Short Sharp Shocks Vol. 4 on BFI Flipside Blu-ray in October
It’s back! A fourth compelling collection of Short Sharp Shocks revisits the heyday of the supporting programme with a compendium of eerie and eccentric British short films presented for the first time in High Definition. Well-known names to spot include Patrick Macnee, John Le Mesurier, Gabrielle Drake and Elspeth Gray. Settle in for a strange cinematic journey through uncanny stories, twists in the tale, low-budget weirdness and oodles of atmosphere.
The films on this volume of Short Sharp Shocks are:
The Fatal Night – Mario Zampi, 1948
Zampi’s nightmarish tale of a man pledged to stay overnight in a Mayfair haunted house makes its long-awaited High Definition debut.
Death in the Hand – A Barr-Smith, 1948
Palmistry, predestination and the uncanny pervade this acclaimed feature that eerily paralleled a real-life tragedy.
Strange Experiences: Halloween Party and The Laughing Clown – Derick Williams, 1955/6
Two peculiar microbudget episodes of unease from a long-forgotten television show.
Night Rise – Denis Meikle, 1967
Bloody murder, psychedelic occultism and Cormanesque conflagrations collide in an ingenious 8mm love letter to gothic from a renowned horror historian.
Mirror Mirror – Gary Parsons, 1969
Look into the glass if you dare! An ostentatious amateur work, crafted by horror aficionados from the Eastbourne Cine Group.
Scarecrow – John Sharrad, 1972
Drought-stricken 1930s Ireland is the setting for this oddly unsung ecological bird-terror, folk-horror mood piece.
Red – Astrid Frank, 1976
This boldly bloody, poetic horror of lusty travelling troubadours and obscene occult ritual just barely scraped past the BBFC.
Sanctum – Bill Davison, 1976
Once banned, this edgy 8mm-shot exploration of dual personality and religious obsession re-emerges with an outstanding newly created score by The Begotten.
Play Safe: Frisbee and Play Safe: Electricity – David Eady, 1978
Frightening, flares-afire Public Information Films from that most dangerous of decades: the 1970s.
Black Angel – Roger Christian, 1980
Mistily set amid Scottish mountains, this dreamlike fighting-fantasy mini epic was handpicked by George Lucas to play before The Empire Strikes Back.
Short Sharp Shocks Vol. 4 will be released as a 2-disc Blu-ray by the BFI on 13 October 2025 at the RRP of £24.99.
BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES:
- It Happened That Night (2025, 10 mins): interview with Mario Zampi Jr, son of the director of The Fatal Night
- The Devil Upstairs (2025, 17 mins): interview with John Attfield, actor in Night Ride
- Night Ride: Behind the Scenes (1967, 4 mins)
- The Colour of Blood (2025, 18 mins): interview with Red writer and director Astrid Frank
- Astrid’s Little Folder of Wonders: images and ephemera from the personal collection of Astrid Frank
- Over the Mountains (2025, 22 mins): interview with Black Angel writer and director Roger Christian
- Rare images and ephemera from The Fatal Night, Death in the Hand, Sanctum and Black Angel
- Newly commissioned sleeve artwork by renowned illustrator Graham Humphreys
- FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated booklet with contributions from Jonathan Rigby, Vic Pratt, Dr Josephine Botting, William Fowler, Astrid Frank, Bill Davison and Roger Christian