Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Clearcut Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 27, 2022

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as a part of All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror.

All the Haunts Be Ours advertises itself as "the most comprehensive collection of its kind", which may initially beg the question as to "kind of what?". But the release also comes with a front cover sobriquet proclaiming it "a compendium of folk horror", which may then beg the next obvious question as to what exactly "folk horror" is. In that regard, this set begins with a fascinating and diverse documentary which has its own subtitle referencing folk horror, Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, which provides a veritable glut of clips from international films which director (and this entire set's guiding light) Kier-La Janisse has assembled to help define the genre, but perhaps the best answer is to simply echo a certain Supreme Court Justice named Potter Stewart who was trying to decide a case involving supposed pornography, and who famously opined, "I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description, and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it. . ."

Clearcut might be thought of in general terms as a Canadian analog to Werner Herzog's Where the Green Ants Dream, at least insofar as both films offer a critique of sorts vis a vis development of indigenous lands. In stead of the stark barren beauty of the Australian outback, instead here it's the lush forests of Canada which may be in danger of being, well, clearcut, though a mysterious character named Arthur (Graham Greene) seems to be a veritable Deus ex Machina to at least attempt to divert disaster.

Clearcut could probably just as easily be pigeonholed in another horror subgenre, namely ecohorror, since its plot is clearly influenced by any number of "ripped from the headlines" events documenting the deforestation of our planet. That said, there's a supernatural edge to this version of an impending ecological Apocalypse, something that allows the film to flirt with ostensible Native American folklore. In another way, Clearcut plays like the flipside of a "road film", with Arthur basically taking two white men hostage, including an attorney named Peter Maguire (Ron Lea), who is actually sympathetic to the indigenous outrage that their land is being razed. The other one is a more obvious villainous type, the foreman of the crew tasked with clearing all those pesky trees, a guy named Bud Rickets (Michael Hogan).

Considering the always compelling star power of Graham Greene, and a kind of interesting conceit which flirts with concepts like nature spirits and/or spirit guides, it's kind of surprising that Clearcut isn't better known. There's an undeniably provocative political, and perhaps socioeconomic, aspect to the story that may not be an overt part of the screenplay, but which is certainly there in abundant subtext. Graham is a really unique presence in contemporary film, and he has a kind of almost inherent gravitas that may help this film elide a few clunky passages.

Clearcut Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Clearcut is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.44:1. Severin's insert booklet states this was "restored in 4K from a 35mm answer print". While a negative source would have no doubt been preferred, the results here are actually quite appealing, though contrast is a bit murky and darker scenes in particular have some inconsistent black levels. While arguably a bit too dark overall, the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review show some undeniable strengths in terms of palette reproduction, and in close-ups at least, detail levels are quite inviting. A lot of the cinematography in this film is breathtaking in that often mist encapsulated way that those of us who live in the Pacific Northwest are used to experiencing, and there's a cool teal grading to some of the forest material that I found evocative.

Clearcut Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Clearcut is somewhat of an outlier in the All the Haunts Be Ours collection in that both a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 option are offered. Truth be told, while the surround track has noticeably more energy in the low end, it's really not as immersive as I expected it to be, and as often tends to be the case with stereo versions, there are certain elements, noticeably most of the dialogue and many of the ambient environmental effects, that sounded better prioritized in the 2.0 track. One way or the other, dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Clearcut Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Archival Video Introduction by Director Ryszard Bugajski (HD; 7:27)


• Audio Commentary with Scholar and Anthropologist Shaawano Chad Uran (White Earth Anishinabbe)


• Archival Audio Interview with Director Ryszard Bugajski and Journalist Allan MacInnis (HD; 1:37:56) plays as a commentary track.


• A Dream Like Arthur's (HD; 16:08) is an audio interview with Actor Graham Greene. My disc had a curious authoring glitch where this played on a loop until I hit Top Menu.


• Composing Clearcut (HD; 17:46) is an interview with Shane Harvey.


• Short Films

  The Ballad of Crowfoot (HD; 10:30)

  
  

  Audio Commentary for The Ballad of Crowfoot with Kevin Howes and Lawrence Dunn

  
  

  You Are on Indian Land (HD; 37:02)

  
  

  Consume (HD; 20:07)

Clearcut Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Clearcut probably won't sit well with those who see the planet's resources as there (and theirs) for the taking, and the film is admittedly not all that subtle, despite ostensibly offering a bit of ambiguity about what exactly is going on. This is in some ways the most "contemporary" feeling film in the All the Haunts Be Ours set, and if for nothing else, it stands as a testament to the ongoing fascination with the naturalistic elements which are often seen to be a part of folk horror. Technical merits are generally solid, and this disc has some outstanding supplemental material. Recommended.