City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson February 20, 2024

After acting in thirty films for over two decades in Hollywood, Matt Dillon finally got his chance to direct his first feature in 2002. The Brat Pack alum had read an article in the International Herald Tribune about postgenocide Cambodia, which had become a haven for fugitives because of the lack of any extradition treaties. According to journalist Geoffrey MacNabb, who interviewed Dillon for a feature in the UK daily The Independent, the actor traveled to Southeast Asia in 1993 between movies, stopping off in Cambodia. He witnessed a land in chaos. The Khmer Rouge were attempting to re-seize power and many UN officials were there to try to maintain order. Even while much of the territory resembled a war zone, Dillon was fascinated by the country's mystical and spiritual qualities, which he soaked in. He visited temples and bars. He spoke to expatriates and survivors of Pol Pot's regime. Dillon and his novelist friend Barry Gifford (Wild at Heart; Lost Highway) penned a screenplay, which was originally titled Beneath the Banyan Trees (named after some sacred trees). This was later changed to City of Ghosts. Dillon encountered difficulties finding a studio that wanted to finance it. MacNabb reported that only one studio (United Artists) agreed to make it under the condition that Dillon play the lead.

Dillon opens City of Ghosts with newsreel footage of a hurricane ravaging Florida. Survivors who have home insurance coverage with Capable Trust Co. need to file claims. But there's a major problem. Accounts totaling $10 million in insurance coverage have vanished. Federal investigators want to interview Jimmy Cremmins (Matt Dillon), who runs Capable Trust's US office. The feds suspect that someone in the company has been fronting an insurance scam. Jimmy acts as if he doesn't know much. While the feds don't detain Jimmy, they prefer he not leave the US. Jimmy phones someone who knows his boss, the company director who engineered the scam. Jimmy learns that Marvin (James Caan) is somewhere in Southeast Asia so fearing that he could be charged in the scheme, he heads first to Thailand and then to Cambodia. He meets the shady and slippery Joseph Kasper (Stellan Skarsgård), who leads him closer to Marvin. Jimmy frequents a bar and hotel in Phnom Penh operated by Emile (Gérard Depardieu), who has some interesting and sleazy guests come in and out. Marvin has been staying at the governor's residence. He's been planning to build a large casino in partnership with Sideth (Chalee Sankhavesa), a former army general. Jimmy has known Marvin, his mentor, for a long time and their affiliation has primarily been criminal based. Will he be part of this enterprise too?

Dillon has spoken in interviews about his admiration for the films of John Huston and Carol Reed. Dillon took inspiration from those two directors in assembling a film through a mysterious story and atmosphere from the settings. In these areas, he has largely succeeded. He captures the skullduggery of a place that's dangerous and unknown to Jimmy and other tourists. In addition, the fog that's part of the climax is a character in itself.

But the movie is bereft of special ingredients that could have elevated it to another level. The script and the narrative are missing something. There's tension, but the story lacks energy. There isn't a dynamism. Dillon takes his time to establish the characters, but the plot doesn't have a sense of urgency or forward momentum.

Characterization is wanting, too. Dillon introduces beautiful archaeologist Sophie (Natascha McElhone) to his Jimmy and a love story brews between the two. Dillon wisely doesn't make it the center of the story. But Sophie isn't given much to do. Same goes for Rose Byrne's Sabrina. City of Ghosts really seems to be about Jimmy and Marvin. There's a long history between the two but their backstory isn't explored enough.

City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

City of Ghosts's global debut on Blu-ray arrived two decades after the DVD release. MGM has given it the MPEG-4 AVC encode on this BD-25 (disc size: 24.68 GB). The film appears in its original exhibition ratio of 1.85:1. Cinematographer Jim Denault shot the picture on 35 mm Kodak film with color processing by FotoKem. The Blu-ray has a noticeable uptick in clarity compared to the DVD. There seems to be some noise reduction (especially evident in close-ups) applied to the HD image, though. The SD transfer doesn't have a ton of grain but textures are sometimes better. The fuzziness on the DVD actually makes it a bit more film like. But color definition and detail are in the Blu-ray's favor. MGM has encoded the 116-minute feature at a mean video bitrate of 22400 kbps. My video score is 3.75/5.00.

Screenshot #s 1-14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, & 34 = MGM 2023 Blu-ray
Screenshot #s 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, & 33 = MGM 2003 DVD

MGM has provided twelve chapters on its DVD, which can only be accessed while the film plays. (The studio included sixteen scene selections on its DVD.)

City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

MGM has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround mix (3970 kbps, 24-bit). Delivery is generally clean, although Dillon and Caan occasionally murmur their lines. The lossless mix frequently makes full use of the center channel and two fronts for f/x. The satellite speakers pick up street ambience (e.g., mopeds whizzing by). Dillon selected Cambodian pop songs from the 1960s to play on the sound track and they're fairly active.

Optional English subtitles are available to select from the menu or via remote while the film plays.

City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Blu-ray has zero extras. MGM's R1/2 DVDs have a very good feature-length commentary track with Matt Dillon and co-writer Barry Gifford. Dillon and Gifford were recorded separately. The director dominates much of the track. Dillon is wonderful to listen to with his deep, pleasant voice. He talks about how Cambodia interested him in setting a film there, the locales and filming conditions, directing himself and his actors, and creative decisions with crew members. He sometimes just describes what's happening on the screen but thankfully, not often. There's also a theatrical trailer, which is missing here.

City of Ghosts Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Despite my quibbles, City of Ghosts (2002) is a good maiden feature for Matt Dillon as a director. DP Jim Denault's lensing of the scenic locales and nighttime sequences are first-rate. The narrative trudges along and could have been edited tighter. I also feel that there's something deeper to explore between Dillon and Caan's characters. MGM's budget Blu-ray has pros and cons as far as the transfer goes. Clarity is superior to the DVD, but grain and texture are lacking. Still, it's a decent upgrade over SD. MGM did a fine job with the DTS-HD MA 5.1, although there's not a lot going on with the surrounds. Fans of the film will also want to obtain the DVD for a very fine commentary track with Dillon and Gifford. If you're a massive fan of Dillon like I am, you'll want to grab both. RECOMMENDED.