Despite having been released after a glut of serial killer thrillers – a genre that was exhausted in the ‘90s following the release of “Silence of the Lambs” – THE CELL (107/109 mins., 2000, R; Arrow) ranks as a powerful viewing experience. Despite its lurid and occasionally gratuitous elements, Tarsem Singh’s feature directorial debut ultimately rises above its material thanks to its visual extravagance, one that invites rediscovery on 4K UHD thanks to Arrow’s new, definitive release that streets January 21st.
Like a cross between “Lambs,” “Fantastic Voyage,” “Dreamscape” and a demented “Alice in Wonderland,” “The Cell” finds Jennifer Lopez – then at the height of her efforts to be taken seriously as an actress – as a social worker whose participation in a breakthrough scientific project enables her to enter into the mind of catatonic patients and communicate with them. This proves useful when serial killer Vincent D’Onofrio falls into a coma, and the latest of his female victims is trapped in a cell that will, within 40 hours, be filled with water.
With FBI agents Vince Vaughn and Jake Weber looking on, Lopez enters D’Onofrio’s brain, and encounters a fantasy world filled with demons, S&M devices, staircases that stretch to infinity, and a young boy that proves to be the innocent inner-child trapped within the killer’s tortured, schizophrenic, and demented mind.
Mark Protosevich’s screenplay works in some effective dramatic beats and allows Singh — a long-time director of music videos — the opportunity to craft some genuinely spellbinding, haunting images (as well as a few gruesome ones that I was surprised didn’t earn a NC-17 rating). “The Cell” is a movie where the visuals overshadow the rest of the drama, but that seems to be the very point of the picture: we’ve been through the motions of this kind of plot many times before, but rarely has the overall effect of the drama and the manner in which it has been delivered been so enthralling.
The performances are generally solid, with D’Onofrio allowed to play a diabolical demonic king, crazed killer, and somewhat-sympathetic villain all at once. Lopez – who wears an array of eye-popping costumes by Eiko Ishioka – plays it straight, and it’s remarkable now watching her respectable turns in this, “Out of Sight” and the underrated “Angel Eyes,” seeing as she’d quickly lose interest in furthering her on-screen career, preferring instead a steady diet of rom-coms and “American Idol” hosting. Vaughn is stiff and miscast, as he was often in “straight” roles after first breaking onto the scene in “Swingers,” though at least he’s more believable here than he was (laughably) playing Norman Bates in Gus Van Sant’s disastrous “Psycho” remake.
All are relegated, at times, to standing around watching the images go by. Not that, in this picture, that’s a criticism, since the cinematography, art direction and score (one of Howard Shore’s most eclectic and striking works) combine to craft a memorable thriller that’s only bogged down in divulging too much of the killer’s fetishistic behavior and an effort, especially early on, to seemingly outdo other films in its genre. The explicitness of the picture and its obsession with the killer’s turn-ons are far less interesting than its fantasy components, elements which result in images that are at times disturbing, evocative, or in the case of its ending, entrancing and beautiful.
Arrow’s 4K UHD of “The Cell” is out January 21st and features several viewing options: the 4K UHD sports either the theatrical version or a slightly extended Director’s Cut, both with Dolby Vision HDR (2.39), derived from a new scan of the OCN. The transfer is sound if a little drab, which is rectified by the inclusion of an alternate cut on the set’s included Blu-Ray platter. This presentation is a 2K restoration graded and provided by cinematographer Paul Laufer, framed in the open 1.78 aspect ratio and offering much more vivid colors and contrasts than the UHD. Laufer was concerned with the different processes they had used to shoot the movie and its special effects “mind” sequences in particular, noting the finished film, as it was released to theaters, included sequences many generations separated from its original source.
Laufer produced his own HD master of the film at the time of the movie’s home video release yet that master has never been seen until now – and the results resemble what an IMAX presentation of this movie might’ve looked like at the time, with a color scheme that seems more aligned with the otherworldly components of the material. The finely engineered 5.1 DTS MA sound is carried over from previous releases, boasting Shore’s ominous score, a bombastic London Symphony recording laced with Middle Eastern components.
Supplements include new commentaries with Mark Protosevich as well as frequent commentary track participants Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson. Archival commentaries by Tarsem and a crew track including Paul Laufer are also on-hand while new conversations are also included with Tarsem and Laufer, respectively (Laufer also provides an extensive discussion on the origins of his alternate HD master). Also on-hand is a visual essay from Heller-Nicholas; another visual essay by critic Abby Bender; plus an archival featurette, eight deleted/extended scenes, and six multi-angle visual FX vignettes, carried over from the original New Line DVD. It’s capped in a limited-edition slipcover and package with assorted critical essays reflecting on a movie that lingers long in the mind after its final frames conclude.
I much prefer “The Cell” over a more popular film in the ‘90s serial killer genre, David Fincher’s seminal effort SE7EN (127 mins., 1995, R; Warner), which arrives this week on 4K UHD from Warner. Not a film I particularly “enjoy” watching, Fincher’s direction, the dense visuals and textured cinematography of Darius Khondji nevertheless make for a highly stylized picture that’s hard to take your eyes off, even if Andrew Kevin Walker’s script is a bit pretentious — and Brad Pitt’s performance marred by occasional stretches of overacting.
Aficionados of the film have looked forward to a new 4K UHD edition of the movie and this Warner presentation, enhanced with HDR10 (2.39), once again ups the ante for fans thanks to superior black levels and contrasts over Warner’s old VC-1 encoded Blu-Ray – though one’s mileage out of this transfer far surpassing its predecessors may rely on your TV’s black level ability. The DTS MA 5.1 sound is reprieved from the Blu-Ray while extras from prior DVDs (four commentaries, deleted/extended scenes, multi-angle functions, the trailer, storyboards and more) are on-hand for supplements.
Cinematographe’s latest release, WHO KILLED TEDDY BEAR? (94 mins., 1965), sports a 4K restoration from the original 35mm OCN (with some sequences derived from a 35mm fine grain master) of Joseph Cates’ independently-produced, lurid 1965 thriller. This cult item starts Juliet Prowse as a Manhattan waitress stalked by a prank phone caller, who turns out to be one of her co-workers (Sal Mineo); meanwhile, Jan Murray is the tough cop who not only gets involved in the case but becomes invested in the seedy side of Times Square as a whole.
Effectively shot on-location, “Who Killed Teddy Bear?” was certainly not the kind of thing you’d expect from Cates, a Broadway producer and veteran of the television industry (plus father of Phoebe) who turns his eye towards a naturalistic depiction of Times Square in all its grizzliness circa the era. The movie’s script by Arnold Drake and Leon Tokatyan likewise feels “gonzo” for its time also, but here restored in another marvelous 4K UHD/Blu-Ray limited edition box set from Cinematographe, one can appreciate the movie’s vivid capture of time and place – one that feels unlike most anything else you’d see produced in the decade at that time.
Cinematographe’s 5000 copy box also includes a Blu-Ray of the movie, with both platters featuring a fully uncut print of this rarely-released picture (previous home video versions were derived from a cut versopm). New extras include a commentary by historians Elizabeth Purchell and KJ Shepherd; a video essay from Chris O’Neill; a shooting location featurette; gallery of press materials; and text essays from historians John Charles and critic Kyle Turner.
INGLORIOUS BASTERDS 4K UHD (153 mins., 2009, R; Arrow): Quentin Tarantino’s 2009 excursion into the offbeat is one of my favorite films of his to date — an uneven but cinematically vibrant collage of snappy dialogue, studied tributes to other pictures and most of all the WWII film genre itself, here reinvented as a Jewish revenge fantasy with Brad Pitt leading a squad of Jewish soldiers into Nazi occupied France for revenge. Even if the Basterds themselves are — disappointingly — only peripheral characters, the central, interlocking story is stylishly designed and leisurely told, with Tarantino taking advantage of the wide cinematic frame and employing a number of techniques to get his story across.
Among the memorable performances are Christoph Waltz as a most vile Nazi commander and Melanie Laurent as the only surviving member of a Jewish family he wipes out in the film’s opening set-piece; in addition to a few voice-overs from Samuel L. Jackson there are also “Guest Star” turns from Mike Myers and Rod Taylor as Winston Churchill along for good measure! Add in a typically eclectic Tarantino soundtrack, offering music as varied as cues from “The Alamo,” Morricone westerns, “Cat People,” “Kelly’s Heroes” and even Charles Bernstein’s “The Entity,” and you have another Tarantino cinematic stew that’s pure revisionist history, but also quite entertaining…even though the film sags as it moves along, coming off more like a slow burn than a real thriller. There should have been a bit more action and less talk in one of his later “Acts,” particularly considering that the Q-man delivers the goods in a memorable, albeit brief, climax.
Debuting on 4K UHD from Arrow, “Inglorious Basterds” has been enhanced with HDR10 (2.39, 5.1 DTS MA) while a new commentary from Tim Lucas is included on the supplemental end. It’s a gorgeously, appropriately filmic presentation as you’d expect, while extras include new interviews with make-up artist Greg Nicotero plus a slew of “historians” including critic Walter Chaw, historian Pamela Hutchinson, and author Christine Leteux. Archival extras include extended/alternate scenes plus numerous featurettes, roundtable interviews, and hardbound, limited-edition “Operation Kino” packaging. There’s also a collector’s book sporting notes with writing by critics Dennis Cozzalio and Bill Ryan; a double-sided fold-out poster, art cards, and a (appropriately enough) strudel recipe!
Though “inspired” by Enzo Castellari’s ‘70s exploitation favorite, Tarantino offers up another of his stylistic endeavors in “Inglourious Basterds,” but the results fuse together more successfully here than in most of his works. It’s a shame there wasn’t a bit more “pop” to the film’s second half, though, since the “Basterds” really never get an opportunity to strut their stuff, even in HDR10.
Also new from Arrow on 4K UHD is “Outer Limits” creator Leslie Stevens’ oddball INCUBUS (74 mins., 1966), a low-budget, independently-made surrealist fantasy starring none other than William Shatner as a soldier who seeks healing in a remote village – only to find the inhabitants of “Nomen Tuum” to be succubi with one (Allyson Ames) especially gravitating towards him. Stevens achieves much in terms of tone with “Incubus,” which is more a pretentiously arty experiment than an entertainment, but lost any hopes of commercial returns when he opted to shoot the movie in the Esperanto language; in fact, the picture was lost until the mid ‘90s when a 35mm print was uncovered in France. That print forms Arrow’s 4K UHD restoration (1.85) with Dolby Vision HDR (an alternate 1.37 framing is included on Blu-Ray here), with a new commentary included from David J. Schow. Archival extras include commentaries by Shatner plus producer Anthony Taylor, cinematographer Conrad Hall and camera operator (and future DP himself) William A. Fraker. There are also new interviews with historian Stephen Bissette, Esther Schor, and an archive interview by Schow with Taylor, Hall and Fraker. The booklet includes essays from Frank Collins and Jason Kruppa while a slipcover is included in Arrow’s new UHD limited edition.
New on Blu-Ray from Arrow is RAMPO NOIR (134 mins., 2005), an anthology finding a quartet of Japanese directors helming adaptations of stories by writer Edogawa Rampo. Suguru Takeuchi, Akio Jissoji, Hisayasu Sato, and Atsushi Kaneko are the filmmakers bringing four of Rampo’s tales to life here, with several of Japan’s biggest stars including Tadanobu Asano and Ryuhei Marsuda appearing in the 2005 production. Arrow’s Blu-Ray (1.85, 2.0 Japanese stereo with English subtitles) features a new commentary from Jasper Sharp and Alexander Zahlten; new interviews with Takeuchi, Sato, and Kaneko, cinematographers Masao Nakabori and Akiko Ahizawa, and actor Yumi Yoshiyuki. There’s also a feature-length Making Of doc from 2006, an image gallery, and booklet notes by Eugene Thacker and Seth Jacobowitz.
From Criterion
While some labels slow down during the month of January, Criterion is back with a 4K UHD remastering of Akira Kurosawa’s tremendous samurai classics YOJIMBO and SANJURO (1961-62, 110 and 96 mins., Criterion), starring Toshiro Mifune as Sanjuro, the wandering samurai who turns the tables on warring clans to his advantage in the original (a Dashiell Hammett reworking later remade as the Leone-Eastwood classic “A Fistful of Dollars” and Bruce Willis’ forgettable “Last Man Standing”). The sequel, meanwhile, is a bit breezier with more comedic elements, but it’s still a worthy companion to its predecessor.
Criterion’s new UHD box-set is similar to their recent, excellent 4K remaster of “The Seven Samurai”: both films have been remastered in 4K (no HDR was involved) via their original Tohoscope (2.35) aspect ratios, while the sound has been preserved in 3.0 DTS MA to simulate the original “Perspecta” simulated stereo effects (mono tracks are also available). Abundant extras include commentaries by historian Stephen Prince; documentary extracts from the “Toho Masterworks” series “Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful To Create”; exclusive subtitles; and extensive booklet notes. Blu-Rays are also included in the newly available box-set.
Also New & Noteworthy
SATURDAY NIGHT Blu-Ray (109 mins., 2024, R; Sony): Backstage look at the first broadcast of “Saturday Night Live” from director Jason Reitman, who wrote alongside his usual partner Gil Kenan, is awfully frantic but not a lot more. Reitman assembled a largely star-less cast to fill out the roles of the original Not Ready For Primetime Players, with Gabriel LaBelle as the harried Lorne Michaels, creating television history while hanging on by a thread. The movie has loads of energy but mistakes that attribute for entertainment; often, “Saturday Night” comes off like a group of “kids playing dress up,” with few of the cast actually channeling their actual SNL counterparts, and – as is usually the case with the younger Reitman – a notable lack of laughs, especially given the source material. Sony’s Blu-Ray (1.85, 5.1 DTS MA) includes Reitman’s commentary, a Making Of, and a Digital HD code.
SMILE 2 4K UHD (127 mins., 2024, R; Paramount): Writer-director Parker Finn is back with a more elaborate sequel to his comparatively less audacious horror hit “Smile,” this time following a worldwide pop singer (the lovely Naomi Scott) who becomes the latest, eventual target of the “smile” parasite. Overlong and over the top, “Smile 2” eventually goes for broke with a spectacular downer ending; I didn’t care for it, but certain genre fans may appreciate the gonzo component of Finn’s effort. Paramount’s attractive 4K UHD offers Dolby Vision HDR support and Dolby Atmos sound, along with the Blu-Ray, a Digital HD code, deleted/extended scenes, Finn’s commentary, numerous featurettes and behind-the-scenes content.
ICONS UNEARTHED: MARVEL Blu-Ray (12 hours, 2024; Mill Creek): Another superb entry in Brian Volk-Weiss’ documentary series recounts the long, turbulent journey of Marvel from its earliest big-screen aspirations and assorted fumbles (“Howard the Duck”) through the formation of the pre-Disney Marvel Universe and eventual success as a box-office behemoth. Assorted juicy production histories like the troubled Edward Norton experience on “The Incredible Hulk” and Edgar Wright’s aborted shot at directing “Ant-Man” are given prominent placement, while Lou Ferrigno is on-hand to represent the CBS network “Hulk” series, one of the studio’s only successful ’70s/’80s adaptations. Bonus extended interviews are on-hand with Ferrigno, Mark Millar, J. Michael Straczynski, JJ Field and Clark Gregg, while the 1080p transfer and 5.1 DTS MA sound is perfectly serviceable.
Also new from Mill Creek is their latest Ultraman franchise release on Blu-Ray, ULTRAMAN: ULTRA GALAXY FIGHT, a slipcover-adorned set that includes all three entries in “Ultra Galaxy Fight” plus “Ultraman Regulos” and “Ultraman Regulos: First Mission.” 1.78 transfers and 2.0 DTS MA Japanese stereo audio with English subtitles are included in the three-disc set.
Radiance New Releases: Kicking off Radiance’s first discs of the new year is Peter Fleischmann’s French affair WEAK SPOT (111 mins., 1975), an offbeat concoction with a memorable Ennio Morricone score, backing the strange tension between a tourist manager (Ugo Tognazzi) who’s accused of participating in an anti-government resistance after being picked up by a pair of secret agents (Michel Piccoli, Mario Adorf). Fleischmann’s movie weaves social critique and comedy in with tension and a thriller framework that doesn’t quite come together, but Morricone’s score is often cited as one of his more acclaimed efforts from the decade. A new Studio Canal restoration (1.66) is included in Radiance’s Blu-Ray along with commentary from critic Travis Woods; an archival TV interview with Piccoli; “Lovely Jon” discussing the Morricone soundtrack; and a Kat Ellinger interview that can be found in the set’s booklet.
Also new from Radiance is the Blu-Ray world premiere of Seijun Suzuki’s UNDERWORLD BEAUTY (87 mins., 1958). This taut Japanese film noir about a thief who teams up with the late sister of his older partner to keep a stash of stolen diamonds away from his old crime boss sports slick widescreen lensing and B&W cinematography which is replicated beautifully in Radiance’s Blu-Ray. A new 4K restoration (2.39) is on-hand here along with Suzuki’s feature “Love Letter” as a bonus plus an interview with critic Mizuki Kodama, a commentary on the bonus feature from William Carroll, trailers, new English subtitles, and Radiance’s customary limited-edition packaging with a booklet sporting essays by Claudia Siefen-Leitch and an archival review of the film.
Staying in the Far East, 88 Films has produced a Special Edition of LOVE & CRIME (92 mins., 1969), director Eruo Ishii’s anthology of Japanese crimes of passion, all centered around the “Hotel Nionkaku Murders” that include a portrait of serial killer Yoshio Kodaira and the last woman beheaded in Japan, Oden Takahashi. Vivid widescreen imagery informs this release, presented outside Japan for the very first time in 88’s Blu-Ray (2.39). Packaged like Radiance’s releases with an OBI strip, the set includes a commentary by critics Jasper Sharp and Amber T; a new filmed intro from Mark Schilling; a stills gallery; Japanese mono audio and English subtitles; and a copy of the film on DVD for good measure.
RUNNING ON KARMA Blu-Ray (94 mins., 2003; Eureka): Hong Kong crime thriller from the prolific directorial tandem of Johnnie To and Wai Kai-fai stars Andy Lau as a former Buddhist Monk with a sixth sense that he uses to help cop Cecilia Cheung in a homicide investigation. Ruminations on life, past lives and spirituality dominate this interesting import made available here by Eureka for the first time outside HK. The Blu-Ray sports a solid 2K restoration (1.85) with Cantonese stereo audio; a new commentary by Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto; another, solo commentary from Djeng; a new interview with genre expert Gary Bettinson; an archival Making Of; the trailer; and a booklet sporting an essay from David West.
Also New & Noteworthy: Paul Bartel’s movie SHELF LIFE (81 mins., 1993) was the final film from director Paul Bartel. Shot in the early ‘90s, this oddball (naturally) comedy follows a trio of siblings who head out of the bomb shelter they’ve been holed up in since the JFK assassination, where they find a massively changed culture. “Blast From the Past” this isn’t, as Bartel comments on the darker elements of his premise in a movie restored on Blu-Ray by Liberation Hall. The disc includes commentary from the cast/writers O-Lan Jones, Andrea Stein and Jim Turner; an American Cinematheque Q&A with the trio; trailers and more (1.85, 2.0 Dolby Digital)….DARK SANCTUARY: THE STORY OF THE CHURCH (86 mins., 2025) is a documentary from Timothy Stevens that chronicles the “goth club” The Church, a Dallas, Texas club for music patrons and purveyors of the odd. Uncut celebrity interviews are extras in Cleopatra’s Blu-Ray (1.85, 5.1).
Russ Meyer Mania!
Sexploitation provocateur Russ Meyer broke into his own form of stardom with the release of RUSS MEYER’S VIXEN (81 mins., 1968), a controversial mix of sex, social politics and time capsule entertainment that, despite numerous lawsuits the movie faced in 1968, also became one of the highest-grossing movies of the year. Finally remastered in a new 4K transfer from Severin, the movie is part of Meyer’s “Vixen” trilogy, newly issued on Blu-Ray from the label. In addition to the new, clear and remastered transfer (1.85, mono), the disc also includes an archival commentary with Meyer; a new commentary with actress Erica Gavin; interviews with Gavin and co-star Harrison Page; a David Del Valle “Sinister Image” segment; Marc Edward Heuck on the movie’s censorship battles; and the 1981 censor prologue from a theatrical re-release.
“Vixen” was followed by a pair of sequels, also newly remastered in 4K by Severin. RUSS MEYER’S SUPER VIXENS (106 mins., 1975) would be released several years later, pairing Shari Eubank and Charlies Napier in a surreal, raunchy road trip flick. Uncut and restored (1.85, mono), “Super Vixens” sports an interview with Napier, Mike Carroll’s interview with Meyer, an “Incredibly Strange Film Show” episode, trailers, and an archival commentary featuring the writer/director…Meyer followed both pictures with BENEATH THE VALLEY OF THE ULTRAVIXENS (93 mins., 1979), a late ‘70s piece here restored with interviews with Ellen Adelstein and actress Kitten Natividad, Meyer’s archival commentary, the trailer, and another restored 4K transfer (1.85, mono) in Severin’s Blu-Ray.
CHEERLEADERS’ WILD WEEKEND Blu-Ray (86 mins., 1979, Unrated; MVD): Crime caper and cheerleaders mingle in the 1979 independent comedy “Cheerleaders’ Wild Weekend,” the latest release in the MVD Rewind Collection. Kristine DeBell plays one of the cheerleaders who’s taken captive alongside her squad by angry ex-football star Jason Williams (who also produced) before they all attempt to corral ransom money in a zany drive-in affair spiced up with more dramatic elements than you might expect. It’s an (appropriately) wildly uneven brew brought to Blu-Ray with a 1080p (1.78) transfer, commentaries featuring director Jeff Werner and crew with another commentary by DeBell; interviews with DeBell, Williams, Leon Isaac Kennedy, and Marilyn Joi. The trailer and a mini-poster grace another strong MVD package.
NEXT TIME: OCN January Rundown! Until then, don’t forget to drop in on the official Aisle Seat Message Boards and direct any emails to our email address. Cheers everyone!