Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Boston Strangler, The

Collapse
X
Collapse
  •  
    Ian Jane
    Administrator

  • Boston Strangler, The



    Released by: Twilight Time Releasing
    Released on: November 15th, 2016.
    Director: Richard Fleischer
    Cast: Henry Fonda, George Kennedy, Tony Curtis, Sally Kellerman, Hurd Hatfield, Mike Kellin
    Year: 1968
    Purchase From Screen Archives

    The Movie:

    Based on a screenplay by Edward Anhalt that was in turn based on a book by Gerold Frank, Richard Fleischer's 1968 film The Boston Strangler plays out more as a procedural drama than a typical serial killer thriller or horror film. It is, however, a very well made picture anchored by some seriously great acting and some stylish direction.

    The film takes place in a Boston on edge thanks to a rash of brutal murders in which some fiend has killed off some of the city's older female inhabitants. Henry Fonda plays Boston P.D. investigator John S. Bottomly, the man in charge of a special task force setup by the cops to try and identify and apprehend the killer. As he and his men set out to do just that, they come across various suspects who, for a myriad of reasons, they figure could be the culprit. It isn't until they come into contact with a man named Albert DeSalvo (played by Tony Curtis) after he's busted on a break and enter that they realize they've got their man.

    Unfortunately for Bottomly's team, DeSalvo is ruled unfit to stand trial for his deeds, as he suffers from multiple personality disorder and psychotic episodes...

    Told almost entirely from the point of view of Bottomly and the cops working the case, Fleischer uses what were, at the time at least, fairly radical instances of split-screen and multi-pane visuals to effectively convey the state of panic gripping Boston while DeSalvo was running loose. While this might seem a little dated now, at least from a visual perspective, it still works and proves an interesting way of communicating the chaos that factor into aspects of the film's plot. While the script may take some liberties with the details of the actual case that the movie was based on, it nevertheless makes for good entertainment.

    A big part of what makes this work is the performances. Cast against type, Tony Curtis is really good as the disturbed DeSalvo. His confusion is completely believable and he invest in the part a lot of great body language and facial ticks, the kind that, when coupled with smart dialogue as they are here, really serve to flesh out the character. Henry Fonda is also in fine form here. He's well cast as the top cop on the case, and as he gets frustrated throughout the movie he's careful not to overdo it (which could have easily sent his character into parody). Along the way we get some likewise solid work from supporting players like George Kennedy as another detective along with Sally Kellerman, Jeanne Cooper and a small but memorable turn from none other than William Marshall.

    Video/Audio/Extras:

    The Boston Strangler debuts on Blu-ray from Twilight Time in AVC encoded 1080p high definition framed in its original aspect ratio of 2.35.1 widescreen and it looks excellent. There's virtually no print damage to note, just a normal amount of visible and natural looking film grain, while depth and detail are consistently impressive. The 50GB disc is free of any obvious compression artifacts while color reproduction is strong, as are black levels. There's solid texture here and no issues with contrast - this is, to be blunt, a very film-like transfer taken from source materials that were clearly in excellent shape and the picture quality here is gorgeous.

    The only audio option for the feature is a DTS-HD Mono track, in English. There are no alternate language options provided but subtitles are offered up in English SDH format. The dialogue sounds fine and the score absolutely benefits from the lossless audio format. Hiss and distortion are never an issue and the single channel mix has fine range and depth to it.

    The main extra on the disc is an audio Commentary with Film Historians David Del Valle and Steven Peros. The two participants offer up a lot of critical analysis in regards to the various tactics Fleischer uses to tell the story, the performances in the picture and the quality of the script. At the same time they're able to provide plenty of information about pretty much every one of the cast members used in the picture, the score, the locations used in certain scenes and more. This is interesting and well-paced - as such it's worth listening to.

    The disc also includes a few featurettes, starting with Split-Screen Personality: William Friedkin On Richard Fleischer's The Boston Strangler. Over the span of this twenty-two minute piece Friedkin, who was at one point expected to direct the picture, offers up his thoughts on the techniques that Fleischer employed throughout the film and why he feels this is a particularly well made picture. Next up is Real Killer, Fake Nose, a thirty-three minute long featurette made up of interviews with Fleischer's son, actress Sally Kellerman and cinematographer Richard H. Kleine. Lots of good stories here about why certain scenes were shot the way that they were, what it was like working with some of the cast assembled for the film, Fleischer's style as a director, what it was like on set and more. The third featurette is AMC Backstory: The Boston Strangler which is a vintage piece that runs twenty-two minutes and that gives us a decent history of the picture with a lot of emphasis on those who made it.

    Outside of that we get a trailer for the feature, a Fox Movietone Newsreel, an isolated music and effects track (in DTS-HD format) menus and chapter selection. Inside the Blu-ray keepcase alongside the disc is an insert booklet of liner notes featuring an essay from regular Twilight Time scribe Julie Kirgo who gives us some welcome background information on the film, how the various cast members fare in the picture, and her own thoughts on the effectiveness of it all. A great read as always.

    The Final Word:

    The Boston Strangler is much more of a drama than it is the thriller you might expect it to be, but that doesn't take away from what is a genuinely well-made film. The performances are all top notch, the direction is slick and the production values quite strong. Twilight Time bring Richard Fleischer's picture to Blu-ray in grand style with a gorgeous transfer, strong audio and a nice selection of supplements to accompany the feature attraction.

    Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!



















      Posting comments is disabled.

    Latest Articles

    Collapse

    • Hot Spur (Severin Films) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Severin Films
      Released on: April 30th, 2024.
      Director: Lee Frost
      Cast: Joseph Mascolo, Virginia Goodman, John Alderman
      Year: 1969
      Purchase From Amazon

      Hot Spur – Movie Review:

      Director Lee Frost and Producer Bob Cresse's film, Hot Spur, opens in Texas in 1869 with a scene where a pair of cowboys wanders into a bar where they call over a pretty Mexican waitress and coerce her into dancing for them. She obliges, but
      ...
      03-22-2024, 11:53 AM
    • Death Squad (Mondo Macabro) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Mondo Macabro
      Released on: April 9th, 2024.
      Director: Max Pecas
      Cast: Thierry de Carbonnières, Jean-Marc Maurel, Denis Karvil, Lillemour Jonsson
      Year: 1985
      Purchase From Amazon

      Death Squad – Movie Review:

      Also known as Brigade Of Death, French sleaze auteur Max Pecas’ 1985 film, Death Squad, opens with a night time scene outside of Paris in the Bois de Boulogne Forest where cars pass by a small gang of transsexual
      ...
      03-22-2024, 11:46 AM
    • Roommates (Quality X) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Quality X
      Released on: February 28th, 2024.
      Director: Chuck Vincent
      Cast: Samantha Fox, Vernoica Hart, Kelly Nichols, Jerry Butler, Jamie Gillis
      Year: 1982
      Purchase From Amazon

      Roommates – Movie Review:

      Directed by Chuck Vincent and released in 1982, Roommates opens with a scene where a young woman named Joan Harmon (Veronica Hart) gets a hotel room with an older man named Ken (Don Peterson, credited as Phil Smith),
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:10 PM
    • Night Of The Blood Monster (Blue Underground) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Blue Underground
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Jess Franco
      Cast: Christopher Lee, Maria Rohm, Dennis Price
      Year: 1970
      Purchase From Amazon

      Night Of The Blood Monster – Movie Review:

      Directed by Jess Franco, The Bloody Judge (or, Night Of The Blood Monster, as it is going by on this new release from Blue Underground) isn't quite the salacious exercise in Eurotrash you might expect it to be, and while it
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:07 PM
    • Phase IV (Vinegar Syndrome) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Saul Bass
      Cast: Nigel Davenport, Michael Murphy, Lynne Frederick, Alan Gifford, Robert Henderson, Helen Horton
      Year: 1974
      Purchase From Amazon

      Phase IV – Movie Review:

      Saul Bass’ 1974 sci-fi/thriller Phase IV is an interesting blend of nature run amuck stereotypes and Natural Geographic style nature footage mixed into one delicious cocktail of suspense and
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:02 PM
    • The Bounty Hunter Trilogy (Radiance Films) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Radiance Films
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Shigehiro Ozawa, Eiichi Kudo
      Cast: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Minoru Ôki, Arashi Kanjuro, Bin Amatsu, Chiezo Kataoka
      Year: 1969-1972
      Purchase From Amazon

      The Bounty Hunter Trilogy – Movie Review:

      Radiance Films gathers together the three films in Toie Studios’ Bounty Hunter Trilogy, starring the inimitable Tomisaburo Wakayama. Here’s how the three movies in this
      ...
      03-13-2024, 11:30 AM
    Working...
    X