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Dementia 13 is a common movie to find in cheap multi-movie packs. Marketers like to throw the A-list director’s name around to sell their stuff resulting in a dementia-inducing number of releases to consider. That's why you have me.

Believe it or not this got the Blu treatment which is sold by itself and in a 2 pack with The Terror. It's also listed in the Ultimate Shockfest Blu collection.

Time for the DVD's. There is a Roan and an AFA Entertainment release that are both widescreen. There's an unspecified release that has some extras. There's an Amazon Exclusive version that is remastered. And there is a 3D version. You can find it in numerous multi-packs, but the only one I saw that really stands out is the Movieology Shockfest Sixties Collection.

I will compare 2 multi-pack versions and a remastered Digiview DVD.

The Horror Classics 50 pack is first on my comparison menu.

Video:

1.33: This is the TV standard “full-frame” ratio. The image has some trash – not too bad at times, pretty bad at other times. It can be pixelated and a bit fuzzy. This one is brighter than others I've seen which can be a positive for seeing the details of a shot but which also shows off the trash that's present. The others copies are trashy as well so it's not that big of a tradeoff. The image shifts a tad but not nearly as bad as the others do.

Audio:

1.0 mono: The sound has a few minor pops and is rather thin but has little to no persistent white noise. The dialogue could be clearer at times but is not horrible. This version is superior to the others I've seen if only just barely so.

Packaging:

This particular disc is housed in a cardboard sleeve contained in a Velcro-fastened box. You can read about the set as a whole in great detail in the Horror Classics (50 pack) guide.

Extras:

There are no extras of any kind.

Other Editions:

The Blu mentions 5.1 surround sound, a high-def transfer, and offers a DVD copy as well. The quality sounds like it is improved from past transfers with less trash and grain but still nothing fantastic. It doesn't sound like the surround sound does much for the dated audio, either. Extras listed are a trailer, a movie art postcard, and a restoration comparison.

The Ultimate Shockfest Blu collection seems to be part of a slowly growing trend (or perhaps attempt at a trend) of using Blu's storage capacity to fit a lot of movies on a single disc. 20 public domain films (some very common, some fairly rare) reside on a single disc in standard 480i definition (no HD here). The best I can say for these is that they seem to occasionally present the original image ratios and may be very slightly improved quality over some of the cheaper DVD budget packs. Otherwise they offer nothing special aside from being exceptionally self-space friendly. They offer no extras and can be somewhat hard to find.

The Roan DVD sounds like a good one with a widescreen presentation (though it's so close to 1.33 that it's almost not even noticeable according to reviews) and better than average but still imperfect quality. Extras mentioned are a commentary, a trailer, and some other unspecified offerings. The price is so astronomical, though, that I don't recommend worrying about it.

The other widescreen version from AFA Entertainment says it is formatted for 16x9 screens. It does not mention remastering, and I could find no comments on the quality. It appears to be offered in a package variation with “Happy Birthday” and some flowers on it. Don't look at me like that, I'm not making it up! If it weren't as expensive as it is I'd buy it just for the sheer oddity of it.

The Amazon Exclusive mentions remastering but gives no other details, not even the aspect ratio. I found no comments on the quality. There are a few others that mention remastering as well, but they likewise give so few product details that I don't feel like they are worth the time spent hunting down the info.

Details on the 3D version are slim, but keep in mind that this was not originally a 3D movie. There is no indication of glasses being provided with your purchase.

I saw mention of some extras with one of my inquiries, but when I went back to note the details I couldn't find it again. So somewhere out there is something with at least a few minor goodies.

The Movieology Shockfest Sixties Collection offers 6 movies and is a widescreen collection. Dementia 13 is specifically noted to be remastered in 1.78 widescreen for this set. However, the one informative review I read said that the quality is really weak. The price is so ridiculously high that unless this was pristine condition and could serve me dinner when I sat down for my movie it's not deserving of a second glance.

Beyond that all other releases list the 1.33 full-frame ratio and the mono sound with most not mentioning remastering or other extras.

Final Thoughts:

So even compared to the digitally remastered version, I find the 50 Horror Classics transfer to be superior even though it's still far from impressive. The 20 Chilling pack version is not even really worth the time if you have access to any other. The Digiview disc is tolerable if you're not interested in getting a multi-pack. For the best quality go for the Blu+DVD combo or the Roan release. Those are your best bet for extras as well although you shouldn't expect much. Other than that you're probably better off just going with the best bargain you happen to find.

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Next up is the 20 pack known as Chilling.

Video:

1.33: The image shifts around annoyingly – it's bad enough to make this hard to watch. In addition, it's a bit too dark which seems to be a common issue with most transfers, it has a good bit of trash, and it's grainy and pixelated.

Audio:

1.0 mono: There is a bit of a hum and perhaps some mild distortion.

Packaging:

The disc comes in a paper sleeve that lives in a plastic case. You can get more details about the set as a whole by checking out the Chilling (20 pack) guide.

Extras:

No extras for this one, either.

Lastly is the Digiview digitally remastered DVD.

Video:

1.33: The image is shaky, wavy, dark, and grainy with plenty of trash. It's generally just an unclear picture for something that is supposedly remastered.

Audio:

2.0 stereo: The audio sounds more like a 2.0 mono than true stereo, but that's what the package specs list. It has some white noise and pronounced pops here and there; the mix is weak with overstated high frequencies.

Packaging:

Simple thin plastic case.

The menus feature some animation and a distorted score loop.

Extras:

-Also Available: 2:50: This is just a presentation of short clips of other movies available put to a company score.