6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Fervidly dark lovesick horror inspired by the real-life criminal duo, the Lonely Hearts Killers.
Starring: Lola Dueñas, Laurent Lucas, Helena NoguerraHorror | 100% |
Foreign | 58% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English, French
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Lots of folks get into the Halloween spirit by watching traditional horror outings, including everything from hoary old classics like Dracula and Frankenstein to more contemporary chillers like The Babadook or Insidious. Typical Halloween fare tends to have elements like monsters or supernatural phenomena creating the angst, though there are of course “blood ‘n’ guts” fans who tend to choose entries like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Friday the 13th to satiate their Halloween viewing needs. For those wanting a perhaps at least slightly different type of horror film for the season, there’s copious gore in Alleluia, and a case could be made that there are both monsters (albeit of the human variety) and a supernatural element, at least if one believes in the enigmatic power of love to control someone’s decisions. A kinda sorta remake of The Honeymoon Killers, albeit transported to our contemporary online era and away from the United States and into France. Martha Beck, the overweight, unhappy nurse at the center of The Honeymoon Killers’ tale of obsessive love gone awry, is transformed in Alleluia into Gloria (Lola Dueñas), a homely mortuary worker who yearns to find Mr. Right. Online dating, the refuge of many a scoundrel, ultimately leads Gloria to the seemingly perfect Michel (Laurent Lucas), a toothy guy who the audience already knows may not have the purest motives.
Alleluia is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Music Box Films and Doppelgänger Releasing with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Alleluia was shot on Super 16, something du Welz evidently intentionally chose to up the grittier aspects of the story, and in fact if there's one word some viewers will use to describe this transfer, it's gritty. This is an at times extremely grainy presentation that flirts with noise on more than one occasion (see screenshot 17) and which, due to other tweaks made to the imagery in post, often sucks quite a bit of detail out of the image (see screenshot 5). In reasonably bright environments and in more or less normal lighting conditions, detail pops decently if not overwhelmingly, and the palette looks fresh. Alleluia was lensed by cinematographer Manuel Dacosse, who made the neo- giallo Amer's visual aesthetic so memorable, and he once again plays here with washes of color and chiaroscuro lighting that will often mask players' faces in shadow.
Alleluia lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has bursts of frenetic energy, including some kind of manic musical moments that offer good immersion. A lot of the film, however, plays out in quieter, more intimate (even hushed) dialogue sequences, something that doesn't provide much opportunity for "wow" sonics. Fidelity is nonetheless excellent and dynamic range surprisingly wide.
- Lola Dueñas (1080i; 3:58)
- Laurent Lucas (1080i; 4:58)
- Helena Noguerra (1080p; 6:29)
Alleluia builds its tension slowly but surely, depicting Gloria's frightening obsession with an almost clinical detachment. That only gives the film more force when things tip over into madness and murder, at which point the film tends to become tonally more unbalanced, perhaps an appropriate reflection of its focal duo's psychological unraveling. The film is quite stylish, though those wanting impeccable sharpness and clarity will be thrown for a loop by this film's small format grittiness. Supplemental features are quite winning, and for those looking for a different kind of Halloween "treat", Alleluia comes Recommended.
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