The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Miss Osbourne

[MichaelB]

The Digital Fix.

[MichaelB]

DVD Compare:

It is testament to Borowczyk’s technique that The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Miss Osbourne is still a deeply shocking and subversive film. This has long been one of my favourite films, and Arrow’s release is a dream come true, giving a film that has rarely been screened in cinemas, and has only been seen in a home video context in poorly-presented and often cut VHS versions, a first-class Blu-ray presentation. [...] As with Arrow’s Blu-ray releases of some of Borowczyk’s earlier films (in their ‘Boro Box’, last year), it’s hard to imagine this release not appearing on lists of the best Blu-rays of 2015.

[Koukol]

I finally received my BD (and just finished watching it) and I have to say this is THE release of the year so far.
Maybe VALERIE might top it but right now I can't imagine that.
My God this film is gorgeous!
The restoration is all one could hope for.
"the original cinematographer was fired and camera operator Noël Véry took over, this means that the man who oversaw Arrow's framing and grading was the man who was actually looking through the viewfinder throughout filming. You're not going to get a more expert opinion than that"
And it shows.
The cinematography and lighting are brilliant and the score wonderfully hypnotic in this film.
Like a lot of Arthouse films I can't imagine this film being as great without the score
And this beautiful restoration has increased my love for this film.
I also really enjoyed Michael's commentary as it added to my appreciation of Borowczyk.
So far I've only seen DR JEKYLL, IMMORAL TALES and THE BEAST so I was one of those guys who dismissed most of his work as having one foot in the soft core grind-house theaters.
So at first I was surprised Michael compared Borowczyk with the likes of Bunuel and Tarkovsky but learning about his earlier surrealist/avant garde films I'm now intrigued.
Anyways, thank you Michael & Co for getting this on the BD looking so great and for the education on Borowczyk.
Being a huge fan of Medieval films like Tavernier's BEATRICE I now HAVE to see BLANCHE.
Any chance of it coming out, Michael?

[furbicide]

It finally arrived a couple of days ago. Loved your feature, Michael—I showed it to my girlfriend, who constantly teases me for liking Borowczyk. We're both keen to catch up with some of his short films now (I've got the Arrow boxset, but have only gotten through the live action features so far).

Also, really interesting short film by the Pierros. Had no idea to expect and was very pleasantly surprised. Needless to say it when everybody else already has, but this is one of the best DVDs I've ever bought.

[furbicide]

Being a huge fan of Medieval films like Tavernier's BEATRICE I now HAVE to see BLANCHE.
Any chance of it coming out, Michael?

Um, yeah, I'd say there's a good chance of that.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blanche-Blu-ray ... 00LCLG37U/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Koukol]

Being a huge fan of Medieval films like Tavernier's BEATRICE I now HAVE to see BLANCHE.
Any chance of it coming out, Michael?

Um, yeah, I'd say there's a good chance of that.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blanche-Blu-ray ... 00LCLG37U/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Ordered...Cheers!

[zedz]

Being a huge fan of Medieval films like Tavernier's BEATRICE I now HAVE to see BLANCHE.
Any chance of it coming out, Michael?

Um, yeah, I'd say there's a good chance of that.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blanche-Blu-ray ... 00LCLG37U/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

An almost 101% chance of it coming out, even.

[MichaelB]

Excellent - my cunning plan to surreptitiously plug all of Arrow's earlier Borowczyk releases has literally paid off!

But I doubt you'll be disappointed.

[effigy105]

With only the booklet left to read, I have to say that this is easily one of the most thoughtfully curated and "complete" film editions I've seen in about 12 years of DVD/Blu-Ray buying.

Obviously, the image quality is stunning and a HD presentation feels particularly important for appreciating Borowczyk's work, thanks to his preoccupation with objects, minutiae and textures. So I really hope The Story of Sin and La marge, two films I really did enjoy but which felt a little lacklustre compared to their cohorts now among Arrow's ranks, get similarly conscientious Blu-Ray releases in the future because I suspect it was sub-par presentation that is pulling their punches.

Getting back to this package, even if you haven't picked through the preceding Boro Box, Michael Brooke's half-hour video-piece serves as an effective overview of Borowczyk's career and Dr. Jekyll's place within it. That's accompanied by other video pieces that examine the pictorial construction of the film and which, in abridging and re-editing portions of the film, highlight the potency and nightmarish quality of the film's imagery, reminding us that though, on the surface, the film kinda moves like a slasher film, what it uncovers is something far more abstract than the simple threat of death.

Sitting alongside these are featurettes and interviews that follows other avenues, interrelated but separate of Borowczyk, potentially introducing and stoking interest in filmmakers such as Jans Lenica and Peter Foldes and also the work of composer Bernard Parmegiani. There is so much detail here, and clips of other interviews and films, that I really hope Arrow have more in the works in this vein (please!). The two accompanying short films, which gain their own supplements too, also expand and complement the world of the feature and Borowczyk's methodologies.

What's also apparent here as with Arrow's other Borowczyk releases, and is really refreshing for such scholarly presentations - I say this as it's usually something I associate more with of 'cult' and genre film releases - is an obvious personal touch. There's a willingness to reminiscence and discuss the film specifically in terms of nostalgia alongside other modes. So we have discussion not simply of the film but specifically of its release in the UK, the types of cinemas it slipped into, and the adverts and box-art that teased passers-by etc. too

So after all that gushing I'd say this is what home-video releases should all strive to be and a huge thank you to all involved. I really hope circumstances can accommodate even more releases in this vein.

[MichaelB]

A quick roundup of the positive reviews:

• Ave Noctum (Pete Woods)
• AV Forums (Chris McEneany)
• Blood Brothers (Matt Reifschneider)
• Cine Vue (Ben Nicholson)
• Close-Up Film (Colin Dibben)
• Diabolique (Christopher Bruno)
• The Digital Fix (Gary Couzens)
• DVD Beaver (Eric Cotenas)
• EuroCultAV.com (Scott MacDonald)
• Examiner.com (Steven Renkovish)
• Famous Monsters of Filmland (Daniel XIII)
• FilmJuice (Jonathan McCalmont)
• Good Efficient Butchery (Mark Tinta)
• Good Movies for Bad People
• House of Mortal Cinema (John Llewellyn Probert)
• IonCinema.com (Jordan M. Smith)
• Mondo Digital (Nathaniel Thompson)
• Moon in the Gutter (Jeremy Richey)
• MostlyFilm (Paul Duane)
• Oh the Horror! (Brett Gallman)
• Rewind (Paul Lewis)
• RogerEbert.com (Glenn Kenny)
• Shattered Ravings (Matthew Scott Baker)
• Shock Till You Drop (Jacob Q. Knight)
• Starburst (Nick Spacek)
• Strange Things Are Happening (David Flint)
• White-Lipped Viper (Sarah Horrocks)

I've spotted three or four negative ones as well, but they're in a smaller minority than I was expecting given that this film clearly isn't for everyone.

[tenia]

And my French one here : http://retro-hd.com/tests/blu-ray-impor ... emmes.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[criterion10]

Any idea how this has sold so far? I hope it will continue to pave the way for future Borowczyk releases (*cough* The Story of Sin and La Marge *cough*).

[MichaelB]

No idea, I'm afraid - my involvement with these projects ceases from the moment I sign off on the final checkdisc.

But I'd hope that all the attention it's been getting has had spin-off benefits.

[nolanoe]

All this LA MARGE love is really good to see. I find it both wondrous and exciting that a director like Borowczyk, who was shrugged at for decades, benefits from these beautifully done restorations and releases.

[What A Disgrace]

The ideal follow-up to this would be a restoration of Story of Sin and all of Boro's extant Polish shorts, as supplements (or vice versa).

[Ron]

I just watched the Blu-ray including the supplements and I have to say that this is really the release of the year! Apart from the feature film I mostly liked the appreciation of Boro´s body of work and the comments on Himorogi. I also hope that the next Arrow release will be The Story of Sin including the Polish shorts.

[MichaelB]

I don't think it would be betraying any confidences to say that Daniel and I would be very keen indeed to put together an all-Polish Borowczyk disc with one feature and six shorts, not least because it would fill pretty much every realistically fillable gap in his filmography up to 1975 (the pre-1957 stuff is believed to be lost, and the other 1950s/60s TV commercials have proved similarly elusive and in any case aren't proper "films de Borowczyk").

However, the restorations are being carried out in Poland and there are quite a few contractual, financial and logistical hoops that need to be jumped through first. Certainly, nothing has been formally greenlit as yet.

[thirtyframesasecond]

Well done MichaelB for getting this film out. I bought it for our library (which must've caused some raising of eyebrows amongst my colleagues when it came in) and watched it this weekend. I really enjoyed it. I must confess I only watched your commentary Great to see Borowczyk's work being not just released but rehabilitated.

[MichaelB]

Cristina Àlvarez López and Adrian Martin discuss their visual essay Phantasmagoria of the Interior on Fandor.