Arriving towards the end of Hammer’s heyday, Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is a genre-bending reinvention of vampire lore from writer-director Brian Clemens (best known for his pivotal work on The Avengers). Produced in 1972, Clemens envisioned Captain Kronos as the start of a new Hammer franchise, moving the company away from the now all-too-familiar Dracula films, but after a two-year delayed release and disappointing box office returns, it became clear that a series of Kronos films wasn’t to be. Having ascended to cult classic status in the years since, Captain Kronos celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, and as a belated birthday present, Hammer are now releasing this exciting 4K UHD and Blu-ray box set.

A rash of mysterious deaths due to accelerated ageing compels Dr Marcus to summon his brother-in-arms, Captain Kronos – once a soldier but now a professional vampire hunter. As the deaths continue, Kronos realises this is no ordinary vampire he’s hunting…

Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is less a traditional Hammer horror and more of a swashbuckling adventure film, more interested in sending audiences on an adventure than terrifying them. There’s even a touch of folk horror about it, with similarities to the likes of Witchfinder General and Blood on Satan’s Claw. Its genre-bending certainly makes it stand out in the pantheon of Hammer films, offering a different kind of vampire story to what audiences expected at the time, but the approach feels so distinctly modern that I’m surprised that nobody has remade Kronos in the decades since.

The Captain himself makes for a mysterious protagonist, journeying from place to place (on his quest to hunt vampires, as the title suggests) and ready to leap into action at any moment. Played by German actor Horst Janson, the character’s lines were later dubbed by British actor Julian Holloway, resulting in a slight disparity between the physical and vocal aspects of the performance, but not to the detriment of the film. The MVP of the cast is John Cater as Kronos’ accomplice Professor Hieronymus Grost, who brings some much needed gravitas to the film, and delivers the vampiric exposition with some relish. The long-time friendship between the two is evident throughout, emphasised in a scene in which Kronos defends Grost against a group of thugs in a tavern. There’s a real sense of history between the two men that the film makes sure to keep ambiguous, resulting in a great central dynamic. Caroline Munro, who made her Hammer debut in Dracula AD 1972 (and later appeared as Bond girl Naomi in The Spy Who Loved Me), plays Carla, envisioned as a “fiery gypsy lady” who ultimately becomes Kronos’ romantic interest.

There are some wonderful moments of direction from Brian Clements (in what turned out to be his only directorial outing), and some great lines of dialogue (“I know you’ve got guts, Kronos, I’ve seen them!” remarks Dr Marcus). The vampires are mostly kept to the shadows, an ambiguous presence through much of the film before the action-packed climax, complete with a good sword fight and a fun twist reveal. With most of the film shot on location it doesn’t have the studio-bound feeling that some Hammer films suffer from, increasing the production values in spite of the limited budget. It’s easy to see the potential for the further adventures of Captain Kronos, with this film occasionally feeling almost like the feature-length pilot to a TV series, but this is more of a testament to the world-building and characters than its cinematic quality.

It can be quite daft in places, and those looking for an all-out horror may be disappointed, but Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is a lot of fun with a unique approach to vampires and a premise so strong it seems a shame that a sequel never materialised.

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Presentation

For this 4K UHD/Blu-ray set, the team at Hammer have produced a brand-new 4K restoration of Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter. There are three versions of the film included: the 1.66:1 UK Theatrical Version, the 1.37:1 As-Filmed Version and the 1.85:1 US Theatrical Version. As far as I can tell, all three versions of the film are derived from the same restoration, complete with brand-new Dolby Atmos and 5.1 mixes for each version alongside the original mono soundtrack. Of the three versions, my preference is for the 1.66:1 UK Theatrical Version, although some fans may opt for the 1.37:1 ‘open matte’ presentation.

The new 4K restoration looks terrific, with plenty of detail on display whilst retaining a slightly soft, grainy appearance in keeping with the 35mm film stock. Watching in Dolby Vision gives the primary colours a bit more pop (particularly the trademark Hammer red blood), while the generally earthy colour palette benefits from the wider colour gamut and increased contrast. The HD Blu-ray presentation is sourced from the same 4K master and while it lacks the increased resolution and Dolby Vision grade, it’s nevertheless well worth upgrading to if you don’t own a 4K set-up. Comparing this new restoration to an older scan of the film, it’s truly a night-and-day difference in terms of both picture and sound quality. The new Dolby Atmos sound mix is excellent, opening up the soundstage without making any major changes from the original mono mix. In particular, Laurie Johnson‘s triumphant orchestral score is given an extra kick with the Atmos upgrade. All in all, this is a top-notch presentation from Hammer and fans of the film should be delighted with this new remaster.

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Special Features

This five-disc collector’s set contains two UHD discs and three Blu-ray discs, with the content duplicated across both formats.

Disc 1 (UHD) contains the 1.66:1 UK Theatrical Version of Captain Kronos (with a new introduction by Caroline Munro and a new commentary featuring Caroline Munro and Sam & George Clemens), alongside the 1.37:1 As-Filmed Version (featuring a new introduction by Sam & George Clemens as well as two archival commentaries from 2011 with Brian Clemens, Caroline Munro, Shane Briant, John Carson and Marcus Hearn on one and an alternative track with Brian Clemens, Director of Photography Ian Wilson and Marcus Hearn).

Also included on Disc 1 is The House of Clemens (HD) — a brand-new hour-long documentary looking at writer/director/producer Brian Clemens — providing an insight into his personal life and an overview of his career highlights from half a decade of working in the industry, ranging from The Avengers to The Professionals. Produced and directed by Chris Chapman under Moon Balloon, those familiar with some of the documentaries included on the Doctor Who Collection Blu-ray’s will know what to expect from this feature, which is presented by Toby Hadoke. It’s a wonderful tribute to a British screenwriting legend, featuring interviews with his family along with actors Caroline Munro and Joanna Lumley (who worked with Clemens on The New Avengers), as well as his influence on writers Stephen Volk and Stephen Gallagher. Hadoke is given a tour of the eponymous Clemens home, discovering all manor of exciting memorabilia, including a selection of original props from Captain Kronos. There’s even a brief location tour, as Clemens’ son reveals that a lot of the opening title sequence of Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter was filmed within walking distance from Brian Clemens‘ house. Other special features on this first disc include the original UK and foreign theatrical trailers (with new 4K scans) and the original UK censor card.

Disc 2 (UHD) contains the 1.85:1 US Theatrical Version of the film, with a 2013 introduction by Brian Clemens, a 2020 commentary featuring film historian Bruce G. Hallenbeck and a 2003 commentary featuring Brian Clemens, Caroline Munro and Jonathan Sothcott. Additional extras include Kronos Returns, a featurette produced by Sam and George Clemens following a cast and crew reunion at the Cine Lumiere for a screening event in March 2008. The featurette has interviews with Brian Clemens, Horst Janson, John Cater, Caroline Munro, William Hobbs, John Carson and Lois Daine, which feature some nice anecdotes — although the background noise at the event can sometimes be a little overbearing. Anything Goes: Hammer Horror in the 1970s is a half-hour featurette from 2020 in which Kim Newman and Stephen Jones discuss the cinematic context of the time, which will surely be a great nostalgia trip for some viewers. Moreover, there are interviews with Brian Clemens (in 1991 and 2000) and Horst Janson (in 2010) from the Festival of Fantastic Films archive; a Lois Daine interview (in 2017) from the James McCabe archive; a stills gallery featuring music from Laurie Johnson‘s score; the original US theatrical trailer; some original US radio spots; and the original textless titles and backgrounds, restored in 4K.

While it may be disappointing that there is no in-depth making-of documentary included, given that so many of the people involved are sadly no longer with us, such a production would be challenging. That being said, the mixture of interviews, introductions, commentaries and the reunion featurette provide a welcome insight into the production from many of the key players. All in all, a great selection of special features for fans to dive into.

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Packaging

While only the five discs were provided for this review, the limited collector’s edition is packaged in a high-end, premium textured slipcase with debossed red foil titling, with an inner box featuring new artwork by cult favourite artist Graham Humphreys; a double-sided poster of the original UK and US one-sheets; eight art cards featuring facsimiles of the original US cinema lobby cards; a 136 page booklet featuring interviews, articles and reproductions of original paperwork; and a 100 page comic featuring a reprint of the Kronos strips from legendary 1970s magazine The House of Hammer. The booklet itself features a new article on the making of Captain Kronos by actor and author Bruce G. Hallenbeck; archive interviews with Horst Janson, Caroline Munro, Laurie Johnson, John Cater, Lisa Collings and William Hobbs, courtesy of Little Shoppe of Horrors magazine; a new article examining why Kronos never made it to a franchise by film historian Laura Mayne; a new article on Laurie Johnson by Movie Music International‘s John Mansell; an archive Brian Clemens interview from a 1974 edition of Monster Times; an archive review of Captain Kronos from 1974 by Video Watchdog‘s Tim Lucas; a new article examining the film’s UK cinema distribution by Steve Rogers; and reproduction pressbook, call sheet and US PR material.

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Conclusion

Overall this is a very impressive set from the Hammer team, giving this unique swashbuckling horror film a new life with a terrific 4K remaster and an extensive selection of bonus materials. If you’re a die-hard Hammer fan, this collector’s edition is a must-buy, but if you’re new to the film like this reviewer, there is no better way to experience Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter.

Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is released on 27 January and available to pre-order from Amazon, HMV, and Hammer Films