visual enhancements with “Fear in the Philippines: The Complete Blood Island Films,” but is this just a double-dip for those that missed out, or a reason to return to the infamous Blood Island?

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Between 1959 and 1971, Filipino filmmakers Eddie Romero and Gerry de Leon – along with Hemisphere Pictures marketing consultant Samuel M. Sherman – unleashed this monsters-and-mayhem quartet that remains among the most deliriously schlocky horror classics of all time: The series launched with TERROR IS A MAN, a “quite terrifying” (The New York Times) take on Island Of Dr. Moreau starring Francis Lederer (THE RETURN OF DRACULA). BRIDES OF BLOOD stars John Ashley (THE TWILIGHT PEOPLE) and Beverly Powers (SPEEDWAY) in a taboo-smashing orgy of violence, nudity and depraved nuptials. Ashley and Angelique Pettyjohn (THE CURIOUS FEMALE) star in MAD DOCTOR OF BLOOD ISLAND, “one of the greatest, nastiest, goriest films of the 1960s” (Dangerous Minds). BEAST OF BLOOD stars Ashley and Celeste Yarnall (THE VELVET VAMPIRE) in “the most exciting and aggressive of all the BLOOD ISLAND movies” (1000 Misspent Hours), newly scanned from a 35mm print by the Library of Congress. All four films have been scanned uncut in 4K with improved color and audio and include over 8 combined hours of Special Features.

HOW IS IT?

“Terror is a Man” (1959)

The first of the four films in this set is a riff on the classic H.G. Wells novel, “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” but if you’ve never heard of that story (shame on you) then you won’t notice how closely this film resembles that book’s plot despite no mention or acknowledgment of the connection. Like Dr. Moreau, “Terror is a Man” concerns itself with an American freight worker who finds themself as the sole surviving member of a ship that has washed up on the shores of an island inhabited by Dr. Girard, his wife, and some local folks who aren’t too keen on the doctor’s experiments. You see, he’s trying to create the “perfect man” from human and animal DNA, but the result is a creature that escapes often and leaves a trail of bodies in its wake. It isn’t anything groundbreaking, but it is coherent and more philosophical than it may seem.

However, it’s a bit of a slog to get through. Even at 90 minutes, the overly talkative film does a lot of telling and very little showing, aside from the appropriately climactic finale. As an adaptation of Wells’ work, it hits the nail on the God-complex critiques of modern science that Wells was discouraging against, but it loses some of the salaciousness as the story is notably tame and the makeup work isn’t as effective as it may have been in the late 50s. It is a film of its time, which means if you don’t like the gothic mad scientist slow burns of the era you’re going to have a hard time getting through this. It’s not without merit, but it pales in comparison to its peers, particularly “Island of Lost Souls.”

“Brides of Blood” (1968)

The second film of the 4-film set is the “Brides of Blood” and the first film to be released in color. A 9-year gap separates this from “Terror is a Man” and along with that time passing so has the previous aesthetic of the old RKO horror movies in favor of something weirder and more current. “Brides of Blood” focuses on yet another ship full of white scientists/explorers who come to an island in part to investigate some strange radiation-caused animal mutations that may be impacting the local indigenous population as well. This leads to women being abducted, stripped, and sacrificed to a mysterious creature in the jungle, and our fearless group of colonizers, uh, we mean explorers is determined to figure out the cause and more importantly, how to escape.

This is marginally more entertaining than the last film in part due to the increased level of salaciousness on display. From nude “virgins” to bloodied bodies this is a decidedly more violent film than the previous one, but it still struggles to maintain its pacing which leads to this feeling like a bit of a slog in the second act. What is admirable is the acting and the dedication each actor gives their respective part so the film never veers into intentional parody or overt silliness. The third act doesn’t really gel with the setup from the first 2/3 of the movie, but it does feature some of what we presume are local dances and customs which adds some variety to this entry. There is a curious local landlord/overseer, Esteban Power who has a Willy Wonka vibe about him largely because he keeps a staff of what seem to be enslaved little people around him to do his bidding and wait on him and his guests. It’s hard to watch “Brides of Blood” and not consider if the filmmakers were aware of how exploitative some of this feels, particularly when we have scenes of the white explorers dictating manual labor to the Indigenous locals even though the explorers are the ones who are there to do the work, but the film never comments on this and we suspect it’s because our modern eyes have the benefit of history and hindsight to reflect on.

“Mad Doctor of Blood Island” (1969)

“Mad Doctor of Blood Island” feels like a step down in entertainment value from “Brides of Blood,” but an increase in production value. This time, another group of folks are traveling to the forsaken “Blood Island” albeit with slightly different reasons. Bill Foster is a pathologist who sets out to discover the ecological mysteries of the island, Sheila Willard is there to reunite with her estranged father, and Carlos Lopez returns to the island to convince his mother to leave it and return with him. All the while, there are people on the island who are infected with green blood that causes them to turn into chlorophyll monsters, and a budding romance between Carlos and his childhood friend, Maria. It’s a kitchen sink film if there ever was one, for better or worse.

The set design here is significantly improved as we get cooler-looking lairs and underground labs, and the look of the monsters in “Mad Doctor of Blood Island” is easily the best seen so far in the set. The problem is, this just isn’t very entertaining to watch. The melodrama of the relationship angles is underdeveloped and unnecessary, and there are far fewer moments of monster action than in the last film. Sure, the monsters and violence here look better, but we will take schlocky makeup in exchange for an engaging story. The biggest offense is that anytime something violent happens, the camera does this zoom-in/out that isn’t just distracting, it takes you out of the movie-watching experience. This is better than “Terror is a Man,” but not as good as “Brides of Blood.”

“Beast of Blood” (1970)

The fourth and final “Blood Island” film is probably the most bombastic, but also the least horror-centric one of the bunch. This both works for and against the films, as the horror bits are usually the best parts, and here they are replaced with more guns and action set pieces. “Beast of Blood” picks up right after the last one even though 2-years separate their release dates. Bill Foster’s attempt to leave the island is thwarted by Don Ramon’s zombie who was stowed away and took over the whole damn thing. He crash lands on Blood Island as the sole survivor, this time joined by Myra Russell, a reporter looking into the strange happenings at Blood Island, and Laida, a local woman who is head over heels for Foster. Myra is captured by the through dead Dr. Lorca from the previous film, and Bill, Laida, and the local townsfolk discover that Lorca is preserving the zombified head of Don Ramon to further his nefarious experiments. It’s a lot more adventure-heavy this time, with Lorca being more like a Bond villain than a mad scientist, and despite a strong horror opening there is far less bloodshed and monster mayhem this go round.

These films all follow the same formula and even on the same island. A group of mostly foreign travelers arrives on Blood Island. Locals are either helpful or hostile, and there is usually some monster taking people out most likely a man-made creation. Perhaps watching them all so close together makes this more apparent, but the only change in the formula comes from the use of color and an increasing amount of sex and violence thrown in for good measure. These aren’t bad movies in the sense that no one is putting in effort, on the contrary, there is a lot of heart in these productions that are foundational to their enjoyment lest they be seen as farcical. It’s just that these are from a very specific time when genre films were in transition. The Blood Island films always feel like they are catching the end of a trend on the downfall rather than the uptick, but still have that 50s Monster Movie spirit in each one. In a world of films that are seemingly all on the table for remakes, may we offer that the “Blood Island” films would be a good place to start to give them more focus and take advantage of how much more accessible filmmaking is now.

HOW DOES IT LOOK?

Severin collectors may have been wondering if they experienced deja vu when this release was announced, as it’s the same collection of “Blood Island” films that was released in Severin’s 2018 box set and both boast 4K scans from the original camera negatives. That old set has been long OOP, and this re-release is sure to please fans who missed out on the initial run. That said, this release does suggest that a new scan or new color grading has been applied to this release, but it’s not always obvious. As seen in the comparison shots below, there is a marginal difference in quality with the 2025 versions being just slightly better looking. “Beast of Blood” is the roughest of the four, with more blurry and grainy visuals as well as very noticeable signs of film wear and tear. If you already have the previous box set, it may not be worth the upgrade unless you’re a super fan.

HOW DOES IT SOUND?

The sound elements don’t fare as well as the visual ones, as the quality varies from film to film, and for the most part, it’s fine. All the films come in 2.0 DTS-HD mono sound, and we presume these are also taken from the original negatives, and while there are some artifacts of higher frequencies on some of the mixes they all sound just fine given their age. Much like the visual side, “Beast of Blood” has the worst ADR and dubbing of the bunch, but perhaps that is part of the film’s schlocky charm.

ANYTHING SPECIAL?

No new special features were commissioned for this re-release and all of the previous special features have been carried over.

Bonus Materials

TERROR IS A MAN

Man Becomes Creature – Interview With Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman
Dawn Of Blood Island – Interview With Co-Director Eddie Romero
Terror Creature – Interview With Pete Tombs, Co-Author Of Immoral Tales
When The Bell Rings – Interview With Critic Mark Holcomb
Trailer
Poster And Still Gallery

BRIDES OF BLOOD

Audio Commentary With Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman
Jungle Fury – Interview With Co-Director Eddie Romero
Here Comes The Bride – Interview With Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman
Beverly Hills On Blood Island – Interview With Actress Beverly Powers
Alternate BRIDES OF BLOOD ISLAND Title Sequence And JUNGLE FURY Title Card
Teaser
Trailer
Poster And Still Gallery

MAD DOCTOR OF BLOOD ISLAND

Audio Commentary With Horror Film Historians Nathaniel Thompson And Howard S. Berger
Audio Commentary With Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman
Tombs Of The Living Dead – Interview with Pete Tombs, Co-Author Of Immoral Tales
A Taste Of Blood – Interview With Critic Mark Holcomb
The Mad Director Of Blood Island – Interview With Co-Director Eddie Romero
Trailer
Poster And Still Gallery

BEAST OF BLOOD

Audio Commentary With Hemisphere Marketing Consultant Samuel M. Sherman
Celeste And The Beast – Interview With Actress Celeste Yarnall
Dr. Lorca's Blood Devils – Interview With Actor Eddie Garcia
Super 8 Digest Version
Trailer
Radio Spot
Poster And Still Gallery

LAST RITES

“Fear in the Philippines: The Complete Blood Island Collection” is something for those who missed out on the long OOP 2018 box set, but difficult to recommend to those who already have it on their shelves given the marginal improvements in visual quality. The films themselves are the kind of 50s nostalgia madcap scientist stuff that you either love or hate, but if that’s your bag then consider this a must-buy!

THE GORY DETAILS

Thank you to the fine fiends over at Severin for providing a review copy for the crypt! Fear in the Philippines: The Complete Blood Island Collection is available NOW and can be purchased via Severin Direct!

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Nov 4, 2020

Matthew Orozco

Nov 4, 2020

Elder-millennial horror guy with an unhealthy habit of collecting all flavors of physical media. From Blu-Ray, Records, and Art Prints (oh my!) you can find my wallet empty and collections growing.