Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 28, 2022

In one of the many interesting supplements Arrow has included on this release, director Gérard Kikoïne freely admits that there were (according to him) already some 43 screen adaptations of Robert Louis Stevenson's immortal [The] Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by the time Kikoïne and his team started filming Edge of Sanity in the late eighties. That might beg the question as to what, if anything, a "new, improved" version of the iconic source property might have to offer, especially when considering the fact that a number of previous adaptations had been rather well received, including the 1931 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde which famously won Frederic March an Academy Award for Best Actor(s) (and, yes, that "s" is a joke). Interestingly in that regard it may be salient to remember a film which had come out about a decade and a half before the one currently under review, namely Peter Medak's scabrous The Ruling Class, which featured Peter O'Toole in one of his many Academy Award nominated performances, this time as Jack, Earl of Gurney, who suffers from mental instability and at various points believes he's either Jesus Christ or Jack the Ripper. Any delusions of deity grandeur are subtextual in Edge of Sanity, playing into the oft repeated presumed mantra of a scientist thinking he's a god, but the Jack the Ripper connection is very much in evidence, since Edge of Sanity attempts to weave Stevenson's fictional character(s) into the still unsolved spree of murders that shocked Whitechapel in the 1880s.

One of the most visceral things about Psycho is Anthony Perkins' amazing performance as Norman Bates, who seems to be a mild mannered, almost helpless, schlub of a guy who famously "wouldn't hurt a fly". That characterization is what makes the denouement of the Alfred Hitchcock classic all the more thrilling, since it's so unexpected, but anyone looking for the same kind of ambiguity or misdirection in either performance or writing in Edge of Sanity had best keep searching. While Perkins does appear at least relatively mild mannered as the upscale Dr. Jekyll, once he transforms into Hyde, it's basically Grand Guignol time from the get go, with Perkins playing to the veritable second balcony in an admittedly fun but unavoidably hyperbolic performance.

For just one quick example of how unhinged Perkins' performance is once Jekyll gives in to his Hyde dark side, take a gander at the arresting cover art reproduced above which features a pretty accurate depiction by illustrator Graham Humphreys of how Perkins looks as the demented half of the character. This version of the venerable property does attempt to inject (no drug pun intended) a bit of a subtext about addiction and what amounts to Hyde's potion proffering to others, which comes pretty close to pusher territory. That gives things a somewhat unusual twist, and there's also a passing effort to provide a bit of a psychological underpinning to Jekyll's travails, courtesy of an opening scene which offers the character as a child witnessing a positively Freudian situation (as is discussed in the commentary included on this disc). That very scene may also hint, not all that subliminally, at some of the soft and later hardcore sensibilities of Gérard Kikoïne. Suffice it to say that's not the last example, either.

The screenplay glances against the edges of both the Stevenson source and the Jack the Ripper murders, but this is a film that is probably more about style than any perceived substance. The murders are investigated by some well meaning but apparently clueless (even when given veritable truckloads of clues) police, though since the audience already knows who the culprit is, there's none of that kind of suspense, and instead the feebleness of the detectives' work is almost comical at times.

Edge of Sanity is a kind of peculiar mishmash which has a rather luxe quasi-Gothic production design, and some interesting directorial and cinematography flourishes, along with a really fun central performance by Anthony Perkins, but which may only really deliver chills and black humor in dribs and drabs. As is also discussed in the commentary, the addition of a wife for Dr. Jekyll, a woman named Elisabeth (Glynis Barber), is largely undeveloped and might have provided more of an opportunity for some intrigue other than a typical late third act Damsel in Distress moment. That said, there is one kind of cheeky aspect to how this story plays out which tangentially involves Elisabeth, which won't be spoiled here, other than to say those Whitechapel Murders may have continued apace for at least a little while after the last "official" Jack the Ripper killing.

Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Edge of Sanity is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer:

Edge of Sanity is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with stereo audio.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K, then graded and restored in 2K at R3Store Studios, London. The original stereo mix was remastered by MGM.

All materials for this restoration were made available by MGM and Deluxe.

This is another generally amazing looking of a cult item from Arrow, one which preserves what is rightly called the "lurid" sensibilities of the cinematography and especially the palette extremely well. The "hellscape" of a kind of kinky private club Hyde ends up at on several occasions has some of the most impressive reds in recent memory, and a couple of other really interesting lit and/or graded sequences manage to offer pretty consistent levels of fine detail despite being drenched in various hues like cobalt blues. The "normally" lit scenes pop extremely well for the most part, and detail levels are typically excellent throughout on everything from tweedy fabrics to Perkins' bizarre makeup as Hyde. There are some passing rough moments in terms of both grain resolution and densities, but they're the exception rather than the rule.

Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Edge of Sanity features LPCM 2.0 audio and delivers a completely satisfying listening experience, though the film doesn't really have an overly ambitious sound design. A colorful (and maybe slightly anachronistic) score from Frédéric Talgorn sounds warm and full bodied, and all dialogue is delivered cleanly and clearly. Optional English subtitles are available.

Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by writer David Flint and author and filmmaker Sean Hogan


• Wicked Love: Director Gérard Kikoïne About His Career (HD; 21:12) is a fun and sometimes funny interview from 2020 with the director, who is kind of ebullient and quite the raconteur. Subtitled in English.


• Staying Sane (HD; 24:17) offers more of Gérard Kikoïne, here devoted mostly exclusively to comments about Edge of Sanity, in more of a 2020 interview. Subtitled in English.


• Edward's Edge (HD; 12:08) is an interview with producer Edward Simons.


• Over the Edge: Stephen Thrower on Edge of Sanity (HD; 26:18) is another insightful piece with Thrower, though I have to curmudgeonly state the cutting to different perspectives of Thrower struck me as unnecessary and kind of distracting.


• Jack, Jekyll and Other Screen Psychos (HD; 28:37) is a fun analysis by Dr. Clare Smith, author of Jack the Ripper in Film and Culture.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 00:59)

Additionally Arrow provides its typically well appointed insert booklet which includes an essay by Jon Towlson, cast and crew information and the typical transfer and production credits information. Additionally, packaging features a reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys.

Note: I say this with tongue hopefully obviously in cheek, but someone at either Arrow or Metro Goldwyn Mayer is extremely concerned about comments and interviews reflecting the views of any parent entity. I'm not sure why, and maybe there was an authoring glitch, but on several of these supplements you get an additional interstitial standard verbiage "warning" that is the same as the one that pops up at disc boot up.

Edge of Sanity Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I think Edge of Sanity may have worked a bit better had it indulged in just a tad more of what is already a kind of winking quality, especially in Perkins' over the top performance. There's some interesting content here, and while the film evidently raised the ire of British censors in particular back in the day, the admittedly gratuitous nudity and violence are both kind of remarkably restrained, all things considered. Technical merits are solid, and while the film is kind of hit or miss, Arrow once again provides some really nice supplements to sweeten the deal, for anyone who is considering making a purchase.