'Burke & Hare' Announced for Blu-ray

The 1972 black comedy will make its high-definition debut in July.

In an early announcement to retailers, Kino Video is prepping 'Burke & Hare' for Blu-ray on July 17.

Two of the most notorious figures in the history of medicine, William Burke and William Hare were a pair of enterprising street thugs who provided anatomical specimens to the Edinburgh Medical College--often by robbing the graves of the recently dead, sometimes through even more nefarious methods.

Derren Nesbitt and Glynn Edwards bring these two scoundrels to life in 'Burke & Hare,' a colorful, early '70s rendition of life in the taverns, brothels, and surgical theatres of 1820s Scotland.

While other filmmakers have treated the Burke and Hare murders as a source of gothic horror, director Vernon Sewell ('The Blood Beast Terror') offers a playful spin on the Irish body snatchers, blending dark comedy with bawdy eroticism, seasoning it with the grotesque, then crowning it with a playful theme song by the pop band The Scaffold.

Specs have yet to be revealed, but supplements will include Grave Desires: Corpses on Film -- an interview with Dr. Patricia MacCormack, Interview with actress Francoise Pascal, and the original theatrical trailer.

Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $19.95.

You can find the latest specs for 'Burke & Hare' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under July 17.