Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Crimes of the Future Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf August 4, 2022

Writer/director David Cronenberg hasn’t crafted a feature in eight years, last seen on screen with 2014’s “Maps to the Stars,” and 2012’s punishing “Cosmopolis.” He’s a daring, original filmmaker, but Cronenberg ventured away from the darkness he’s usually drawn to, dealing with storytelling that didn’t feel like a natural fit for his sensibilities. He’s back to his obsessive ways with “Crimes of the Future,” which returns the helmer to a world of flesh and fixation, reworking the general mood of his 1970 picture, which shares the same title. Cronenberg revives his interest in the ways of human society and the pollution of mind and body, pushing the material into the worlds of performance art and detective fiction, emerging with a highly original vision for a sinister evolution. Appreciating the imagination of “Crimes of the Future” is easy, but the endeavor requires a bit more patience when getting through Cronenberg’s habitual storytelling coldness, which limits immersion into this peculiar world of surgical ecstasy.

In the future, Saul (Viggo Mortensen) is a darling of the performance art world, working with his loyal partner, Caprice (Lea Seydoux). Saul has “accelerated evolution syndrome,” which allows him to grow new organs inside his body, working with Caprice to remove his multiplying innards via special gadgets that permit an audience a chance to delight in the surgical process. Saul isn’t well, but he’s focused on his next appearance, soon interrupted by Wippet (Don McKellar) and Timlin (Kristen Stewart), a pair of investigators working with the National Organ Registry, looking to tattoo the artist’s growths as a way of tracking the additions, quickly becoming fixated on Saul’s abilities and mysterious aura. Also involved in the situation is Lang (Scott Speedman), a leader in a new world order devoted to the consumption of plastic, hoping to bring his recently murdered 8- year-old son to Saul for use in his latest piece, requesting a public autopsy of the boy.

The child at the center of the story is the first character we meet in “Crimes of the Future,” returning home after an afternoon of playing, soon caught eating a plastic wastebasket by his mother. She responds with an act of finality, smothering her son, but Cronenberg doesn’t follow the horrific incident with a full understanding of motive, putting the death aside as he concentrates on Saul and Caprice, a couple who’ve built a reputation for brutal performance art pieces. As Saul lays in a seed-like pod, his partner works a flesh-like control panel, helping to slice open the subject and remove the latest addition to his internal organs, using the surgical show to challenge and arouse spectators in this toxic futureworld where pain is no longer a concern.

“Crimes of the Future” wastes little time getting to Cronenberg’s cinematic interests, with Saul and Caprice’s relationship examining the sexuality of open wounds, and the artist’s displays inspire a lustful reaction from others, including Timlin, who can’t hold back on newfound feelings of release. It’s a fetish parade, extending to technical achievements, including Saul’s pod and his feeding chair, a bony device that rocks him violently as he struggles to swallow. Practical effects are fascinating, adding to Cronenberg’s achievements in the ways of flesh-based props and environments (the production stumbles with budget CGI additions), and the tale takes a few initial turns of interest, including the addition of Detective Cope (Welket Bungue), who’s secretly working with Saul to better understand the “naturally unnatural” awakening going on. Plot mostly takes a backseat to atmosphere, but the screenplay is working toward a climax of some payoff, though the helmer isn’t always clear with his reveals, enjoying the enigmatic quality of the endeavor and its occasionally graphic content.

Crimes of the Future Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

"Crimes of the Future" largely deals with textures on everything from skin to candy, and the AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) protects fine detail throughout the viewing experience. Fleshy surfaces and moist innards are open for inspection, along with the odd construction of eating and sleeping devices. Costuming retains fibrousness, and interiors are distinctly decorated. Some sense of dimension remains with exterior interactions. Colors work with a cooler, more mysterious palette, but elements of blood remain vivid, along with sci-fi hues. Skin tones are natural. Delineation is satisfactory, handling extremely dark imagery at times. Compression issues are present, with banding periodically detected.

Crimes of the Future Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix delivers crisp dialogue exchanges, securing the nuances of different performances and accents. Scoring offers a lush orchestral and industrial sound, with distinct instrumentation. Electronic music selections are also crisp, providing some low-end thump. Surrounds provide a circular sense of music, and atmospherics are appreciable with community gatherings, insect movement, and exterior environments.

Crimes of the Future Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "The Making of 'Crimes of the Future'" (4:46, HD) is a brief overview of the production, featuring interviews with writer/director David Cronenberg, producer Robert Lantos, production designer Carol Spier, and actors Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Stewart, Lea Seydoux, Welket Bungue, Scott Speedman, Don McKellar, Nadia Litz, Tanaya Beatty, and Lihi Kornowski. Topics include the development of themes and the screenplay (which was originally written in 1986), character details, location shooting in Greece, and the wonders of David Cronenberg. Some BTS footage is also included.

• And a Teaser Trailer (:57, HD) and a Theatrical Trailer (1:45, HD) are included.

Crimes of the Future Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Crimes of the Future" is nowhere near as upsetting as pre-release hype from Cronenberg has promised, and fans of the filmmaker are going to recognize many motifs and fascinations from the helmer, who revisits his signature interest in the liberation of disease. There are larger ideas in play, especially climate and corporeal corruption, which keeps the feature interesting, even when it tends to wander at times, caught up in its own oddity and idiosyncrasy. "Crimes of the Future" is a fine return to form for Cronenberg, who hasn't made something this bizarre since 1999's "Existenz," clearly charged up to play with squishy guts, overheated characters, and the perversions of humankind as it deals with a future of unknown horrors and untapped consciousness.