When I heard that Echo Bridge Home Entertainment was going to release most of the Dimension Films library on Blu-Ray for the first time, I was very excited. So far, they’ve released some of my favorites from that studio including “The Crow: City of Angels”, “From Dusk to Dawn” and “The Faculty” to name a few. Today, I’m here to review David Cronenberg film “eXistenZ”, which I haven’t seen yet.
The film take during a demonstration of a new virtual reality game called eXsitenZ. Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is violently attacked by a deranged man that is obsessed with killing her and her creation. Now in hiding, she enlists a man (Jude Law) to help her with the damaged system by getting inside the virtual reality game. Everything becomes out of control with the two, as both virtual reality and reaility merge with the fantasy of the game. The features an all star cast that includes Ian Holms (The Lord of the Rings), Sarah Polley(Dawn of the Dead (2004)), Christopher Eccleston(Shallow Grave) and William Defoe(The Boondock Saints).
Film Review:
I was hoping that I would enjoy this film considering that this boasts an interesting cast and it was one of Cronenberg’s earlier films before I became fan of this his. After watching this film, this made me want to dive more into his film catalogue. I enjoyed this film a lot.
One of the things that made this film very good, Cronenberg makes his imagery very surreal. He does a very good job making it that way, so it keeps your attention. It helps make the virtual world in the film interesting and it also keeps you interested with the film’s story. The other thing that Cronenberg does with his direction, he gets the performances to help make this world come to life. I liked, how he focuses on getting the performances to fit the weird tone that this film has. The lead performances here were very good. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jude Law did a very good job making the character very interesting. They had very good chemistry that was much needed to offset all the bizarre action.
Cronenberg’s screenplay was very interesting. There’s lot of bizarre action that goes on in this film. What he does so well here, he’s fleshes out the characters. It helps make the characters interesting and makes the main relationship work on all levels. It makes those characters interesting. It makes you want to follow them, as they’re placed into some very bizarre sequences. The other thing that I liked about it was the way that Cronenberg fools you into thinking a certain way and then in go in completely different direction. It leaves you surprised at the end result. I liked it, when screenwriters of Cronenberg’s caliber do that. It makes the end result of the film unpredictable and you’re left in shock of what just happened. That’s what makes genre films like this interesting and entertaining.
Blu-Ray Extras:
There isn’t much in the way of extras on this blu-ray. The disc boasts interviews from actors Jude Law, William Defoe and Special Effects Coordinator James Isaac who passed away earlier this year. I thought they were a welcomed addition to this disc. The interviews go in-depth especially with Isaac’s interview which went on for almost a half hour. It was nice to see more depth into each of the interviews, as they didn’t seem like the typical interview that you usually see on most of these releases.
Sadly, we don’t get didn’t interviews from David Cronenberg or Jenifer Jason Leigh here on the disc. It would’ve also been interesting in listening to interviews as well. At least, it’s better than the previous DVD release of the film in 2000, where there was only a theatrical trailer.
Final Summary:
After seeing “eXistenZ”, I was very impressed with how the film was made and written. It makes me more interested in search for more of David Cronenberg’s earlier work and makes me even more looking to the upcoming Blu-Ray release of his latest film “Cosmopolis”.
Film Review: Five Stars
Blu-Ray Extras: Two Stars
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