Venom (1981) (4K UHD Review)

Reviewed by: Tim Salmons
Review Date: Mar 24, 2025
Format: 4K Ultra HD

Director

Piers Haggard

Release Date(s)

1981 (March 25, 2025)

Studio(s)

HandMade Films/Paramount Pictures (Blue Underground)

Film/Program Grade: B-
Video Grade: A-
Audio Grade: A-
Extras Grade: A

Review

1981’s Venom features a plot about a wealthy young boy (Lance Holcomb) and his grandfather (Sterling Hayden) being taken hostage by international terrorists (Klaus Kinski and Susan George) and held for ransom with the help of their chauffeur (Oliver Reed). The only problem is that a deadly black mamba snake is loose in the building, and out to strike at anyone that it comes into contact with. As the police arrive, led by commander Bulloch (Nicol Williamson), and search for a way into the building to take out the terrorists and save the hostages, the snake makes its way through the ventilation work, on its way toward its next victim. Also in the cast are Sara Miles, Michael Gough, Mike Gwilym, Edward Hardwicke, and John Forbes-Robertson.

Venom comes with a lot of baggage as its sordid behind-the-scenes history could easily fill a page-turning paperback. It was a shoot plagued with issues, though oddly enough, none of them involving the snake itself. According to director Piers Haggard, no one really got along, declaring that the snake was actually the nicest person on the entire set. Klaus Kinski and Oliver Reed disliked each other to such a degree that Kinski was constantly provoking Reed into fits of anger, the atmosphere of which made its way onto the film itself, and it’s drenched in it. Haggard, who also directed 1971’s The Blood on Satan’s Claw, was brought in at the last minute, replacing Tobe Hooper who had stepped away early in production due to “creative differences.” There’s also a score by Michael Kamen, who would go on to work with Hooper on 1985’s Lifeforce.

Even with its familiar cast, Venom was a very odd project for its time. How it ever got made with such an eclectic group of people is strange enough, but throwing in using actual live snakes, switching directors, and constant behind-the-scenes battles, it’s a wonder that things didn’t go even worse. When it was released theatrically, it underperformed, but due to the popularity of snake-related horror films made throughout the 1970s and 1980s, it managed to find some cult footing. It has its moments, but there’s a serious lack of levity, making it more downbeat than exciting, nor is there much unintentional humor to be had. The filmmakers took Venom very seriously, and the anguish of the production is impossible to separate from the final film.

Venom was shot by director of photography Gilbert Taylor (with Denys Coop providing additional photography) on 35mm film, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Blue Underground debuts the film on Ultra HD with a new 4K 16-bit scan and restoration of the original internegative, which has been graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, and presented on a dual-layered BD-66 disc. The level of detail is surprisingly high, despite coming from a later generation film element, one that in the majority of cases, can take a beating. Nevertheless, grain is high but not always even as it tends to clump a bit, though it’s mostly well-attenuated. Bitrates range anywhere from 40 to 100Mbps, hovering somewhere towards the middle most of the time. Colors are much more refined than Blue Underground’s previous Blu-ray, with improved flesh tones and shadow detail. The HDR grades enhance the contrast and further deepen blacks without appearing crushed. The image is stable and clean outside of occasional minor speckling. Interestingly, the presentation for the Blu-ray was taken from a 2K scan of the original camera negative, but for whatever reason, Blue Underground did not have access to it for the UHD. Regardless, it’s still a fine upgrade over its HD predecessor.

The main audio option is a new English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) track. The film was released in Dolby Stereo, and while the Atmos track is not a dramatic reinvention of that experience, it certainly boosts score and sound effects. Hiss is very pronounced throughout, obviously dipping during more intense sections of the audio. Dialogue exchanges are perfectly discernible, as well. It’s an obvious improvement over the original stereo track to some degree, but it could have been a tad cleaner. Other audio options include English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio, with optional subtitles in English SDH, French, and Spanish.

Blue Underground’s 2-Disc 4K Ultra HD release of Venom sits in a black Amaray case alongside a 1080p Blu-ray copy of the film and a 20-page insert booklet with chapter selections and the essay Filmmaking Bites: The Twisting, Turning History of Venom by Michael Gingold. The double-sided insert features artwork from the Vestron Video VHS and CED releases of the film on the front (as well as the cover of the insert booklet) and artwork from the Thorn EMI Video VHS release on the reverse; while the embossed slipcover features artwork from the original US theatrical poster. The following extras are included on each disc:

DISC ONE: UHD

Audio Commentaries:
- Audio Commentary with Piers Haggard and Jonathan Sothcott
- Audio Commentary with Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson, and Eugenio Ercolani
Trailers:
- Theatrical Trailer (UHD w/HDR – 1:25)
- Teaser Trailer (Upscaled SD – :31)

DISC TWO: BD

Audio Commentaries:
- Audio Commentary with Piers Haggard and Jonathan Sothcott
- Audio Commentary with Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson, and Eugenio Ercolani
Featurettes:
- Fangs for the Memories: The Editing of Venom with Michael Bradsell (HD – 26:12)
- A Slithery Story: The Making of Venom with Nick Dudman (HD – 21:00)
- Mamba Memories Kim Newman Remembers Venom (HD – 23:29)
- Pick Your Poison: An Interview with Allan Bryce (HD – 15:26)
Trailers:
- Theatrical Trailer (HD – 1:25)
- Teaser Trailer (Upscaled SD – :31)
TV Spots:
- TV Spot #1 (HD – :33)
- TV Spot #2 (HD – :34)
- TV Spot #3 (HD – :33)
Poster & Still Gallery (HD – 127 in all)

The first audio commentary features producer and author Jonathan Sothcott who takes up moderating duties for director Piers Haggard. Despite some quiet sections and a bit of reactionary moments, Sothcott manages to mostly keep Haggard on track, offering an abundance of memories of the production. New to this release is an audio commentary featuring film historians Troy Howarth, Nathaniel Thompson, and Eugenio Ercolani. As per usual with these gentlemen, it’s a breathless commentary as the three men discuss the many genres that the film is touching upon and which category best suits it, how the film was marketed in different territories, the differences from the original novel, the careers of those involved with the production, various critical reactions to the film, Tobe Hooper’s involvement with the film, and its sequel-bait ending.

A few new extras have also been cooked up by High Rising Productions for this release. In Fangs for the Memories, editor and second unit director Michael Bradsell discuses how he got involved with the project, working with Tobe Hooper and his viewpoint of the chaos before he left the production, performing second unit and working with Kinski and Reed, and his reaction to seeing the film years later with his wife. In A Slithery Story, makeup artist Nick Dudman talks about how Venom was his first makeup job and that it was a trial by fire due to all of the problems on and off the set, the fear of working with real snakes and how it went on set, the pros and cons of working with real animals versus fake ones, and his thoughts on the final film. In Mamba Memories, author and film critic Kim Newman goes over a variety of novels about killer animals written at the time, various snake-related horror films, and the careers of those involved with Venom. In Pick Your Poison, The Dark Side’s Allan Bryce discusses how he believes the film is more British than people will admit, his feelings on it when he saw it, and an overview of the cast and crew. Last are two trailers, three TV spots, and a newly-expanded Poster & Still Gallery that features 127 images of posters, film programs, newspaper clippings, lobby cards, promotional stills, home video artwork, soundtrack artwork, book covers, and screenplay stills.

Outside of a DVD copy and a set of cast and crew biographies, nothing is missing from previous releases of the film. It’s a shame that we’ll never hear from Tobe Hooper personally about the film, but according to Eugenio Ercolani in the commentary, author Paolo Zelati, who frequently interviewed Hooper, said that he made reference to it only once and wouldn’t talk about it. In other words, it sounds as if it was a traumatic experience, which is all we need to know anyway.

Venom has a very unusual yet recognizable cast, but it’s a miracle that anything approaching entertaining came out of it at all. Blue Underground’s UHD upgrade of it certainly tops their previous Blu-ray release with improved picture and audio, and an excellent set of bonus materials. Like all of their 4K releases, this one also comes highly recommended.

- Tim Salmons

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