Torture Dungeon

England in the Middle Ages. The unscrupulous Norman, Duke of Norwich, has the king murdered by his henchmen. But in order to get on the throne himself, he must first get rid of his half-siblings who are ahead of him in the line of succession. He wants to get rid of his half-brother Albert by marrying the sensual Heather MacGregor. He is supported by the other members of the government and his perverted pleasure slave Ivan. When Heather is accepted into the royal court, she quickly realizes the threat Norman poses when she is dragged through his torture cellar by his half-sisters. Little by little, the noble corpses pile up. Will the noble Heather manage to escape her fate?

In Torture Dungeon, Andy Milligan takes us into his interpretation of medieval England where the scheming Norman is trying to rise to power. The sometimes extravagantly sewn costumes don't fit into the time any more than the occasional garden fence or the abandoned greenhouse where Heather is introduced into royal circles. The film was shot mainly with amateur actors who did not appear outside the Milligan cosmos. An absolutely terrifically weird film with a confused plot, strange dialogues and curious twists.

Director's Cut released by Severin

The film was first released by Code Red on Blu-ray on 29 November 2014. On 29 September, Severin released The Dungeon Of Andy Milligan Collection, a box set of 13 of his films. Severin had access to the 16mm negatives and so the set includes never-before-released extended versions of some of the films. This is also the case with Torture Dungeon. The director's cut extends the sex scenes by a few mostly insignificant moments. Also included here is the kiss between Norman and Ivan, which they probably didn't want to subject the movie audience to at the time. The Theatrical Version has a noticeable jump cut at this point.

If you are interested in the films of Andy Milligan, you should definitely get the box set by Severin. The box is very lovingly designed and many of the films are available in extended versions for the first time. The picture quality is excellent and the included book by Stephen Thrower rounds out the release nicely. The +/- $150 price tag on this is more than justified considering where the price range was for previous releases.

Picture Comparison:

Code Red Blu-ray:

Severin Blu-ray:

Runtimes:

Code Red Blu-ray: 79:45 min.
Severin Blu-ray: 80:22 min.

Comparison between the Theatrical Version (US Blu-ray by Code Red) and the Director's Cut (US Blu-ray by Severin).

[00:00:16][00:00:17]

Alternate title insert. The smudging and running streaks in the image suggest that the Severin was using 35mm footage from a theatrical print.

Theatrical Version: 6 secs.
DC: 7 sec.


[00:01:04][00:01:07]

After the opening credits, the Theatrical Version shows a longer black screen.

Theatrical Version: 1 sec.


[00:13:50][00:13:51]

During the love scene of William and Heather in the grass, the DC continues to show William pulling his pants down before continuing to kiss Heather. The follow up shot of them kissing starts earlier.

Note in the background the modern greenhouse in medieval England.

DC: 14 secs.


[00:39:52][00:40:05]

After Norman lies down in bed with Rosemary, the two are seen making love in one shot.

DC: 11 secs.


[00:53:31][00:53:54]

Theatrical Version fades to a black screen as Albert lays on top of Heather. Albert's "fuck" can be heard as he does so.

The DC shows another short shot of the two making love. A fade out is heard during this shot.

Theatrical Version: 1 sec.
DC: 5 sec.


[01:01:34][01:02:00]

In the ménage à trois scene, the Theatrical Version has a jump cut. The director's cut shows Ivan putting his head between Rosemary's breasts.

DC: 1 sec.


[01:01:45][01:02:13]

Norman is stroked longer by Rosemary over his upper body. He caresses her breasts. The follow up shot in which the camera moves down at Rosemary starts earlier.

DC: 2 secs.


[01:09:49][01:10:19]

Norman gives Ivan a kiss. The cut creates a jump cut in the Theatrical Version.

DC: 8 secs.