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Cutter's Way
Released by: Twilight Time
Released on: April 12th, 2016.
Director: Ivan Passer
Cast: Jeff Bridges, John Heard, Stephen Elliott, Lisa Eichorn
Year: 1972
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The Movie:
Based on Newton Thornburg's novel Cutter And Bone, director Ivan Passer's 1972 film Cutter's Way is grim stuff, but so too is it pretty enthralling. Setting things up, we start with a scene where Richard Bone (Jeff Bridges) sees someone covertly disposing of a dead body in a dimly lit alley in the middle of the night. It takes him a little while to figure out who the culprit is, but soon enough he's got him pegged as J.J. Cord (Stephen Elliott), a local oil magnet.
He winds up telling his best friend, an injured Vietnam War veteran named Alex Cutter (John Heard), about what he's seen and soon enough, Cutter has teamed up with Valerie (Ann Dusenberry), the sister of the deceased. They come up with a plan to set up an extortion plot that they assume will get Cord to admit his part in the killing. Bone, along with Cutter's sister, Mo (Lisa Eichhorn), try to make the case that this is pointless - they don't have any hard evidence here and Cord is so well connected and well protected that this could turn out to be a dangerous move but Cutter is determined to do things his way.
An interesting piece that slyly examines the differences between the upper and lower class, Cutter's Way mixes up elements of your typical crime film with some well written drama and interesting characters to pretty impressive results. This isn't a flashy, overly stylish picture, Passer seems more interested in letting his audience get to know the people involved in the story rather than dazzling them with action packed set pieces, but it works. We really do get to know the people affected by all of this and as we do, we're pulled into their world. They take on more interesting elements as conflict arises between Cutter and Bone as to how to best handle this situation. And as we know them before that becomes the case, that conflict feels more grounded in a world that seems quite real. It's one aspect of the movie that makes it easier to get wrapped up in the story and that justifies some pretty deliberate pacing.
The performances accentuate all of this. Jeff Bridges is great here. His character is starting to show his age, no longer the young man he once was but fighting it as best he can. He looks the part, sometimes a bit tired, sometimes lacking the enthusiasm that his character would have had in his younger days. John Heard is fantastic as Bridges' longtime friend. There's a palpable sense of guilt to his character that plays a big part in the later part of the film. The reasons for this are obvious as you watch the movie (and a bit spoilery so we'll not go there) and Heard wears it all on his face. The supporting cast are all great here too but it's Bridges and Heard who really impress.
The California locations are nicely photographed, and again we get some contrast in the two different classes that this story revolves around (the lifestyle enjoyed by our two leads is drastically different than that of their mark). Jack Nitzsche provides a great score that does what any great score should do - heighten the tension, accentuate the drama, pull you into the movie and make you feel something. Mission accomplished.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Cutter's Way arrives on Blu-ray framed in its original aspect ratio of 1.85.1 in AVC encoded 1080p high definition. Detail is typically excellent, with only a few shots showing a sort of hazy look that was no doubt done intentionally for artistic reasons. Skin tones look nice and lifelike and color reproduction is very strong, as are black levels. There are no problems with contrast blooming, compression artifacts or edge enhancement and the nice, film-like appearance keep the movie's grain structure intact. There's very nice depth, texture and detail throughout the film - the picture quality here is impressive.
The only audio option for the feature is an English language DTS-HD 1.0 Master Audio track, with optional subtitles provided in English SDH. The score in this film is a strong one and it really shines here in lossless format, while the dialogue stays clean and clear and properly balanced, never buried in the mix. There are no problems with any hiss or distortion and all in all, the movie sounds pretty strong on this disc.
Twilight Time's Nick Redman and Julie Kirgo provide an audio commentary for the feature that's well worth listening to. There's some good back and forth between the two about the performances here, some observations about character quirks that crop up in the film and some discussion about the score as well. They give some interesting background information on director Ivan Passer, provide us with some welcome details about the source material, and generally just cover the film's history and what makes it work in an affable and informative manner.
Aside from that, we get the film's excellent score represented as an isolated audio track in DTS-HD format, the movie's original theatrical trailer, an MGM 90th Anniversary trailer, menus and chapter selection. Julie Kirgo's liner notes, contained in a full color insert booklet, offer some pretty astute observations about the different characters that populate the film and the actors that played them as well as some insight into what makes this particular film stand out.
The Final Word:
Cutter's Way is hardly feel good movie of the year material but it's a criminally underrated crime drama performed by an excellent cast. Twilight Time's Blu-ray release looks very good, sounds just fine and features an illuminating commentary track - a strong release for a film that deserves more attention.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
