Posted in: Blu-Ray, Movies | Tagged: 4k, blu-ray, Door-to-Door Maniac, Film Masters, Johnnie Cash, Right Hand of the Devil

Film Masters Restores Johnnie Cash Debut Noir Movie to Blu-Ray

Film Masters has restored Johnnie Cash's first movie, a low-budget 60s noir thriller, and a bonus film from that time, to Blu-Ray

Film Masters are a new outfit you should know about if you like obscure B movies. Did you know the late, great country singer Johnnie Cash had a brief, on-off movie career in the 1960s? His first movie, a low-budget noir thriller, was passed around in grindhouse theatres and bootleg VHS tapes from the 1980s and the 1990s until now. Door-to-Door Maniac and the ultra-rare bonus film Right Hand of the Devil are a '60s double dose of neo-noir cult classics, available Aug. 27th in a special, two-disc collector's edition on Blu-ray and DVD from Film Masters, a new company of film archivists dedicated to restoring storing obscure movies. Film Masters have preserved the original film's elements by scanning in 2K and 4K for the best new version of Johnnie Cash's cinematic debut. The Blu-Ray will include original bonus materials, including feature-length documentaries, which aid audiences in contextualizing and celebrating these works of art as they were meant to be.

Door-to-Door Maniac (1966)

75 Minutes

4K restoration by Film Masters

Originally released in 1961 as Five Minutes to Live, this low-budget crime drama was re-released in 1966 as Door-to-Door Maniac. Fred narrates the film in flashback, detailing a suburban bank robbery that goes awry. As part of a simple plan, he hires a hard-up, psychotic hood, Johnny Cabot, to take the wife of the bank's vice president hostage in her own home. What follows is a robbery gone awry in every way! You won't want to miss this gem whose original poster proclaimed, A woman's price drops fast as the time limit ticks away!

Noted for a great performance by Johnnie Cash in his first film role—the aspiring actor helped finance the film in hopes of catching his big break—Door-to-Door Maniac also stars Donald Woods, Cay Forester, and Pamela Mason. Also, look for a very young Ron Howard in a small role and Vic Tayback (best known as Mel from the TV show Alice).

Right Hand of the Devil (1963)

67 Minutes

4K restoration by Film Masters

In the little-known film Right Hand of the Devil, director Aram Katcher makes his bid to become the next Hitchcock. While prominent movie director he is not; Turkish-born Katcher does star in the film … and not just on-screen. Producer, story creator, editor, title designer, and costume designer are just some of the other roles he took on with his magnum opus … Later, he reportedly destroyed all the 35mm elements. This new 4K scan comes from a rare 16mm reduction print from the collection of noted film historian and producer Samuel M. Sherman, who tried to work with Katcher to re-release the film.

Katcher leads the cast as an ingenious criminal mastermind who hires a motley crew of questionable henchmen. Their target? A sports arena. Along the way and critical to their plans, he seduces a middle-aged cashier, but she is not as easily convinced as expected! Will Katcher triumph in his hard-won leading role?

SPECIAL FEATURES: Author/podcaster Daniel Budnik and film historian Rob Kelly join forces to provide a comprehensive commentary track for Door-to-Door Maniac with Don Stradley providing liner notes; Larry Strothe, James Gonis, Shawn Sheridan and Matt Weinhold of the Monster Party podcast are back for a full-length commentary for Right Hand of the Devil, with C. Courtney Joyner providing liner notes; Ryan Verrill and Will Dodson from Someone's Favorite Productions present the all-new, visual essay, Player Piano: Passion of Aram Katcher; recut 2024 trailer for Door-to-Door Maniac; and restored, original trailer for Right Hand of the Devil.

With Door-to-Door Maniac scanned in 4K from 35mm original archival elements and Right Hand of the Devil scanned in 4K from 16mm archival elements, each film is presented with two aspect ratios (Door-to-Door Maniac in 1.85:1 and 1.37:1 and Right Hand of the Devil in 1.66:1 and 1.37:1). Discs are region free and include English SDH. Audio is DTS-HD/Dolby AC3s.

Film Masters

Genre: Cult

B&W, Not Rated

Format: Blu-ray & DVD

Running Time: 142 Minutes Plus Approx. 156 Minutes Special Features

Suggested Retail Price: $29.95 (Blu-ray) / $19.95 (DVD)

Street Date: August 27, 2024

Catalog #: FMB013 (Blu-ray) / FMD013 (DVD)

UPC Code:  #760137157274 (Blu-ray) / #760137157304 (DVD)

Door-to-Door Maniac with Right Hand of the Devil is out on Blu-Ray on August 27th. You can find out more about Film Masters website and the other films they've restored on their website.

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