Psychotronica Collector's Set

"VCI Video kick off a new series of DVD's featuring a variety of vintage exploitation pictures with this three disc set, The Psychotronica Collector's Set (the name presumably referencing Psychotronic, the late, lamented film magazine edited and published by Michael J. Weldon, though he doesn't appear to have any involvement with this set). The three discs in this set (each available individually) each feature two movies, and all have been transferred to disc using the original negatives, with the image quality uniformly excellent throughout. All six films appear in their original aspect ratios -- The Raw Ones in a full-frame transfer at 1.33:1, Mondo Keyhole letterboxed at 1.66:1, and Delinquent Schoolgirls, Dream No Evil, The Mermaids of Tiburon and Yambao -- Cry Of The Bewitched at 1.85:1. Delinquent Schoolgirls, Dream No Evil and Yambao -- Cry Of The Bewitched have been given anamorphic transfers that are enhanced for 16x9 monitors, while Mondo Keyhole and The Mermaids of Tiburon are simply letterboxed 4:3 images. The audio mastering for all six movies is quite good, though the quality of the original source materials is better for some titles than others; all the films have been mastered in Dolby Digital Stereo, retaining the original monophonic sound mixes. The dialogue for all six features is in English, with no subtitles or multiple language options. Bonus trailers appear on all three discs, while Mondo Keyhole and Delinquent Schoolgirls boast optional commentary tracks, respectively featuring director Jack Hill and star Bob Minor. The Raw Ones is kitted out with a special introduction featuring Hill, and The Mermaids of Tiburon is presented in two full-length versions, the original tame cut and a later edit with topless mermaids added. While the lineup of movies on The Psychotronica Collector's Set isn't earth-shaking, the quality of the presentation is fine indeed, and folks with a taste for the stranger avenues of filmmaking will want to give this a look, though many fans would be well-served by picking up one or two individual discs rather than the entire set."