Murder
In A Blue World
(1973/Pagan Films/Region 0/Zero/Free/PAL Import DVD)
PLEASE
NOTE:
This DVD is long out of print, but the film has been further restored
and reissued on Blu-ray by the Cauldron label and you can read all
about it at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/16209/Murder+In+A+Blue+World+(1973/Cauldron/**all
Picture:
C+ Sound: C Extras: D Film: B
Some
of us just love the period of Science Fiction between 1965 and 1976
before Star Wars and as its greatest golden era became it most
daring, risk taking and visionary. Though the films usually came
from France, England and The United States, the cinema of other
countries also dared to come up with their bold visions of the
future. The former Soviet Union offered Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris
(1972, reviewed elsewhere on this site) and Spain gave us a film
ever-dubbed a ''Spanish
Clockwork Orange''
from 1973. That film is Eloy de la Iglesia's Murder
In A Blue World
(Una
Gota de sangre para morir amando)
boldly attempts to absorb everything it can from the era, but has a
particular fixation with Kubrick's films and Francois Truffaut's
version of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit
451
from 1966.
Sue
Lyon, who played Lolita for Kubrick only a decade before, is Nurse
Anna. She is a celebrated and respected woman who could easily step
up into higher medicine in this strange future world, and is
supported by one of the hospital's top doctors (Christopher Mitchum)
she is almost having an affair with. In the meantime, a very violent
gang is on the loose; a bike gang that uses whips and also uses a
dune buggy. They are essentially a cross between the Droogs of
Kubrick's film and the firemen of Truffaut's, but also look like
Blofeld's henchmen in the beginning of the 1971 James Bond film
Diamonds
Are Forever.
You be the judge, but it is interesting and goes with the modernist
futuristic visuals the filmmakers attempt here. Be on the lookout
for other intentionally coy references too.
An
advanced electro-shock therapy is being used at the hospital to turn
killers into ''useful citizens'' in what is constantly suggested
throughout as a more restrictive, less free, almost police-state-like
society. The mix of automobiles dates the film somewhat, though it
is saved by intentional post-Blade
Runner,
post-modern mixes of vehicles in the genre as it stands over 30 years
later. The way the film handles a gay character is the one
outstanding false note, while gay subtext surfaces throughout, often
unintended. A truer note is the use of Flash Gordon (before Star
Wars
eclipsed those adventures as the space opera of the moment) and Alex
Raymond artwork up for auction in particular, with moneyed
individuals bidding. Pop culture and collectibles were still
considered a shaky investment, if not an outright joke at the time,
save a very few pieces. This is one prophecy that has come true that
few can complain about.
The
film literally references Kubrick's Clockwork
Orange
when a broadcast of it follows some amusing faux commercials in the
mode of the Truffaut film. At the time, there was little cable or
satellite service, and neither is suggested leaving the idea
remaining that a film that was X-rated at the time would be suitable
for broadcast in this future world since it became more violent and
technologized. The film and this cut are certainly R-rated, pushing
what we would now consider NC-17, with even the DVD case noting this
is only for ages 18 and over. Credit as well to writers Antonio
Artero, Antonio Fos, Jose Luis Garci, and George Lebourg developed
the story and screenplay with the director and were ambitious about
it. The result endures better than even they likely expected.
The
letterboxed 2.35 X 1 image was shot by cinematographer Francisco
Fraile, who previously collaborated with the director on the Horror
film The
Glass Ceiling
in 1971, a genre de la Iglesia had done strongly before this film.
Some shimmering in the detail is odd, but the color is consistent and
the look of the film is very interesting. The composition uses the
scope frame surprisingly well throughout, though towards the end, it
loosens up as more outdoor shooting takes place. Most independent
and low-budget filmmakers who think digital is the solution to
everything should see this film, even if a couple effects are dated,
many others are not and the look is good.
The
lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono shows its age and only an English dub
track is available. The music holds up well and there is some
compression, but background noise is also present throughout that
could have simply been erased or not added during the silent segments
of the film. Besides classical pieces, there is original music by
Georges Garvarentz, who did not live to see his composition Old
Fashioned Way
used by Clockwork
Orange
director Stanley Kubrick's last film in 1999, Eyes
Wide Shut.
Unfortunately, there are no extras, though this turned out to be
more than a knockoff and deserves a special edition later down the
line. Maybe an HD formatted version will provide that opportunity,
as the Spanish track and various subtitles would take away dubbing
tendency to make serious moments unintentionally funny.
Pagan
Films has done us all a great service by releasing this film, though
it is in its slightly shorter, 98 minutes-long British cut. That is
still 10 more minutes than the U.S. release, dubbed Clockwork
Terror.
The original Spanish version has about 3 more minutes, which we
would like to see, as if this were not bloody enough. It no doubt
was an influence on two Paul Verhoeven films, but to identify them
would give away an important plot point. Eloy de la Iglesia is one
of the boldest directors you never heard of and we hope to cover more
of his films as they hit DVD (and home video in general) belatedly.
Murder
In A Blue World
belongs in all serious home video collections when it comes to
Science Fiction and is a must-see for serious fans.
-
Nicholas Sheffo