4K UHD Review: Kino Lorber’s Zoltan… Hound of Hell (KL Cult) 

The newest sub-label from Kino Lorber, Kino Cult continues its wonderful curation of cult titles with Albert Band’s Zoltan… Hound of Hell.  New to 4K UHD. 

The Film 

So, Zoltan… Hound of Hell aka Dracula’s Dog begins with one of my biggest cinematic “no-noes”.  I can’t with assholes that don’t listen to dogs.  You get what you deserve once you treat them not as a part of the family that knows something but as just a “pet”.  Albert Band’s horror film is the kind of film where people continually make stupid decisions mostly out of budgetary reasons.  The results are both fascinating and dim. 

During a war in the Balkans (one assumes the Balkans because you know… Dracula) a tomb is disturbed unleashing both Veidt Smit (Reggie Nalder) and Zoltan his dog.  We are treated to a flashback explaining that both are servants to Dracula.  Their purpose now awakened is to find Dracula … or his closest relative.  That happens to be Los Angeles resident Michael Drake (Michael Pataki) – a loving family man about to go on vacation.  Veit and Zoltan follow Drake and his family to eventually turn him, allowing him to accept this throne as Count Dracula.  That is unless Inspector Vaclav Branco (Jose Ferrer) our Val Helsing can stop Veit and Zoltan. 

The combination of Band’s direction and the script by Frank Ray Perilli makes this a bumpy ride, to say the least.  Band and Perilli feel inspired by Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes without the brutal violence Craven imbued his story with.  The result is a meandering film that doesn’t feel like there is a bit of urgency or inevitable terror that can be effective in a vampire film of this nature.  Ferrer is great when he’s on screen.  As is Reggie Nalder as the freakishly creepy Veidt whose stares could give nightmares.  Though both are stranded as the film just doesn’t have a sense of urgency that would give this film life. 

The Transfer

This 4K is an amazing upgrade to the last Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.  The image is sharp with a beautiful patina of active grain giving it the look of a freshly struck print.  The color density, the grain structure, and the contrast are leveled up here.  There’s more refined detail in the blacks giving us a more lustery image than prior. This is an all-around great transfer that fans will adore. 

The Extras

They include the following;

• Audio Commentary by Film Historians Lee Gambin and John Harrison 
• Dracula’s Dog – Radio Spot 
• Theatrical Trailer

The audio commentary by Film Historians Lee Gambin and John Harrison opens with introductions and bondafides.  Some of the details include a discussion of the war film opening; the various films that use the “disturbing the tomb” troupe; the various films that use “Dracula relatives” as a troupe; the use of the dog’s point of view; the work of Jose Ferrer; the work of Arlene Martel; the work of screenwriter Frank Ray Perilli – including his work in animal training and the other films he’s written; the two German Shepards that appear in the film that also appeared in Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes; a larger discussion of the various dog and animal horror films that are of similar ilk; a larger discussion of the animal trainers and wranglers that worked on this film; and much more. Gambin and Harrison deliver a wonderful commentary track on this cult classic.  

Dracula’s Dog – Radio Spot (0:30) – the thirty-second spot plays over an image from the film. 

Rounding out the special features are trailers for Zoltan… Hound of Dracula (3:21); Jennifer (2:03); Deranged (1:40); Madhouse (1:49); Burnt Offerings (2:30); Chosen Survivors (3:07); Parasite (1:27); Phobia (1:52) 

The Final Thought 

Fans of the film will love this stunning 4K transfer.  Recommended.  

Kino Cult’s 4K UHD Edition of Zoltan… Hound of Hell is out now