Digi-Schlock: TENEBRAE (Synapse UHD/Blu-Ray Standard Edition)
Back in 2016, Synapse released a blu-ray of Tenebrae in deluxe and standard editions that was impressive. More recently, they've taken this Dario Argento favorite into the ultra high definition realm and created a version that offers impressive upgrades both in transfer quality and in terms of bonus features, collecting a bevy of material from multiple versions to create a monster of a set that will tantalize the director's fans.
The following is breakdown of the standard edition set, which includes a UHD and a blu-ray. The hardcore giallo-philes will want to note that Synapse also released a collector's version of this set that includes a UHD presentation of the film's re-edited American release version, Unsane. As of this writing, it is still available through the Synapse website so Argento collectors should go there tout suite to pick up their copy while supplies last.
Transfer: fans gets a major advance in quality here. The 2016 blu-ray, while quite good, had to rely on existing transfers provided by the licensor and Synapse had to do extensive frame-by-frame clean-up and color correction. The new 4K transfer here is taken directly from the original camera negative and is presented in Dolby Vision (it's also HDR 10 compatible). The results are stunning to look at, with crisp detail all around, rich black levels, eye-popping colors, you name it. You get a choice of Italian or English tracks, with optional subtitles, and both are presented in a pristine lossless form. As with the video transfer, each audio track is beautifully rendered.
Commentary Track With Alan Jones and Kim Newman: this pair of well-traveled British critics contribute a conversational yet informative track. Jones has written an in-depth study of the director's work (Dario Argento: The Man, The Myths & The Magic) so he's able to offer a lot of 'inside baseball' details on the director's life and career and Newman, also an accomplished author on horror films, offers his own worthwhile observations. Interesting elements in this track include extensive info on the locations, the people who dubbed it and criticisms of the narrative devices balanced with an appreciation of the stylized alchemy that redeems them.
Commentary Track With Maitland McDonagh: This film critic and Argento expert appears on a commentary track carried over from Synapse's previous release of this film. It's a feast of info and opinions for the director's fans. She takes a scene-by-scene analytical approach that is informed by her deep knowledge of Argento's work. She has fun with the film's quirks but is sophisticated in how she parses its themes. She also laces in some interesting trivia (Theresa Russell dubbed Daria Nicolodi for the English language version!) and even has some tales of interviewing Argento himself.
Commentary With Thomas Rostock: this solo track is devoted to scene-by-scene analysis of the film by Swedish critic Rostock. He makes a case that the film is built on a theme of duality, with several elements and images mirrored throughout the film, and also points out how water is used a visual/thematic motif. Other elements here include the analysis of directorial choices, information on cast members and discussion of Argento's thoughts taken from interviews. Note: the audio levels are a little off on this track, with Rostock's comments sometimes competing with the film's audio track itself, but it's worthwhile for fans to stick with it.
Yellow Fever (1:29:24): this documentary feature from Calum Waddell offers a chatty and informative stroll through the history of the giallo, combining input from a variety of Italian horror directors (Argento, Ruggero Deodato, Luigi Cozzi, Umberto Lenzi) along with several critics (McDonagh, Newman, Jones, etc.) and even a few modern filmmakers like Bruno Cattet. It sketches out the genre's origins in pulp mystery fiction and Hitchcock films before outlining how Mario Bava pioneered it and Argento perfected it to create a popular and oft-imitated Italian genre.
As one might expect from its inclusion here, Yellow Fever skews heavily in Argento's direction, including some critical but fair assessments of Argento's controversial latter day work (surprisingly, his close friend Cozzi is amongst the most critical towards his recent work). That said, there are cursory mentions of Lucio Fulci and Lenzi's work as well as interesting sections where the contributors get to pick/describe favorite gialli and grapple with the accusation that the genre is inherently misogynistic. Look out for Lenzi, who is oft hilarious as he critiques Argento while trumpeting his own work, and insightful analysis of some key titles from the loquacious Richard Stanley. While not totally definitive - that would require another half-hour or maybe a short form documentary series - there's plenty of fun and info for genre fans here.
Being The Villain (16:22): a newly-edited version of a John Steiner interview that previously appeared on the Arrow disc. Steiner is witty in a knowing, bittersweet sort of way as he charts how his young days took him transatlantic stage success in Marat/Sade to becoming a busy actor in the Italian genre film scene for two decades. He has fun stories to tell about Lucio Fulci, Orson Welles, Nazisploitation and the casting office experience that led him to realize his time in the film biz was coming to an end. Of course, he touches on his work with Argento along the way and his thoughts on the director's style and place in the Italian film business.
Voices Of The Unsane (17:16): a 2008 featurette that originally appeared on the Anchor Bay release of this film. It's a fast-moving retrospective piece weaving together interviews with Argento and several others. Argento goes into detail on how he stylized the murders, including an intriguing bit involving Aztec history, and you also get Luciano Tovoli talking about the visual choices made to differentiate the film from Argento's supernatural films plus Claudio Simonetti reflecting on how the breakup of Goblin freed the musicians on this film to explore different styles and techniques. That said, the most interesting thoughts may come from Eva Robins, who offers a Freudian interpretation of the film's flashbacks and Nicolodi, who offers incisive and witty commentary on her disappointments with the film and her role.
Out Of The Shadows (12:20): a 2013 sitdown with author/critic McDonagh. It's not an interview but more of a critical monlogue in which she unpacks her thoughts on Tenebrae. She makes a case for it as Argento stepping back to the giallo but reinterpreting it for modern times, giving it a chilly look and harsh modernist settings that reflect his dark thoughts on Italy's future. She also has interesting comments on the costumes, the propulsive nature of the soundtrack and Argento's lack of interest in being an actor's director.
Screaming Queen (16:05): a featurette in which cast member Nicolodi reflects on Tenebrae in her always lively and unfiltered style. She's frank about the disappointment she felt in Argento putting off the followup to Inferno as well as having to play what she considered a fairly 'blah' role. However, she remains proud of the film, offering interesting commentary on Argento's use of color, her memories of working with Tony Franciosa and the inspiration behind her lengthy scream at the film's close.
The Unsane World Of Tenebrae (15:14): a sitdown with Argento, who offers his unfiltered thoughts on the film. He starts by admitting he used this film to project all the harsh criticism foisted upon him over the years back at his accusers and discusses a real-life stalking incident that inspired the plot as well as the idea that the film is set in a near-future time. He also touches on his mentorship of Michele Soavi.
A Composition For Carnage (10:05): an archive piece with Claudio Simonetti discussing the film's score. He talks about why the soundtrack isn't credited to Goblin despite consisting of several Goblin members, the influence of electronica on the score (and its success in clubs as a result) and some interesting thoughts on having written music for films that get censored or banned in other countries for violent content.
Additional Extras: an alternate English language titles sequence with slightly different footage, the end credits for the Unsane version of the film that use a snippet of the Kim Wilde song "Take Me Tonight," a 13-second introduction to the film by Nicolodi, international and Japanese trailers for the film, click-thru image galleries of promotional materials for Italy, Spain, Germany, Japan and the U.S. plus a "miscellaeous images" gallery with a few more stills and behind-the-scenes images.
Summation: this is the best of both worlds for Argento fans, offering a top-quality transfer supported by a comprehensive array of supplements featuring top experts on both Argento and gialli, with results that will deepen your appreciation of both subjects. Until the next video format is invented, it's tough to imagine better work being done for this favorite. If you want to order this set directly from Synapse, just click here to go to the product page.
To read Schlockmania's film review of Tenebrae, click here.