Once upon a time, in a small village nestled deep in the woods, there lived a poor and lonely old man named Mr. Higgins. He spent his days tending to his small garden and talking to the animals that visited him. One day, as he was working, he noticed a magical glowing rabbit hopping towards him. The rabbit had a shimmering coat of gold and gleaming red eyes. Mr.
Video Bitrate: 26.78 Mbps
Well, The Beast and the Magic Sword is over-the-top fun with Paul Naschy s Inquisition, The Devil Incarnate , The Night of the Werewolf unrestrained horror conventions spilling all over the place. Naschy and cinematographer Julio Burgos aim for a soft and sometimes frosted look, which leads to side effects, like fuzzy fine details and snowy grain.
Mr. Higgins was astonished and could hardly believe his eyes. He had heard stories of magical creatures, but he never thought he would encounter one himself.
The beast and the magic swrdo
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(aka "La bestia y la espada m�gica" or "The Beast and the Magic Sword" or "The Werewolf and the Magic Sword")
Directed by Paul Naschy (as Jacinto Molina)
Spain / Japan 1983
Werewolf versus Samurai in a Battle to the Death!
THE BEAST AND THE MAGIC SWORD is the last great film from Spanish horror legend Paul Naschy. Although he would go on making and planning films until his death in 2009, he never again attempted the epic sweep and grandeur of this 10th entry into the saga of Waldemar Daninsky, a man afflicted by the curse of lycanthropy.
In this film we get for the first time an origin story of how the Daninsky curse began back in the 10th century. We then move forward to 16th century Japan where Daninsky has travelled in search of a cure to his affliction. Co-starring Japanese stage and screen veteran Shigeru Amachi, and shot in the studios of Toshiro Mifune, THE BEAST AND THE MAGIC SWORD is a highly successful and colourful melding of European werewolf legends and dark Japanese fantasy. It features a fight between werewolf and tiger, an evil scarlet-cloaked witch who imprisons Daninsky, a sword fight with a troupe of ghost samurai, and many other unforgettable scenes.
In the 16th Century, the lycanthrope Waldemar Daninsky goes from his native Europe to Japan, seeking a way to cure himself of being a werewolf. Only a Japanese sorcerer named Kian and a magic silver sword can save him.
Theatrical Release: November 28th, 1983
Review: Mondo Macabro - Region FREE - Blu-ray
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1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray
Disc Size: 45,304,215,871 bytes
1.33:1: 18,953,381,952 bytes
1.66:1: 18,955,235,904 bytes
Video Bitrate: 26.78 Mbps
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
DTS-HD Master Audio Spanish 1509 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 16-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 16-bit)
Commentary:
Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps
Studio: Mondo Macabro
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray
Disc Size: 45,304,215,871 bytes
1.33:1: 18,953,381,952 bytes
1.66:1: 18,955,235,904 bytes
Video Bitrate: 26.78 Mbps
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Edition Details:
� Audio commentary with the Naschy cast. (Rod Barnett and Troy Guinn)
� The Smile of the Wolf - Interview with star Paul Naschy (46:23)
� Introduction to the film by Paul Naschy(13:36)
� Interview with the writer and critic Gavin Baddeley (32:12)
� Disc contains both widescreen and full frame versions.
� Original trailer (2:51)
Blu-ray Release Date: February 25 th , 2020
Standard Blu-ray Case
Chapters 10 X 2
NOTE : The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.
ADDITION: Mondo Macabro Blu-ray (March 2020): Mondo Macabro have transferred Paul Naschy's The Beast and the Magic Sword (aka "La bestia y la espada m�gica") to Blu-ray . It is cited as being a "4k digitally restored transfer from film negative". It contains the US release in both a full frame version (1.37) and a widescreen version (1.66) versions separate 1080P transfers. We have compared some captures below. It's a little inconsistent and takes a while (maybe 1/4 hour) to settle in, but after that has some occasionally impressive detail - kind of a smoky look with solid texture. I preferred the 1.37:1 as it seemed to better suit composition - the 'widescreen' has some head-chopping as well as flaming torches (see in two captures below). Overall a pleasing HD presentation considering the film's rarity in being seen in an English-friendly version and any imperfects were likely part of the negative source.
NOTE : We have added 40 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE
On their Blu-ray , Mondo Macabro use a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel track (16-bit) in the original Spanish language. I don't know much about the music - it can be an intense score and is credited to 'Cam Espana' with a man and woman singing a traditional Japanese song at the very end. Perhaps they mentioned it in the commentary and I kissed it. Dialogue has some weakness - sounding a shade clouded at times. Mondo Macabro offer optional English subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray .
The Mondo Macabro Blu-ray offers an audio commentary with a couple of Paul Naschy experts; Rod Barnett and Troy Guinn hosts of the Naschy Cast podcast. They have some enthusiasm and bring up some interesting, lesser-known, details - it's mostly on the actor/director and the Count Waldemar Daninsky's lycanthrope character, and his lack of continuity timelines etc. The Smile of the Wolf is a 3/4 hour archival interview with star Paul Naschy. Always an interesting dude. There is a 13-minute introduction to the film by Naschy and a 1/2 hour interview with the writer and critic Gavin Baddeley - author of FrightFest Guide to Werewolf Movies (The Dark Heart of Cinema) - so he's the go-to guy for reluctant wolfmen, Nazi werewolves, werewolf nuns, big bad fairytale wolves and lycanthropic nymphomaniacs. Lastly, is an original trailer.
Well, The Beast and the Magic Sword is over-the-top fun with Paul Naschy's (Inquisition, The Devil Incarnate, The Night of the Werewolf) unrestrained horror conventions spilling all over the place. I loved the tiger vs. werewolf battle and the well-choreographed sword conflicts - although the former may be a bit long and the entire infusion of Japanese samurai culture gives it a wild, fun. supernatural bent. It's no wonder Naschy has such a fervent following. He always kinda cool and fearless in his production choices. I believe this was the 10th in the series of Paul Naschy's Daninsky werewolf films. The Mondo Macabro Blu-ray has a commentary, interviews but the film itself has the most value - quite an unusual, adventurous take on lycanthropy.
Menus / Extras
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
As mentioned, The Beast and the Magic Sword was never released on video (or, apparently, even in theaters) outside of Spain. The best option fans had was a PAL DVD from Vellavision, though it didn’t have English subtitles, so they’d either need to know Castilian or find a .SRT file. Mondo Macabro has gone the extra mile for this, the film’s HD, North American, and English-friendly debut, including a new 4K scan of the original film negative and the option to watch the film in either 1.33:1 full frame or cropped 1.66:1. It’s not unusual for Spanish films from the time to be shot open-matte and even presented that way in theaters, but the slight cropping looks better to my eyes. The choice is ultimately entirely up to the viewer, though I’ve included a couple of comparisons on this page to help. Overall, I’m very satisfied with the image quality, especially given the film’s pseudo-lost status and fact that it was cobbled together on a small budget. Furthermore, I’m willing to blame a lot of the most obvious shortcomings on the material itself – not necessarily due to the condition of the material, but the mistakes and choices made during filming. Naschy and cinematographer Julio Burgos aim for a soft and sometimes frosted look, which leads to side effects, like fuzzy fine details and snowy grain. The bigger issue is that the filmmakers failed to correctly pull focus a lot of the time, making for inconsistent clarity, especially in the European-set sequences (once the story arrives in Japan, clarity is much more consistent). These types of artifacts are sometimes magnified by digital noise, but there isn’t a lot of obvious telecine scan noise (I noticed it most during some shots of Daninsky’s transformation and battle with a tiger, a bit past the one hour mark). Color vibrancy and dynamic range is strong, which is especially important given the major style shift from Europe to Japan.
The rabbit seemed friendly and approached him without fear. Mr. Higgins reached out his hand to pet it, and to his surprise, he felt a tingling sensation. As soon as Mr. Higgins touched the rabbit, the world around him changed. He found himself standing in a lush, vibrant meadow surrounded by beautiful flowers and tall trees. The rabbit, now standing on its hind legs, transformed into a wise old wizard. The wizard introduced himself as Merlin and explained that he had been testing Mr. Higgins, searching for a pure-hearted soul to grant a wish. Mr. Higgins could hardly contain his excitement as he thought about the possibilities. He knew exactly what he wanted. With a deep breath, Mr. Higgins made his wish. He wished for the village to prosper and for everyone to be happy and safe. Merlin smiled and nodded, granting the wish. As Mr. Higgins returned to his garden, he felt a surge of energy and excitement. He noticed his plants growing more vibrant, and the animals seemed more joyful than ever before. Word quickly spread throughout the village about Mr. Higgins' encounter with the magical rabbit. From that day on, the village flourished. Crops grew abundantly, and the villagers enjoyed a bountiful harvest. The once-poor village transformed into a prosperous community, and happiness filled the hearts of everyone. Mr. Higgins became a respected figure in the village. He was known as the man who had a pure heart and the luck to encounter the magic rabbit. He continued to tend to his garden, but now, he had the company of the animals and the gratitude of the villagers. The moral of the story is that sometimes, in the most unexpected ways, magic can enter our lives and change everything. It reminds us to always keep our hearts pure, and that a small act of kindness can bring forth incredible blessings..
Reviews for "The Magic Rabbit: A Marvel of Nature's Design"
1. Emily - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "The Magic Rabbit". The plot was predictable and the characters felt one-dimensional. The story lacked depth and emotion, and I found it hard to connect with any of the characters. The writing style was also quite bland, and there were several grammatical errors that distracted from the overall reading experience. Overall, I found "The Magic Rabbit" to be a forgettable and unengaging read.
2. Adam - 1 star - "The Magic Rabbit" was a complete waste of time. The story was incredibly slow-paced and dragged on for what felt like forever. The characters were poorly developed, and I found it hard to care about what happened to them. The writing was also clumsy and lacked any sort of compelling or unique voice. I was constantly bored while reading this book and struggled to find any enjoyment in it. I wouldn't recommend "The Magic Rabbit" to anyone.
3. Sarah - 2 stars - I had high hopes for "The Magic Rabbit" based on the synopsis, but unfortunately, it didn't deliver. The pacing was off, with long stretches of slow, uneventful scenes followed by rushed, underdeveloped plot points. The characters were unrealistic and unsympathetic, making it difficult to care about their fates. The writing style was also lackluster, lacking the descriptive and engaging prose I was expecting. Overall, "The Magic Rabbit" fell flat for me and didn't live up to its potential.
4. Michael - 1 star - I found "The Magic Rabbit" to be a complete bore. The story lacked any excitement or originality, following tired tropes and cliches. The characters were predictable and their actions felt contrived. The writing was also mediocre, with awkward dialogue and repetitive descriptions. Overall, I was severely disappointed with "The Magic Rabbit" and would not recommend it to anyone looking for an engaging read.
The Magic Rabbit and the Quest for Eternal Youth
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