THE VISITOR (Circle Collective)

The Visitor (2024)

Circle Collective / Vinegar Syndrome

By "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn podcast director, host of the HWGW Podcast

The Visitor comes to Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome partner label Circle Collective. Directed by artist and provocateur Bruce Labruce, The Visitor reimagines Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema (1968) for a modern landscape. Circle Collective's release boasts a vibrant video and audio package, and a reasonable assortment of bonus features. However, the film's subject matter might make this a tough one to justify purchasing.

The Movie Itself: 4 stars

I've covered auteur director Bruce Labruce before. His film Saint-Narcisse (2020) has some similarities with The Visitor, namely overt sexuality and layers of meaning, but also some differences: The Visitor is much less a narrative feature than it is a work of art. With a narrative that's light on dialogue, heavy on symbolism, and heavier on explicit sexual content, The Visitor also has slogans appearing briefly but unmistakably on screen in bold text, making this feel like the video that would play as part of a larger art installation.

That's neither a compliment nor a criticism, it's just a fact. The Visitor breaks the reality of what little narrative it has--a stranger comes to a wealthy family, seducing them all and upending their previously sedate lives of privilege--to boldly underline its themes as much at the audience as for them. These text-heavy moments all come, no pun intended, during hardcore sex scenes, so my reading was that these slogans were representative of the titular visitor (Bishop Black) passing the seeds of revolution and social change to whomever he was passing his non-symbolic seed to at that moment.

In one of the special features, Bruce LaBruce talks about his views on pornography as art, and for the most part, I get where he's coming from (again, no entendre intended). There are, of course, exceptions to everything, but pornography is a particular art form and regardless, that is the direction Labruce is approaching this film from: blurring the lines between what is considered pornography and what is considered art.

Ultimately The Visitor is a lot. Deliberately provocative and shocking, but never for its own sake, the film asks its audience to consider: What if it was this easy to affect social change? What if emotional intelligence, empathy for others, and a desire for a better world were transmissible through great, satisfying, goopy, alien, sex? Could we actually just fuck our troubles away? I don't know about you, but I'm willing to try.

The Video: 4 stars

Bruce Labruce is a visual artist as much and as aggressively as he is a sociopolitical one. As a result, The Visitor looks incredible. The shot compositions are well-considered and add a certain artificiality to the world of the film that actually helps it. This is a heightened reality to start with, so when the fourth wall is, well not broken exactly, more like graffitied upon, it doesn't throw you as much as it might otherwise.

The colors are equally as impactful. The establishing shot of the family's home is overlayed with four quadrants of bold colors: brown, yellow, red, and white. Red and yellow especially are used to grab and hold your attention throughout, sometimes in costuming or lighting, sometimes as the aforementioned text.

I should mention that there's quite a bit of strobing, especially where the text on screen is concerned, so if you're particularly sensitive to such things, you'll want to avoid this release.

The Audio: 4 stars

The Visitor is actually pretty light on dialogue (relatedly, I don't believe there was an option for subtitles? unless I entirely missed it) and the dialogue that is present sounds like it was recorded on set. I'm not sure if this is purely a cost-saving measure, a nod to the production of pornography, or maybe some combination of the two? Regardless, the audio, while clear, mostly serves the score.

That score, by Hannah Holland, is fittingly unique. In addition to thumping EDM-style beats, what I would describe as "sci-fi video game sounds" come and go, adding a Halloween spooky-house vibe to the events that are weirdly appropriate. The Visitor, while explicit, and bluntly addressing the issues Labruce has in his sights, is also made with tongue firmly planted in cheek (I will not be making any jokes about that phrasing at this time). Art, especially in Labruce's hands, is more than just one thing. One need not be entirely serious to be taken seriously. All of this, even telling truth to power, can--and should--be fun.

The Supplements: 4 stars

I'm not sure what most people look for in bonus features, but what I'm most often looking for is context, and the features on this release give it in droves. Porn is Political is Labruce discussing his view on pornography as it relates to art. Samm Deighan's video essay goes into greater detail on some of these points, including the influence and inspiration of Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema (1968). Both are fascinating, especially seeing how directly some scenes in The Visitor echo Pasolini's earlier film.

The essay by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas also gives some very specifically British context for the film, citing the origins of some of the anti-immigrant soundbites that compose the opening sequence of The Visitor, which was much appreciated. If recent events are anything to go by, being able to provide receipts for the awful things said by almost anyone given even a modicum of power is incredibly useful so that we all know the character of those we're talking about. The essay also provides numerous other cinematic parallels--perhaps intentional, perhaps not--scattered throughout the film.

• Porn is Political - introduction by Bruce Labruce (10:09) (HD)
• The Sexual Revolution of the Proletariat from Pasolini to Bruce Labruce - video essay by Samm Deighan (14:22) (HD/SD)
• Behind the Scenes featurette (34:44) (HD/SD)
• X-rated trailer (2:00) (HD)
• Theatrical trailer (2:00) (HD)
• Stills gallery
• Booklet with essay by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

There is a slipcover edition, which may still be available, featuring appropriately attention-grabbing imagery from Adam Maida:

Final Thoughts: Recommended

I hadn't even experienced the works of Bruce Labruce before this year, but now--with just two of over a dozen features under my belt--I've become something of a fan. I like the messaging in Labruce's films, I like the abundance of style with which they're made, I like the sense of humor in them and how it balances the sensuality and sexuality.

Certainly, The Visitor is a much more niche film; more confrontational, more unflinching, than something like Saint-Narcisse--which, don't get me wrong, is still not for everyone--but it is no less well-made, no less enjoyable. I wholeheartedly recommend The Visitor for most audiences, but fully acknowledge that some, perhaps a large percentage, will likely write it off instead of engaging with it.

THE DISH & THE SPOON (Music Box Selects)

The Dish & the Spoon (2011)
Music Box Selects / Vinegar Syndrome

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn podcast director, host of the HWGW Podcast

The Dish & the Spoon comes to Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome partner label Music Box Selects. Written and directed by Allison Bagnall, this film is an honest and chaotic look at a woman in the middle of great distress. Anchored by quietly dynamite performances from Greta Gerwig and Olly Alexander. Music Box Selects' release offers some slight additional materials, but the movie is the real prize here.

The Movie Itself: 4 stars

Rose (Greta Gerwig) is in, as they say, a bad state. When the film opens, she's crying and driving; never the best situation to be in. Turns out her husband has had an affair with a local dancer / yoga instructor and Rose found out and took off in a flurry of hurt and anger. She's obviously at a low point: she doesn't quite have enough money for all six donuts and all six beers from the convenience store, so she leaves one bottle on the counter amidst fistfuls of loose change, the clerk takes pity on her and lets her go. Her next stop, a lighthouse overlooking the sea (as they generally do), is where she finds her counterpart for this picture, the spoon to her dish: Olly Alexander as an unnamed boy.

The Dish & the Spoon is an almost hypnotic doomed-romance story with a decided New England flavor to it. As the emotionally lost Rose drinks away her feelings, occasionally attempting to incite violence against the other woman, she finds the Boy to be, maybe not so much a kindred spirit as a safe harbor. He, for his part, is affable and nearly as lost as she is, but for entirely different reasons.

Writer/director Allison Bagnall allows a certain improvisational looseness to the film that only enhances the barely contained chaos of this whirlwind not-quite romance. Amidst a nearly continuously storming Northeastern coastal town, Rose interrogates who she is and what she wants by playing dress-up--sometimes literally--with a gracious, quiet, increasingly lovestruck young man whose name we never learn.

Almost from minute one, I was left quietly reeling. Both Gerwig and Alexander deliver muted performances that are devastating in their raw vulnerability. Every emotion is on display without ever announcing themselves. The film is simultaneously a whirlwind of activity and emotions--the whole thing takes place over just a few days--and a slow burn romance that there's no clean and easy resolution to. The Dish and the Spoon is by no means a flashy film, but it's a subtly stunning one.

The Video: 3 stars

Being set in a seaside beach town in the cold, wet off-season, everything in the film has that northeastern United States cold, wet, washed out cast to it. Outside are bright grey skies over muted golden beaches, the skeletal black branches of nearly bare trees and carpets of brown fallen leaves. The interiors are warm, but occasionally dark, as Rose and the boy navigate her parents' summer house by kerosene lanterns as there is no electricity or heat in the off-season. 

The transfer is fabulous, but like the movie itself, not flashy. The exteriors are never washed out, the interiors, no matter how dramatically lit, are never too obscured to see what's happening. Facial expressions are always readable, no matter how subtle. The whole visual aesthetic projects intimacy in a way that reinforces the film's subject matter perfectly.

The Audio: 3 stars

As with everything thus far, the audio mix isn't showy, but it's well-balanced for how dynamic it is. There's roughly as much screaming as there is whispered dialogue in the beginning of the film and my three-channel soundbar handled it all very well without me having to adjust the volume levels at all. As Rose and the boy develop their little faux domestic routine, and begin to have fun, there is singing, piano music, and non-diegetic songs on the soundtrack that are all handled equally well.

The mixing also makes use of the environments of any given scene to add a real world dynamism to the events. When Rose drives to the other woman's home and stands out in the driveway, shouting, you can hear the distance and the space of the outdoors versus when she and the boy spend an evening asking each other about their lives. The first third of the film, it always seems to be storming outside, and when they're in the summer house, the whistling wind and the rhythm of the rain is occasionally present but never overwhelming. It ends up reinforcing the coziness of the scenes as much as it underlines their friendship as a calm in the eye of Rose's emotional storm.

The Supplements: 3 stars

The additional features aren't amazing, but they were very enlightening. The 2011 South By Southwest interview by Ann Thompson with Gerwig and Alexander underlines the looseness on-set and what they describe as the sense of play they felt in being able to build their characters. This is reinforced by the deleted scenes which aside from being largely aimless silliness--Rose and the boy spitting beer at each other, or spending an afternoon in the woods playing with branches and other natural detritus--it really highlights Allison Bagnall's non-restrictive approach.

Interestingly, Bagnall clearly had some of the movie locked in mentally before production began. The Location Scouting feature is composed of footage filmed during these scouting sessions contrasted with how they appear in the finished film and it's remarkably similar. I feel that her having some firm ideas for how she wanted the film to look, yet being able to allow for improvisation and creativity at the same time to be a really fascinating and admirable quality in a filmmaker.

• Deleted Scene and Outtakes (7:00) (HD)
• SXSW Interview from Ann Thompson, 2011 (20:06) (SD)
• Location Scouting featurette (4:08) (SD/HD)
• "The Whale" performed by Olly Alexander (2:25) (audio only)

There's also a slipcover that I believe is still available, featuring collage-style minimalist art designed by Beth Morris, featuring imagery from the film:

Final Thoughts: Highly Recommended

The Dish and the Spoon comes highly recommended if you're looking for a melancholy time. It's bittersweet, but both the bitter and the sweet are wonderfully realized and performed. This is an independent film in all the ways that I grew up loving: small (both in budget and scale), intimate, honest and never simple. Being a person is hard, complicated work, especially when you add emotions into the mix. With The Dish and the Spoon, Allison Bagnall (as well as Greta Gerwig and Olly Alexander) share something that makes it feel okay to acknowledge that things can be messy, and temporary, but still worthwhile.

"Beast of Burden, Chapter 8: Try Walking a Mile with My Paws"

The following is an excerpt from my forthcoming memoir "BEAST OF BURDEN".
Available from Babylon Zoo Publishing in Q3 2025.

Rin Tin Tin pretends to answer his own fan mail.

Chapter 8 : "TRY WALKING A MILE WITH MY PAWS"

After getting everyone's souls back in the correct bodies I gave up my treasure hunting career, packed up my metaphorical bindle, and headed west to Hollywood to seek my fortune. Not the first, not the last, as I say. Seeking your fortune isn't exactly shooting fish in a barrel, of course. I needed to take the bull by the horns and find work to make ends meet. That's how I ended up behind the bar four nights a week at a dive called The Cat's Pajamas that had a reputation for being "where the real animals went". I thought this meant rowdy crowds and tough customers, and while there were those too, I learned that in this case "real animals" frequently meant real animals.

The Pajamas was an unassuming little place in the shadows of the major studio lots, and, in addition to handfuls of your average oddballs, all the animal actors--anyone who was anyone, as they say--came there to wet their beaks. In the first couple of weeks, I learned the ropes: the good and bad tippers, who gets a tab and who doesn't, but most of all to keep quiet as a mouse about what went on there. It was nothing illegal, mostly, but any gossip could be the straw that broke the camel's back for our clientele's careers.

Orangey the cat--who would go on to some acclaim with my help--spent some of their time as Minerva, their drag persona that performed at clandestine burlesque houses in the area. Morris--the 9Lives cat food spokescat, and not to be confused with Morris the alligator--were in a relationship, but no one could know about it. Rin Tin Tin--German shepherd immigrant turned bonafide movie star--had hired Jimmy the Crow--star of over a hundred films, and actually a raven--to help him respond to his mountains of fan mail, which at first I thought was a kindness, before learning he was working Jimmy like a dog, ironically, and for peanuts. I won't name names, but let's say a little bird told me that Rinty couldn't get his paws to stop shaking long enough to sign correspondence without at least a bottle of schnapps.

But it wasn't all monkey business. The lion's share of regulars were sweethearts. Terry--Toto from The Wizard of Oz--introduced himself to me on my first day to reassure me that any little people who came in and dropped his name could drink on his tab. He'd been paid three times what they were on that picture, knew that wasn't right, and was trying to pay it forward. Frances the Talking Mule did what made him famous: talking. A lot. Told me his whole story; about how he came over from Mexico and took the talkies by storm before being priced out by the competition at rival studios--like Mr. Ed, that scumbag (¹). Regardless, Francis and I became close and he invited me to a poker game with many of the aforementioned patrons and they came to like me too; I laughed easily, lost more than I won, kept the drinks flowing, and kept my mouth shut.

(¹) - My lawyers have advised me that I am to make it abundantly clear that Mr. Ed is only a scumbag in my own humble, personal opinion, and that I do not have, and I quote, "tons of dirt on him, enough to bury him deeper than a groundhog’s graveyard."

My brush with the silver screen came one day when some gopher from Paramount poked his head in saying Blake Edwards needed Orangey back on set for reshoots. Problem was, Orangey was well into their cups for the evening and in no condition to perform. Next thing I knew, I'm on the set of a big Hollywood production, hundreds of gallons of movie magic raining cats and dogs on me, soaking me to my skin. That's right, in the climactic rain scene of Breakfast at Tiffany's, any time Cat isn't in close-up? That's me.

Thus began my career standing-in and stunt-doubling for some of the most famous critters in Hollywood. I was busy as a beaver; very quickly in demand. Union rules limited the hours an animal performer could work in a given day, but as a human, they could work me like a rented mule. The Lone Ranger rode me off a bridge into a river; I pointed to that damnable well Timmy had fallen into; I shared the big screen with Johnny Weissmüller and Rex Harrison; I was riding high on the hog.

It couldn't last however. I blew out my hip which put me on the shelf for 8 months and limited what I was able to do, physically, thereafter. Worse, during my convalescence, Variety did a profile on me called "Beast of Burden" which unfortunately painted me as the leader of the pack for a wave of human actors bent on replacing animals in all films. I returned to The Pajamas as a black sheep. Most of my former poker buddies and more recently co-workers assumed I'd been a snake in the grass the whole time and they turned their backs on me.

I was heartbroken. With the benefit of hindsight, I'm ashamed to admit that instead of addressing the elephant in the room, I tucked my tail between my legs and headed back east like a bat out of Hell. I'll always think of those times, and those people, fondly, but clearly the cows had come home and that chapter of my life was finished.

Hunter is an author of some renown.
Just because you may not reknow who he is doesn't change that.
Facts is facts.

This piece originally ran in the MovieJawn Summer 2025 print zine, under the title Stunt Animal.
It is all 100% true. Like, so true that you don't even need to check. Why waste your time?

WATCHLIST - October 2025

Welcome! Welcome! Welcome, to all my spooky boos and autumn aficionados! The season approaches on cloven hooves, so I'm putting together another Spooky Watchlist. I've been making these for a few years, originally just for myself and the folks I live with, but other pals kept asking to be included, so here we are. This year marks my second collab with MovieJawn, and you can and should read the first one HERE, because it was written to help folks who might otherwise feel overwhelmed by too many choices feel more at ease, and to make building their own month-long movie marathon less intimidating. So go read that one, then come back. I'll wait.

I will, however, reiterate my three main rules because they bear repeating:

Rule 1: Start with the easiest prompts first. Don't get hung up on one you're having trouble with, just come back to it.
Rule 2: There are no wrong answers. Make your selections however you want, and if you're "wrong" about a movie: who cares, as long as you had fun watching it.
Rule 3: The search bar is your friend. First, I hope we've all turned A.I. responses off (it's easy to do), but if you're having trouble coming up with a title, Letterboxd and to a lesser extent IMDb have plenty of themed lists for you to peruse for inspiration.

Now let's dive in. I've shared the image so you can copy it or print one out if you want to. Now I'm going to walk you through the prompts with some suggestions. We'll start with the ones that are extremely YOU-specific:

Free Streamies
    Tubi, Plex, and PlutoTV are all excellent and importantly FREE resources for films great and small,
    and I'm trying to reinforce the idea that you don't necessarily need to pay for all your entertainments,
    even if you're big into streaming. So fire up your free streamer of choice and find something that looks
    fun!
Physical Media
    Choose a film you currently own, or owned at one time, or want to own on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray or
    some other format.
Birth Year
    A movie released in your birth year, or the birth year of a loved one who'll be watching with you.
Studio Specific
    Pick a flick from a favorite studio if you have one - TriStar Pictures, Cannon Films, or Full Moon
    Entertainment leap readily to mind for me.
Homegrown
    A film made or set in or near your hometown, or wherever you might live now.
First Time Watch
    Select a movie you, or someone watching with you, has never seen.

For the rest of these prompts, I'll try to make at least one suggestion family friendly in case you've got kids who'll be watching with you or maybe you just don't love the scarier side of the season. Also, in light of the country's recent bout of xenophobic inhospitality, I'll be suggesting at least one film of non-American origin, if for no other reason than to better appreciate the global arts community.

Monster By Name
    A movie with 'monster' in the title - Monsters (2010), Monsters, Inc. (2001), Monster Seafood Wars
    (2020, Japan).
Monster By Nature
    A movie where the "monster" doesn't look like one - Psycho (1960), Monster House (2006), Hausu
    (1977, Japan).
Monster By Nurture
    A movie about what it takes to make a monster. It could be trauma, an evil spirit, a potion, a curse,
    alienation, anything at all - Evil Dead II (1987), Gremlins (1984), The Loved Ones (2009, Australia).

Blockbuster
    A film that was such a smash that it inspired numerous imitators - Alien (1979), E.T. the Extra-
    Terrestrial (1982), Godzilla (1954, Japan).
Mockbuster
    A film that's clearly inspired by something else - Life (2017), Masters of the Universe (1987), Bloody
    Muscle Body Builder in Hell (1995, Japan).

Horny
    Define this one however you're most comfortable: a film that's actively about being horny, or just one
    with a sexually-charged atmosphere, or perhaps one about The Devil or another famously horned
    character - Species (1995), Little Nicky (2000), Shivers (1975, Canada).
Costume Inspo
    Folks dress up as all kinds of non-spooky things from movies for Halloween, so watch a movie that's
    got good, non-spooky costume fodder - Police Academy (1984), Minions (2015), Ultraman (1966,
    Japan)
The Master of Suspense
    A film by or in the style of Alfred Hitchcock. On the plus side, a lot of Hitchcock is pretty all-ages
    friendly - What Lies Beneath (2000), The Birds (1963), Cobweb (2023, South Korea).
"Never D Your Own G"
    This phrase--coined the Hate Watch/Great Watch Podcast, Episode 131: Beneath the Darkness
    (2011)--means "Never dig your own grave", which is unquestionably good advice. Choose a movie
    with grave digging or a cemetery - Shallow Grave (1994), Army of Darkness (1992), Cemetery Man
    (1994, Italy).
Kid Favorites
    Could be a favorite from when you were a kid, or if you have kids it could one of their faves, or just a
    well-liked film made for kids - Teen Wolf (1985), The Addams Family (1991), Wallace and Gromit:
    The Curse of the Where Rabbit (2005, UK).
Summerween
    A good scare is an any time of year treat Jaws (1975), Tremors (1990), High Tension (2003, France).
Permission to Board
    Movies where someone uses an Ouija board or similar device - Ouija Shark (2020), 13 Ghosts (1960),
    Alison's Birthday (1981, Australia).
Season of the Witch
    Yes, there are a few films with this as a title and you could watch one of them, but this could be any
    witchy movie - Bell Book and Candle (1958), Supergirl (1984), Suspiria (1977, Italy).
A.I. Was Never a Good Idea
    "Artificial Intelligence" is heavy on the artificial part and extremely scarce on the intelligence. Always
    has been - 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021), Ghost in the Shell
    (1995, Japan).
Monster Mashup
    Choose any film where more than one type of monster appears - Freddy vs. Jason (2003), Scooby-
    Doo (2002), Santo and Blue Demon vs. Dracula and the Wolf Man (1973, Mexico).
Weapon of Choice
    Decide on a movie where a distinctive weapon is used - Planet Terror (2007), Krull (1983), Shaun of
    the Dead (2004, UK).
Clowning Around
    Step right up and choose a circus or clown-centric genre film - Freaks (1932), Something Wicked This
    Way Comes (1983), Santa Sangre (1989, Italy).

1950s
    Pick a genre film from the decade that brought us Snoopy - Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954),
    Them! (1954), Diabolique (1955, France).
1960s
    Choose a genre film from the Free Love era - X: The Man with X-Ray Eyes (1963), Mad Monster
    Party? (1967), Black Sabbath (1963, Italy).
1970s
    Select a genre film from the decade of Pong - Phantom of the Paradise (1974), The Phantom
    Tollbooth (1970), The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971, UK).
1980s
    Decide upon a genre film from the age when Tiffany ruled the malls - Return of the Living Dead 
    (1985), Young Sherlock Holmes (1985), Pin (1988, Canada).
1990s
    Opt for one genre film from the epoch of Crystal Pepsi - Anaconda (1997), Galaxy Quest (1999), I
    Bought a Vampire Motorcycle (1990, UK).
This Year
    Single out a genre film from 2025 - Sinners (2025), KPop Demon Hunters (2025), Bring Her Back
    (2025, Australia).

This penultimate prompt is designed to make things easier for you--think of it as a cheat code to help make your October viewing go even more smoothly.

Franchise Freebies!
    Basically, if you want to watch an entire franchise spread out over Oct., feel free to count some of the
    films in that series INSTEAD of any prompts you're having trouble with. Can't think of a Monster By
    Nurture film you wanna watch, or not that interested in a movie from the '70s? Watch some of the
    Saw films instead. But all your substitutes must be from the SAME franchise, and they must be
    watched IN ORDER.

This last prompt is the ONLY one I think is date-specific:

All Hallows Eve
    On the 31st, watch a really "Halloweenie" movie - Murder Party (2007), It's the Great Pumpkin
    Charlie Brown (1966), The Wicker Man (1973, UK).

Feel free to build your watchlist in whatever order you want, by the way, and remember: the spooky season isn't just for horror. There are plenty of other genres that fit right in: sci-fi, martial arts, super heroes, fantasy, whodunnit, kaiju, etc. Best of luck, I hope you have fun. 

I cohost the Hate Watch/Great Watch Podcast and we've covered some of the films mentioned above, if you're interested:

• Episode 11: Shaun of the Dead (2004)
• Episode 28: Hausu (1977)
• Episode 110: Phantom of the Paradise (1974)
• Episode 111: Cemetery Man (1994)
• Episode 118: Bell Book and Candle (1958)
• Episode 131: Beneath the Darkness (2011)
• Episode 140: Alison's Birthday (1981)
• Episode 155: Freddy vs. Jason (2003)
• Episode 159: Jaws (1975)
• Episode 168: Supergirl (1984)

Share your progress with #SpookyJawnList on your social media of choice, and as always - Long Live the Movies!

PUFF X

PUFF X
A Decade of the Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival

Get your tickets HERE

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Ten of anything is quite a milestone. We count by tens after all, so doing something ten times or, in the case of the Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival doing it for ten years, is nothing to sneeze at. I've covered PUFF for a few years, and they always showcase a wide assemblage of titles, both features and shorts, that might otherwise fly under the radar. I'm very much looking forward to what they've got in store for this year.

With these sorts of articles, I would usually single out a few features to highlight. I'm not going to do that here because A) PUFF is relatively small, so there's only a handful of features to begin with, and B) I looked into all of them and they all look pretty interesting, so why don't I just walk you through what this year's fest has to offer:

Wednesday, Oct. 1st:

The fest kicks off with a filmmaker meet-up featuring a panel discussion led by local filmmaker and Drexel’s Westphal College professor David Greenberg.

Thursday, Oct. 2nd:

The films begin on the 2nd with a double feature cohosted by Girls Like Horror beginning with You Know What You Are (dir. Rose Trimboli), a vampire horror-drama (produced by MJ contributor Shayna Davis). I was already interested in YKWYA after speaking to Shayne about it briefly earlier this year, and its teaser trailer, which features a young woman sitting on a bench and briefly remembering some past violence in a terrible flash, is so stylish I can't help but be intrigued.

A screening of 1985's The Oracle (dir. Roberta Findlay), where a spirit reaches out to a young woman for help solving its murder, follows and I was pleasantly surprised by a few things: it looks a little janky, it appears to be a Christmas (and maybe even a New Year's) movie, and there is a reliance on sickly, bright green light throughout, which is a cinematic affectation I always love. I'm a big fan of alternative holiday viewing, so I was sold almost immediately.

Friday, Oct. 3rd:

Friday features two films from PUFF alumni: Robbie Banfitch returns with a new found footage film, Tinsman Road. Its teaser trailer is primarily a shot of a ballerina music box silhouetted against a wall with footage projected on it, and paired with audio alluding to the film focusing on a missing young woman. It ends with the phrase "Sorrow is Terror", which is heartbreaking, chilling, and fascinating in equal measure.

I've actually seen Alex Phillips' latest, Anything That Moves, and it's tonally very different from what I was expecting. A messily ambitious film (complimentary) about love and sexuality set amidst a giallo-esque murder spree, ATM will likely leave you smiling and satisfied, if somewhat bewildered.

Saturday, Oct. 4th:

As the late, great DMX said, "X gon' give it to ya", and PUFF X is definitely giving it on Saturday. The most packed day of the fest this year boasts five features. Projection (dirs. Evan Samaras & George Scoufaras) seems to be the story of an aspiring screenwriter making his dream project alongside, and forgive me if I have this wrong, the spirit of his recently-deceased father? And there appears to be some kind of giant-serpent worshipping cult shenanigans, as well. Head Like a Hole (dir. Stefan MacDonald-Labelle) seems to be about a man hired to watch ... a hole, but to paraphrase Twin Peaks, the hole is not what it seems. To be clear, I'm not sure what it really is, but it surely ain't just a hole.

I had heard good things about Pater Noster and the Mission of Light (dir. Christopher Bickel), but nothing could have prepared me for how Extremely My Shit it appears to be: big, colorful, violent, with a story centered around the extremely collectible vinyl record of a long-gone cult that just might not be all that gone. The practical effects look perfectly artisanal (and goopy!), and at one point there's a wild-eyed young man yelling "Fuck your entire generation!", so I ask you: what's not to love?

I wasn't able to find trailers of any kind for two of the films but from what I could find out, they both seem to be right up my alley. Mooch (dir. Jeff Ryan), which follows a slacker golf caddy turned amateur p.i. on a case that "spirals wildly out of control", and is being compared to The Big Lebowski (1998), sounds like a great palate-cleanser to a weekend of films that tend toward darker stuff. Alan at Night (dir. Jesse Swenson) meanwhile starts with a sillier premise, an internet prankster films the unusual behavior of his new roommate, but I anticipate things will get very weird. Since it's the final film of Saturday, I'm guessing it will.

But wait! That's not all! Spread across the rest of the weekend, amidst the features, are a number of blocks of short films. The Bizarre Block caps off the Girls Like Horror night on the 2nd, there's an Animation Shorts block and a Global Grab Bag block on the 3rd, and the Horror Shorts block is nestled in the middle of all those films on the 4th. But all good things must come to an end...

Sunday, Oct. 5th:

Sunday winds the festival down with the Music Videos block and Local Shorts block leading up to the PUFF X Awards ceremony bringing things to a close in the afternoon. The shorts are always a really interesting experience because, though the PUFF crew organize them into these themed blocks, watching them back-to-back can lead to some fun moments of cognitive whiplash. Sometimes it's a better eye-opener than a cup of coffee!

Notably (to me at least) in Jason X (2001), the infamous serial teen-murderer went to space, as one does. Not to overreach for a corny pun, but this year's PUFF X looks equally as out-of-this-world! Get your tickets immediately, or live to know the true feeling of true regret. 

CORA BORA (Brainstorm Media)

Cora Bora
Brainstorm Media / Vinegar Syndrome

Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: DTS-HD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH (via menu)

Buy it HERE from Orbit or HERE from Vinegar Syndrome

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer

Cora Bora comes to Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome partner label Brainstorm Media. Directed by Hannah Pearl Utt and written by Rhianon Jones, the film is a quirky, heartfelt character study anchored by a fearless performance from Megan Stalter. Brainstorm Media's release is bare bones, so is really only worth the buy if the movie is a must-rewatch for you.

The Movie Itself: 3.5 stars

Cora (Megan Stalter) is a young woman on her own, a musician living in L.A. in a haze of parties, disappointing hookups, and sparsely attended gigs. Returning home to surprise her long-distance open relationship girlfriend Justine (Jojo T. Gibbs), Cora finds her cohabiting with Riley (Ayden Mayeri) who seems to be more than just a casual fling. As we come to learn, Cora is in the habit of obliviously pretending that things are fine instead of dealing with them, which drives her to make a series of poor choices, like getting high with kids, and honest mistakes, like repeatedly losing track of her & Justine's dog, Taco (Chloe).

Bolstered by a supporting cast of charming actors, and in some cases well-known ones at that--Chelsea Peretti, Margaret Cho, and Darrell Hammond all make modest appearances--writer Rhianon Jones and director Hannah Pearl Utt craft an unflinching (or should I say "uncringing"?) look at a woman who is ultimately just barely holding things together, and mostly through self-delusion. 

Cora is a much easier character to love than she is to watch. Megan Stalter imbues her with an innate, flawed humanity despite the fact that she's a particular kind of a-hole. Jones describes the character of Cora in the commentary track as a jerk with a point of view and a point to make. She's rarely rude for its own sake, instead she's a "tells it like it is" type of person who doesn't seem to grasp when that might cross a line for others, or exactly why.

What softens Cora's sharp edges over time is how everyone else in the film, almost to a one, treats her with empathy and kindness. She shit-talks a passing car and gets invited to smoke pot with them; she is brusque with a potential hookup and is welcomed into a very loving polycule; she tries to steal a guy's first class seat on her plane ride home and meets Tom (the fantastic Manny Jacinto) who she will repeatedly run into throughout the film, and whose gentle kindness leads to her opening up for the first time we've seen. Not to bang an old drum, but the way in which women are depicted onscreen, and the way female filmmakers are allowed to depict them, is an important sticking point in culture. The fact that Cora can be as shitty (not to mince words), horny, and messy as she is depicted is a good thing, and should be celebrated. 

My issue with Cora Bora is that it only just starts to take shape as a narrative at its end. We've seen Cora be a terror to herself and those around her through her self-centered actions and behavior, and only at the very end do we learn why and see her take the first steps towards turning her life around. I was ready for another 20 minutes with her, and the vicarious joy of watching her get her emotional feet back under her. Instead we're treated to a brief sort of epilogue showing that she has begun to find more success back in L.A., presumably by being less prickly. It's not wholly unsatisfying, but it feels just a bit too brief.

The Video: 3.5 stars

The video quality is tops for what the film asks of it. This isn't an especially visually dynamic film, but there are some bright colors that come through very cleanly and a real depth to the lighting giving a lot of the film a comforting warmth. Interiors have depth of shadow without becoming all-consuming darkness, similarly the night scenes are all very well-lit whether they’re set in a bar, on a street, or on the rainy road back to the city. Some of the daytime exterior scenes are overcast (it IS Portland), but never become visually monotonous, and when the sun is actually shining, everything is crisp and bright, without washing out.

The Audio: 3.5 stars

Nothing particular to remark upon with regards to the sound mix. I have a three-channel soundbar, which handled the 5.1 mix well. It's not an especially dynamic film from a sonic point of view. The music performances sound great, and beyond that, this is mostly dialogue-focused, all of which was also well-mixed and balanced. This somewhat minimal mix isn’t a failure, to be clear, it’s just that the film isn’t asking a terribly large amount from its audio. Background music, diegetic or non-diegetic, is never distracting; dialogue is always clear and sounds like you are in whatever location--park, bar, home, diner, etc.--while clearly being properly mixed and balanced and not recorded live on set.

The Supplements: 3 stars

This is your standard Vinegar Syndrome (and affiliate labels) Blu-ray case, which is just slightly larger and sturdier than the basic blue ones you might be familiar with. The cover is an image of Cora holding Taco and wearing a fantastic neon leopard coat. There is an image of Cora reclining on her bed in Portland smoking a joint printed on the reverse side of the cover, and an included booklet with some other images as well as an essay from Sara Clements on Cora's journey as a young woman in the middle of a personal crisis.

There is also a version available with a slipcover from artist Brianna Miller featuring a colored pencil illustration of Cora performing onstage on the front, and a collection of characters' heads arranged on a yellow background around Taco depicted on the back. 

Bonus Features: 2 stars

These are pretty bare-bones extras, I'll be honest. The commentary was fun to listen to, but aside from a few fun anecdotes about the film itself--writer Rhianon Jones once dated a Flat Earther, inspiring an early scene--there wasn't a lot to hold on to. They all seem like incredibly sweet, funny people, but I listen to commentaries to learn more about the film itself: the whys and hows of the characters, shots, and casting. 

• Commentary with director Hannah Pearl Utt, writer Rhianon Jones, producer Mallory Schwartz, and executive producer Tristan Scott-Behrends
• Original trailer (2:01) (HD)

Final Thoughts: Worth a Look

Are you tired of the Lovable Loser cliché? You might want to check out Cora Bora. I mean that as a compliment. This is a twist on some more well-worn tropes that you see in character-study films. It's also refreshing to see a warts-and-all portrayal of a young woman going through a personal crisis that isn't judgmental or proselytizing. Cora is a flawed character, but not without reason, and the film is fine with that, repeatedly meeting Cora with patience, empathy, and the promise of a helping hand.

HONG KONG 1941 (Eureka)

Hong Kong 1941
(Eureka)
Originally Released Nov. 1st, 1984 
Written by Koon-Chung Chan
Directed by Po-Chih Leong
Starring Cecilia Yip, Chow Yun-Fat, Alex Man, Paul Chun, Wu Ma
Language: Cantonese (w/English subtitles) and optional English dub track

Buy it HERE from Eureka, HERE from MVD, or HERE from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MJ Podcast Director

The Movie: Excellent

An action romance with epic aspirations but a much more intimate focus, Hong Kong 1941 gallops through set-ups and familiar story beats with a looseness that I really enjoyed. To be fair, there's a lot to set up: Yip (Chow Yun-Fat) comes to Hong Kong to stay with his very sweet aunt and decidedly salty uncle. He butts up against local tough guy Wong (Alex Man) and falls for the sickly but lovely local girl--who Wong is also, somewhat secretly enamored with--Nam (Cecilia Yip). The three of them are fast friends, and form a loose love triangle where everybody behaves themselves (mostly).

There's also some complications involving a local rice magnate who happens to be Nam's father who just fires his workers whenever they want to be paid fairly; a local crime boss / politician Chairman Liu (Wu Ma), and police sergeant Fa-wing (Paul Chun) who especially has it out for Wong. As interwoven as our three leads' lives are with each other, they're being equally dragged into confrontations with these outside obstacles and aggressors. As I said, there's a lot of track to lay before the film drops its biggest bomb: actual bombs.

The spine of this story is built around the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during World War II. So on top of the ephemeral, emotional stakes are incredibly tangible, real-world hardships and danger. For what it's worth, I think the script, by Koon-Chung Chan, does an incredible job balancing these things. The war is never fully just a backdrop for the interpersonal drama, it's never allowed to feel commonplace. Scenes that are primarily about developing our leads' stories or characters also showcase actions of the invading Japanese army, from the comparatively innocuous--like rewarding children with food for singing in Japanese--to the outright hideous--hunting down and assaulting the local women.

The fact that Hong Kong 1941 manages to maintain an (overall) light feeling is truly impressive. The love triangle never feels overwrought, the violence and danger never feels excessive, and the whole thing works thanks to director Po-Chih Leong, editor Peter Cheung, and the performances of our leads. I've been a fan of Chow Yun-Fat for a long time. He just has an effortlessness to him that borders on cocky without, for me, ever tipping over the line. Both Alex Man and Cecilia Yip play extremely well off of him and each other, and you can really feel and understand that they all care for each other.

As a war movie, Hong Kong 1941 might be lacking in scope, but that was never its focus. While a war, which is a comparatively abstract concept, can most certainly be interesting, it's the people affected by it that make a story worth telling.

The Packaging: Excellent

Eureka Entertainment's cases are just a bit larger than your standard, closer to Criterion's, which is either nice, because it feels a bit sturdier, or annoying if you'd like all of your Blu-rays to be uniform. This one also comes with a cardboard slip and a reversible cover. The minimalist art on the slip--a hand holding a katana, with our three leads in miniature, standing on the tsuba (guard), in high contrast black and blood red on a deep orange background--is on one side of the cover, with a fantastic painted illustration of Yip, Wong, and certain key scenes on the other.

Also included is a booklet featuring an essay from Hong Kong and Chinese Cinema specialist Gary Bettinson about director Po-Chih Leong which gives a very solid overview of his career. If you've read any of my other Disc Dispatches, you'll know I love context. Additionally there are some wonderful photos from the production in the booklet.

The Audio + Video: Excellent

I thought this looked tremendous. The opening scene (maybe two?) had a slight peach tint to things that I wasn't crazy about. On one hand, it had the overall effect of a sepia filter in that it sort of helped sell the whole "this story takes place in the past" thing, but I was worried it would overstay its welcome. It doesn't, subtly fading to something cooler that makes the blues and greens in the costumes and locations pop and somehow feels more urgent and in-the-moment.

There's some film grain present, but it's a good amount; it lets you feel the movie, the weight of its history. Something I noticed near the end of the film that I found weirdly charming is that you can, occasionally, see the shadows of moths circling the set lights. Imperfections, if you even want to think of them as such, are proof that this was made by people, and through, I'm sure, no small amount of effort. I love that.

I noticed no issues with the audio at all. There is a certain distance to the sound that is era appropriate, but it's not nearly as noticeable as other films from this era. Whether this is the result of the filmmaking at the time, or any sort of restoration, I'm not sure. Regardless, everything came through very clearly, even at times when contrasting sounds--like a gentle score playing alongside the sounds of a boat engine--were present.

Special Features: Excellent

I won't pretend that every single piece of additional material on here was fascinating or enlightening, but much of it was. And there's just so much of it that I'm actually not sure where it was that I learned what became the background information I was most obsessed with: this was made because of Margaret Thatcher!

What I mean is (and forgive me if I'm getting details wrong): Thatcher bungled some deal or another which led to Britain losing their longstanding control of Hong Kong to the Chinese in 1984, which reminded many people (including filmmakers) of the Japanese invasion after Pearl Harbor in 1941. This film as well as a film called Love in a Fallen City (1984, dir. Ann Hui), both set in that era, were each released within the same year and, coincidentally, both star Chow Yun-Fat!

For reasons that I think should be obvious, I've been wondering about world history, the lessons we may or may not be learning from it, and the impact that has on people who just want to live their lives as peacefully as they are able. This gave me quite a lot to chew on.

• Tony Rayns on Hong Kong 1941 (30:29)
• Crossing Cultures with Po-Chih Leong (21:47)
• Po-Chih Leong on Hong Kong 1941 and Cultural Identity (recorded at East Film Fest 2023) (21:38)
• Archival Interviews
• Cecilia Yip 1 (29:09)
• Cecilia Yip 2 (4:23)
• Cecilia Yip 3 (11:33)
• Chow Yun-Fat 1 (13:13)
• Chow Yun-Fat 2 (5:33)
  
• Paul Chun (a.k.a. Paul Pui) (8:30)
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer (4:03)
• International release trailer (3:48)

• Included booklet with an essay from Gary Bettinson

In Summary: Buy it on sale

While I was knocked out by Hong Kong 1941, and I was, I admit that this type of film might not be for literally everyone. Sure, few films are, but some are, and it is for those that I'll reserve the absolute highest recommendation. As it stands, this is an incredibly strong offering. As a film, it's an excellent bit of historical melodrama. As a release this is incredibly rewarding, with plenty of additional materials to inform the production and its history. It's also the first time Hong Kong 1941 has been made available on Blu-ray outside of Asia.

This has some absolutely gorgeous moments, both visually and emotionally and I think anyone with an interest in Asian cinema would be well-served to have this on their shelves. 

SPOONFUL OF SUGAR (Shudder)

Spoonful of Sugar
Shudder

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: Dolby Digital (DTS-MA 5.1)
Subtitles: English SDH (French subs available in menu)

Buy it HERE from Vinegar Syndrome or HERE from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Spoonful of Sugar comes to Blu-ray from Shudder. Directed by experienced short film and television director Mercedes Bryce Morgan in her debut feature, the film at times feels overstuffed with influences and concepts, but is satisfying in the end. The quality of the audio and visual transfer makes up for the somewhat slim assemblage of bonus features.

The Movie: Good

Spoonful of Sugar, the debut feature from director Mercedes Bryce Morgan, is a bit scattered overall, but features more good than bad ultimately. Ostensibly a riff on the character of Mary Poppins considering the title and the nanny lead, the film does very little with those things, instead crafting a psychosexual thriller that tries its best to keep viewers on their toes.

Millicent (Morgan Saylor) is the new nanny for Johnny (Danilo Crovetti) a boy with behavioral issues and a laundry list of allergens as long as your arm: sugar, gluten, seeds of any kind, strawberries, smoke, and artificial fabrics "...so please, only organic stuffed animals" leading to him only leaving the house wearing a makeshift astronaut outfit. Johnny's parents are  Rebecca (Kat Foster) a self-help author of child behavior books, and stay-at-home carpenter Jacob (Myko Olivier), who swap sympathy in the viewers' eyes as the film progresses. One will seem to be more benevolent and concerned about Johnny than the other before further details and behaviors reverse these positions, and on and on, with the occasional larger shocking development thrown in for good measure. We also fairly quickly learn that Milli has been prescribed lysergic acid diethylamide, a.k.a. LSD, to help treat her own issues.

Milli is an interesting POV character. An unreliable narrator even to herself, she's prone to emotional outbursts when placed in situations where she is made uncomfortable, but her constant psychedelic state means not everything is exactly as she (and we) see it. Milli's hallucinations never go full Pink Elephants on Parade, instead sticking in a more subtle area, like not being sure if you've just seen a mouse out of the corner of your eye. Plenty of visual effects, like different film speeds and processes, wiggly distortion and smeary lighting, are all used to show Milli’s disconnect from baseline reality.

The most interesting aspect of Milli for me was trying to discern whether she was the prey or the predator. Are her actions deliberately, knowingly harmful, or does she see it as defending herself and protecting her interests? As we learn more about her, as well as Rebecca and Jacob, it gradually becomes clear: no one is exactly "right" so much as there are some who are, maybe "less wrong". The very end of the film, the credits in fact, reveal aspects of the story that you didn't know you were missing which is a very fun, creative development.

The Packaging: Good

The standard cover features an image of Milli dripping LSD into her mouth via an eyedropper with Johnny's spacesuit helmet in the background. The inside cover features a still from the film of Milli and Johnny spending the afternoon in the yard, specifically they're examining a Nativity scene set up. Oh, did I not mention that Spoonful of Sugar is a Christmas movie? Well as someone who loves a good non-standard film to add to my holiday watchlists, I was as pleasantly surprised as (I hope) you are right now.

There is a special limited edition slipcover available, designed by Corinne Halbert, with depictions of some key imagery from the film set against a lilac background on the front cover, and a moment from the film of Milli surreptitiously bleeding on the back cover.

The Video: Good

The transfer looks great. The film is largely given a cool or overcast quality but Mercedes Bryce Morgan and cinematographer Nick Matthews (who would go on to be director of photography for Saw X, if that does anything for you) manage to wring every ounce of color out of their exterior shots and craft interior scenes with deep shadows and warm honeyed tones. There are moments of extremely high contrast shadows that are clearly meant to be pure black, which makes the depth and texture of the other shadows feel all the more rich. Everything looks sharp, with diffuse and ambient lighting creating a surprising sense of intimacy at times.

The Audio: Good

The Dolby DTS-HD 5.1 worked perfectly well on my three-channel soundbar. The rooms felt like they had depth and dimension, the occasional tones underlining Milli's hallucinations sometimes felt like they were coming from my periphery. I never had any issues with unclear dialogue or muddy sound quality.

The Special Features: Good

I will be honest with you, a lot of these features didn't do much for me. The two featurettes, "The Story" and "The Horror", are extremely slim interview clips, and when combined with the teaser and trailer included, four of the six bonus features are promo for a disc that, if you're watching them, you've already bought. But. Then we have the commentary and the BTS features, both of which are very informative about the making of the film. A brief heads up: the BTS footage is nearly 3½ hours of mostly dialogue-free footage of the team workshopping and filming a handful of scenes from the film. It's mostly devoid of context, but it's a great peek into the actual process of filmmaking.

• Commentary with director Mercedes Bryce Morgan and producers Matt Miller, Natalie Metzger, and Katrina Kudlick
• Behind the Scenes footage (3:20:20) (HD)
• "The Story" featurette (1:57) (HD)
• "The Horror" featurette (1:06) (HD)
• Original teaser (0:33) (HD)
• Original trailer (1:27) (HD)

• Booklet featuring an essay from BJ Colangelo

In Summary: Recommended

Spoonful of Sugar is well and stylishly-made, but feels overstuffed with concepts, developments, turns, and angles from which to approach its themes. It's not a bad problem to have, all things considered, but it might not be satisfying for all viewers. On the other hand, the fact that it avoids direct depictions of onscreen bloodshed for the most part, until the climax which is decidedly violent and bloody, means it could be a strong recommendation for horror / thriller viewers who don't dig on gore.

CARNAL KNOWLEDGE (Criterion)

Carnal Knowledge
Criterion
June 30th, 1971

Written by Jules Feiffer
Directed by Mike Nichols
Starring Jack Nicholson, Art Garfunkel, Candice Bergen, Ann-Margaret, Rita Moreno
English

Buy it HERE from Diabolik or HERE from Criterion

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

The Movie: Excellent

Carnal Knowledge blew my mind. All I really knew going into this, aside from the pedigree of the cast and crew, was the whole censorship debacle which ultimately resulted in the film being re-released with a new tagline: "The United States Supreme Court has ruled that Carnal Knowledge is not obscene. See it now!" As a result of that, I knew this was sexually candid but not necessarily explicit. What I didn't expect was an examination of what is now recognized as toxic masculinity from a 54 year-old film that's also expressly feminist, and wildly understated. The dialogue showcases screenwriter Jules Feiffer's razor sharp knack for observation, the performances are incredibly magnetic, and the filmmaking from director Mike Nichols and editor Sam O'Steen allows for plenty of room for the actors to shine.

Sandy (Art Garfunkel) and John (Jack Nicholson) are college roommates who bond by talking about sex and love. John is the more vulgar of the two, goading Sandy to push girlfriend Susan (Candice Bergen) for more action. Once Sandy informs him he's finally getting somewhere with her, John calls her up himself, and they begin an affair. At this point, I thought we were going to have a basic love-triangle story with Susan enjoying the connection she shares with Sandy, but also responding to the sensuality of John while both of the men yearn for the kind of relationship with her that the other has. But then something magical happens. The film just casually slips forward in time. No subtitles to denote the jump, nothing aside from John & Sandy's change in appearance and their dialogue. 

This trust in the audience is emblematic of the steady hand behind the camera. Drawing on Feiffer's background as a cartoonist--his weekly strip in The Village Voice ran for forty years!--Nichols utilizes long takes of characters talking (frequently all but directly to camera), rarely cutting away for coverage of the other person. He also tends towards long shots of the women as the men talk, allowing us to experience these outwardly mundane conversations through them as they process what is being said, and said about them. For a movie that on the surface seems obsessed with men & maleness, this is a powerfully feminist filmmaking choice.

Carnal Knowledge is not a film everyone will enjoy watching. It is at times ugly, revealing, explicit and embarrassing. Not unlike the titular characters in Mikey and Nicky (1976, dir. Elaine May) neither of our leading men are especially likeable, but they're sadly all too common. Fun fact: Mike Nichols and Elaine May were the influential comedy duo Nichols and May from '59-'62. Even at 54 years on, this kind of warts-and-all look at toxic masculinity is perhaps even more important that it was at release.

Culturally we're at a low point in the pursuit of equality, respect, and safety for anyone not represented by this type of well-off white men. Carnal Knowledge doesn't offer any answers. How could it? But it also doesn't soften these men or their slide into irrelevance any; it doesn't let them off the hook. Depiction, importantly, does not equal endorsement.

The Packaging: Good

This is your typical Criterion release, which is by-and-large pretty damn good. If you're unfamiliar, their cases are a little larger than the standard Blu-ray, a little sturdier and more durable. The cover wouldn’t feel out of place had it been the poster in 1971, with its muted, autumnal palette and four head shots. It also has an image on the inside of Jack Nicholson sitting naked, smoking a cigarette, in an armchair.

This version also comes with a 40-page booklet featuring an essay from Moira Weigel and an article from Herb A. Lightman which features conversations with cinematographer Giuseppe Rotunno and production designer Richard Sylbert (originally published in the January 1971 issue of American Cinematographer). Weigel's essay especially resonated with me, affirming some of my feelings about the film and elucidating other facets I wasn't considering. These kinds of additional materials are really what's important about re/releasing older films. Cultural and social context are incredibly vital aspects to make clear for new viewers.

The Audio + Video: Excellent

I had no issues with either the audio or visual presentation. There is some film grain, and a certain very slight muffling to the audio, but both of those are merely signs of having been made in a bygone era. They add a sensory warmth to the whole experience for me, while looking and sounding perhaps as good as the film ever has. With a film as dialogue-centric as this one is, you want to make sure things sound as good as possible, and let me assure you: this does.

The included booklet has a paragraph about the audio & video mastering that underlines a very important elephant in the room: this master was created using the 35mm separation masters because the original camera negative had become too damaged and moldy. Film preservation is such an important undertaking, as is, I feel, owning and making available all varieties of film.

Special Features: Excellent

I recently wrote about Criterion's release of The Wiz and lamented the lack of some theoretical special features to add greater context to the film. In contrast, Carnal Knowledge is a wealth of context. The two half-hour-ish conversations were very interesting, even though I find Jason Reitman somewhat tedious. The piece focusing on the editing was extremely enlightening and gave me an added dimension to keep an eye on during my rewatch with commentary, which I am very thankful for because the editing is so subtle and unflashy that it might otherwise have passed me by. As it stands, the editing is one of my favorite parts of the film. But my favorite of these materials was definitely the podcast with Jules Feiffer, who I found to be incredibly entertaining and fascinating.

• Commentary track from filmmaker and playwright Neil LaBute
• A conversation between Mark Harris (Mike Nichols' biographer) and film critic Dana Stevens (29:04)
• A conversation between Mike Nichols and director Jason Reitman (36:02)
  
• An episode of the To Live & Dialogue podcast w/Jules Feiffer (43:20)
• Bobbie O'Steen on the editing (19:15)
• Trailer (0:57)
• Radio spot (0:59)

In Summary: Must Own

There are any number of good reasons to own Criterion's Carnal Knowledge release. The acting, direction, screenwriting, and editing are all masterclass-level examples of their respective craft. The story here is frequently uncomfortable, but nonetheless riveting. But for me, I think the best reason might be spite.

Personally, I rankle at outside entities trying to control what entertainments I can and cannot access, and as I mentioned above, when Carnal Knowledge was initially released, it screened at a theater in Georgia resulting in an obscenity case that took about two years to resolve, and went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where it was, and I cannot stress this enough, found not to be anything you could call obscene. As with banned books, or adult entertainment, I like having at my disposal something that the pearl-clutching masses decidedly did not want to be widely available. Sometimes, spite can be a great motivator. But with that comes the caveat: this may not be for all tastes. And that is fine. Everything doesn't need to be for everyone, but everyone should be allowed to decide what is for them.

Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man (Kino Raro)

Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man

Kino Raro

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: DTS-HD Master 2.0 mono (on both the original Italian and English dub tracks)
Subtitles: SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik or HERE from Kino Lorber

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man comes to Blu-ray from Kino Raro. Directed by the occasionally controversial Ruggero Deodato (Cannibal Holocaust), the film is a blast of juvenile impulse without a thought for consequence. The excellent visual and audio transfers on this Kino release more than make up for the slightly underwhelming array of special features.

The Movie: Excellent / 4.5 star

Let me just say that the title Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man is one of the craziest, best titles I've heard and it's been rattling around in my head all week. With that out of the way, we can get down to business: this flick is nuts (complimentary)! Gleefully violent and oddly lighthearted in equal measure, LLACDLAM feels like an afternoon playing cops 'n' robbers in the imaginations of two children.

Alfredo (Marc Porel) and Antonio (Ray Lovelock) are two slender, casually stylish, devastatingly handsome Special Force cops in Rome who spend their time riding around on one motorcycle together, sexually harassing the Special Force secretary Norma (Silvia Dionisio), and casually killing anyone and anything that gets in their way. Director Ruggero Deodato's (Cannibal Holocaust) dark sense of humor is present throughout, adding to the dizzy, pleasantly chaotic feel of events. There is an overarching plot about the culmination of a three-year sting operation to bring down a crime boss known as Bibi (Renato Salvatori), but it's honestly barely a concern beyond acting as a framing device for the shenanigans of Alfredo and Antonio, or as I think of them: The Crime Bois!

This isn't a unique structure. Most people remember the action sequences from their favorite films over the actual plots, and with LLACDLAM, it's easy to see why. The production really makes the most of its modest budget. One of the most famous aspects of the film was its opening motorcycle chase through Rome, which famously they did not acquire permits for (à la The French Connection), and features one of if not the first instance of a motorcycle popping a wheelie in a feature film! The chase crosses the city, with our Crime Bois riding individual motorcycles, weaving through traffic to capture two purse snatchers who inevitably end up dead. According to the supplemental materials, obtaining permission would have cost $3-4 million, plus two weeks' worth of insurance costs, so they did it guerrilla style, and anytime the cops showed up, they would all simply move to a new location, which ends up giving the chase a wide variety of locales that I suppose they wouldn't have had otherwise.

Porel and Lovelock make for a fantastic and fascinating on-screen pair. Though they're both in almost every scene, they remain ciphers. At some point in the commentary track from film historian Rachael Nisbet, she mentions that supposedly one of them was playing the hot-head and the other the more reserved one, but even she seems skeptical about these supposed archetypes. As depicted, they're foppish goofballs who dump copious amounts of sugar in their coffee, roll around in a loose dirt culvert shooting target-practice at each other, and sexually tag-team the (I should emphasize: very willing) crime boss' daughter Lina (Sofia Dionisio) when they go to her place for information.

This film falls into the Italian Poliziotteschi subgenre, which I was only intellectually familiar with before now, and is written by one of its giants: Fernando Di Leo, whose shadow looms large across the special features. But I have no idea if this is a good entry point to the genre or not. It was well received, there were even talks of a sequel but Porel's on-set behavior made Lovelock hesitant to be put in a situation where he would have to rely on Porel, which amongst other factors like a producer deciding he would direct it instead of having Deodato return, lead to a sequel never materializing. That said, I can't imagine the silliness present here to be indicative of the genre as a whole, can it? If so, I might have found my new hyperfixation.

The Packaging: Average / 3 star

In the film, Antonio's bedside table has three items: an alarm clock, an ashtray, and a full-size silver skull. This release is a little like that: minimalist, but a perfect indicator of what you’re getting into bed with. The cover is an illustration of Alfredo and Antonio posed as they do on their shared motorcycle, both pointing guns, with a smaller illustration of the pair of fleeing purse-snatchers on their own motorcycle. It also advertises that this is the 4K restoration, and that it's from Ruggero Deodato above the original Italian translation of the title: Uomini Si Nasce, Poliziotti Si Muore (which more literally translates to Men Are Born, Cops Die). There's nothing especially noteworthy about the packaging here, but that's perfectly fine.

The Video: Good / 4.5 star

From what little I knew about this film, I was expecting it to be much rougher-looking than it is. I knew that most of the Poliziotteschi films were shot sort of on-the-fly, and I knew Ruggero Deodato's background of having perfected his craft under Roberto Rossellini. I figured that the resulting film would have a real run-and-gun quality to it that might very well extend to the visual fidelity. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be a fair assessment.

To start with, there is some film grain present here, but not nearly as much as I'd have expected. The colors are well-balanced enough, if maybe a touch washed out, except for the fire, which really calls into contrast how cool-toned the rest of the visuals are. Turquoise, blues, blacks and tans monopolize the film's palette, but even the Coke machine visible in a late scene isn't as candy-red as I know it should be. None of this detracts from the film's overall quality, to be clear, instead working in a way similar to sepia tone, to cast Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man as something from a bygone era.

The Audio: Good / 4.5 star

Famously, Italian productions from this era didn't really record live sound often, which lead to the whole 'Spaghetti Western' phenomenon, at least as far as it allowed for the casting of recognizable actors from multiple markets and countries, regardless of how well they all spoke any given language, since they'd all have to be dubbed anyway. As a result, LLACDLAM has that ADR sound to it overall; the quality of having been recorded in a studio divorced from the various locations and moments. Like certain aspects of the visuals mentioned above, this doesn't detract from the experience for me.

Quality wise, my soundbar is of the three-channel variety and this stereo mix sounded perfectly fine. If your ideal audio experience involves multidirectional sonic immersion, this probably won't cut the mustard for you, but you will be able to hear and appreciate everything easily.

One fun thing is comparing the Italian and English dubs: They're not drastically different viewing experiences, plot and tone-wise, but the language is sometimes very different in really interesting and amusing ways. For instance, when the Crime Bois show up for their usual playful harassment of Norma, in the Italian language version she greets them by calling them "Hotshots!" while in the English dub she says "My dear cocksmen!" Wild stuff. Gotta love it.

The Special Features: Good / 4 star

I would like there to have been more about the writer, and perhaps godfather of Poliziotteschi (is that fair to say?) Fernando Di Leo since the trailers are for some of his other works. There's a nice chunk of the commentary about him, but I'd like to have come away from this with a more concise idea of where this sits in both his oeuvre and Poliziotteschi as a genre and maybe a fuller watchlist? But that's just spitting into the wind.

As for what's here, the commentary by Rachael Nisbet was very informative and helpful. For instance, I was initially a bit put off by the sexism with regards to how the Crime Bois treat Norma, but Nisbet seems to feel that the movie is laughing WITH Norma and not AT her, which eases my conscience a bit. I also really dug the included documentary, which gives great insight to the production of the film. Deodato's included commercial spots are interesting as well, but could ideally have been placed in a wider context.

• Audio commentary with film historian Rachael Nisbet
• Archival documentary Violent Police
• TV spots directed by and with commentary from Ruggero Deodato
• Trailers
• Milieu Trilogy rerelease trailer
• Caliber 9 (1972)
• The Italian Connection (1972)

In Summary: Grab it on sale / 4 star

Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man is a giddy sugar-high of a crime film. The pacing, characters, and filmmaking all present the indelible energy of youth and an equally immature outlook: these Crime Bois are impervious to harm either physical or emotional, and beyond consequence for their actions. They kill with a casualness that would be chilling if this felt like a real world. Luckily, for us as much as for them, it does not.

I won't spoil the finale for you, but trust me when I say LLACDLAM ends with a gloriously violent shrug from our leads that left my jaw on the floor. If you compare Alfredo and Antonio to other so-called "loose-cannons" from similar cops and criminals films, the Crime Bois come out, as they always do, on top. A trail of bodies and numerous exploded vehicles in their wake, without a scratch on them. Fans of action and genre cinema will want to make space for this release on their bedside table. Right between the ashtray and the life-size silver skull.