Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

Forbidden Zone Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 15, 2015

Just in case there are any of you out there who may not have gotten enough black and white weirdness out of David Lynch’s Eraserhead, Forbidden Zone may fill that deficit more than handily, albeit on its own very strange terms. This 1980 cult outing was the brainchild of Richard Elfman, older brother to composer Danny (who in fact offered up his first film score for Forbidden Zone). As Elfman aficionados will no doubt know, the Elfman siblings had already made their mark with their traveling stage show The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, which in turn ultimately led to the more or less “music only” aggregation Oingo Boingo, which rather remarkably managed to get within striking distance of the Top 40 with their theme for Weird Science, despite the band’s shall we say eclectic sensibilities which were a bit out there even within the often hyperbolic context of New Wave in the 1980s. In a way, Forbidden Zone might itself be thought of as a cinematic equivalent to the New Wave, for it displays a (for want of a better term) twitchy ambience that relies on something akin to a constant sugar rush of energy to provide the momentum that typical elements like, oh, say, plot and character usually do. Forbidden Zone is an extremely peculiar film and will most definitely not be everyone’s cup of tea, as evidenced by the fact (recounted rather ruefully by Richard Elfman in the commentary track included on this Blu-ray) that the film was actually banned in such liberal enclaves as Madison, Wisconsin when some found its portrayal of racial stereotypes (including an early segment featuring a guy in blackface) as unavoidably offensive. For those who are willing to simply go along for the ride, though, Forbidden Zone is a journey quite unlike anything else in the annals of film.

So what’s Forbidden Zone about? Well, the only potentially completely accurate answer to that question might be, “Well, it’s about 73 minutes long,” for a diversionary tactic like that might be the only safe way to adequately describe a film which is in many ways indescribable. Elfman starts things out with a charming animated house which just as suddenly segues into potentially offensive depictions of an animated black man (see screenshot 6), which in turn segue into the character in blackface, all while a text crawl describes that character, a ne’er-do- well named Huckleberry P. Jones (Gene Cunningham) who discovers a portal to the sixth dimension within that very abode. Jones, a drug dealer among other less than savory occupations, gets the heck out of Dodge (and/or an animated house) and promptly sells the place to the Hercules family, an aggregation which frankly looks like they’ve journeyed from some portal to another dimension themselves.

Elfman discusses in both the commentary and featurettes included on the Blu-ray how Forbidden Zone kind of grew organically out of live performances by the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, and there’s a certain vignette based, cabaret-esque feel to much of the film. The through line deals with various members of the Hercules family, along with a hanger on or two, who interact with the outré beings of the Sixth Dimension, including King Fausto (Hervé Villechaize), Queen Doris (Susan Tyrrell, then a relatively recent Academy Award nominee for Fat City), and a topless Princess (Gisele Lindley). (Many of the women of the Sixth Dimension evidently lost their blouses somewhere along the way.)

While there are relatively understandable plot dynamics at play within the hyperbolic confines of the film, what happens is probably less important than how it happens. Elfman offers a lot of non-actors or at least non-professionals (as he and Matthew Bright readily talk about in the commentary), giving much of the proceedings a kind of “not ready for prime time” ambience. While actual SAG members like Villechaize and Tyrrell give their all to the proceedings, there’s still an unavoidable lo-fi atmosphere to the film. While undeniably surreal and even hallucinogenic, the odd musical sequences are nonetheless captivating, albeit in a drug addled sort of way that may appeal more to survivors of the Summer of Love than to any adherents of New Wave.

Forbidden Zone Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Forbidden Zone is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of MVD Visual with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This appears to be a more or less identical release to the British Blu-ray released by Arrow a few years ago. This release, like the Arrow release, offers the original black and white version of the film along with the colorized version done by Legend Films a few years ago. The black and white version has a slightly less processed look overall, with decent if not overwhelming black levels and similarly decently modulated gray scale. Detail is acceptable in midrange shots and somewhat better in close-ups, but the look remains nicely organic throughout the presentation, including a healthy grain layer that resolves naturally most of the time. The colorized version looks slightly softer, at least some of which is due to the actual hues being pasted on the imagery. As tends to be the case with Legend colorizing, the approach is commendably not overwrought, and in fact things look a little anemic in terms of a palette that "pops" vividly.

Forbidden Zone Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I'm wondering if someone along the way dropped the ball with this release, since the Arrow offering featured lossless DTS-HD Master Audio tracks, and this MVD disc offers the soundtrack in DTS 5.1 or mono. There's a somewhat boxy sound to some of the musical moments, with dialogue sounding somewhat clearer and better defined. The surround track opens up the music nicely, but the bulk of the film is anchored pretty consistently in the front channels. One way or the other, it's a little odd that this release does not have DTS-HD Master Audio options.

Forbidden Zone Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Richard Elfman Intro (1080i; 3:46)


• A Look into Forbidden Zone (1080p; 37:15) features some good interviews with the Elfmans.


• Commentary features Richard Elfman and Matthew Bright.


• Deleted Scenes (1080p; 4:46)


• Outtakes (1080p; 11:17)


• Scenes from the Hercules Family (1080p; 5:39)


• Japan Promo (1080p; 4:01)


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 00:46)


• Isolated Score Track is presented in DTS 5.1.


• Soundtrack CD

Additionally, the insert booklet has an essay by Richard Elfman and a lot of pictures from his archives (the booklet's initial omission in originally shipped units accounted for the delay in this release).

Forbidden Zone Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Forbidden Zone is completely sui generis and should appeal to those who are sick to death of cookie cutter entertainments. That said, the film is almost deliberately lo-fi, with an ambling narrative and less than polished performances by some of its large cast, and so a certain laissez faire attitude needs to be adopted to fully enjoy the outré delights that are in store. The film is manic, weird and unlike anything you've probably ever seen. This release seems to largely duplicate the now pricey Arrow release, though the lack of DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks is an odd oversight. That caveat aside, and for certain "discriminating" types, Forbidden Zone comes Recommended.