Functioning as a forecast for the dismal half-decade of horror that followed and the near-death of the horror anthology, 1990s Two Evil Eyes brought two of horrors most distinguished pioneers together for an Edgar Alan Poe-inspired double bill that could/should have been a memorable celebration of the genre. Instead, with neither Romero nor Argento bringing their a-game to the table (as it turns out, their best work was already far behind them), Two Evil Eyes didnt quite set the horror world alight like many had hoped.
The film consists of two stories, the first being Romeros The Facts In The Case Of M. Valdemar, which tells the story of a scheming, cheating wife (Barbeau) and her dead husband who may not be as dead as she thought. Argentos The Black Cat is a story about a feline-hating forensic photographer who has a few issues with one particular cat that wont stay buried.
As always, theres a visual flair in Argentos movie which keeps things mildly interesting for the duration, and Romeros Tales From The Crypt-style segment has its moments (namely Barbeau), but both films eventually descend into tedium. The main problem is that each film is just too long. Originally intended as a foursome with Wes Craven and John Carpenter on board, the project would have no doubt worked better as an anthology of shorter films, but as it is, there just isnt enough engaging material to stretch to nearly an hour a piece.
Arrow Film, which has done wonders with a string of classic horror DVD and Blu-ray titles during the past months, present Two Evil Eyes in some eye-catching packaging with a collectors booklet and new original poster, plus, theres an exhausting but thrilling 40-minute Dario Argento trailer reel for horror fans to salivate over.
Overall Verdict: A disappointing double bill, but a nicely presented DVD package.
Special Features:
Trailers
Reviewer: Lee Griffiths