Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Homebodies Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 16, 2021

Larry Yust's "Homebodies" (1974) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new audio commentary recorded by the director; exclusive new video interview with producer Marshall Backlar; and vintage promotional materials. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Oh, dear. It was a long and hard fall, wasn't it?

How likely is it that Larry Yust’s Homebodies was the inspiration behind Ettore Scola’s Ugly, Dirty and Bad? While the former is a slightly darker film, they seem to share the same whacky sense of humor. The average age of their characters isn’t quite the same, but both groups are social outcasts and happen to be equally unhinged as well. Are these just random similarities? The strongest argument against a possible relationship between Homebodies and Ugly, Dirty and Bad would be that they both come from the ‘70s, which is the decade that produced some of the boldest and most original films on both sides of the Atlantic. But is it good enough to kill off any and all speculations that the two are related?

In Homebodies, the wild fun begins shortly after a group of senior folks residing in a crumbling tenement building are given an ultimatum: relocate voluntarily or be forced out. Their building has to be demolished because the neighborhood is getting a complete makeover and already there are various construction projects underway. These folks are the last ones left, so in twenty-four hours they must be out. Permanently. But they refuse to surrender their favorite building. Then, much to the dismay of an overworked town inspector (Linda Marsh) who has been dispatched to ensure that the relocation process is running smoothly, they launch a resistance campaign.

Actually, it is more of an extermination campaign.

After the pushy inspector dies, the resisters have a private but violent encounter with the owner of the building (Douglas Fowley) that is changing their neighborhood. Various workers have awful accidents at the tall new building they have been working on across the street as well. For a while, the campaign delivers the results everyone has been hoping it would, but eventually, one of the resisters becomes frustrated with the violence and concludes that it is time to end it by alerting the authorities.

Homebodies is impossible to accurately profile because its sense of humor is so strange that most of the time it feels like it was conceived to test the viewer’s tolerance for the grotesque. To be clear, it does not produce any offensive material, but what takes place before Yust’s camera isn’t easy to digest either. It just has that very fluid offbeat quality that can instantly split viewers right down the middle.

As you can probably guess, the six resisters are appropriately colorful social outcasts with various flaws and defects. Miss Emily (Frances Fuller) is delusional and frequently talks to an empty chair. Mr. Sandy (William Hansen) has spent so much time writing in his tiny apartment that he prefers to be in the company of fictional characters rather than amongst the living. The superintendent Mr. Loomis (Ian Wolfe) has become so attached to the old building that he frequently dedicates more of his precious time to it than to the perpetually nervous and obviously senile Mrs. Loomis (Ruth McDevitt). Mr. Blakey (Peter Brocco) has the sharpest mind but is blind as a bat. And Mattie (Paula Trueman) is the boldest of the bunch but quite possibly the worst and most dangerous senior driver the city has ever seen.

The mayhem that flourishes in the second half does not have any of the thought-provoking social overtones that make Ugly, Dirty and Bad so fascinating to behold, but it would be unfair to declare that it is completely devoid of social relevance. Are the resisters a pack of angry dogs? Or are they just desperate people who have figured out that society is expunging them in the most uncompromising manner possible? If it isn’t just their building that is being replaced, why not go down with it fighting? They don’t have much time left anyway.

The entire cast is good, but Trueman shines the most. The film feeds off of her quirkiness and eventually makes it the central piece of the narrative. It is a somewhat risky strategy, but Trueman’s transformation proves effective.

Homebodies Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Homebodies arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The entire film has the type of appearance that is usually produced by a master that was struck from a 35mm print. (Just to be clear, not an interpositive, and most definitely not the OCN). I don't know if this is how the current master was prepared, but this is the quality the current master offers. What does this mean exactly? It means that density levels are shaky, delineation and clarity fluctuate quite a bit, and depth isn't optimal. Yes, these are the type of limitations that you can observe on a master that was struck from an interpositive as well, but here they are quite pronounced. So, if you view your films on a larger screen, it becomes very easy to see that the strength of the visuals isn't as good as it should be. While not problematic, color balance and saturation aren't too convincing either. Predictably, darker areas struggle to reveal proper ranges of nuances, while during brighter or daylight footage highlights can appear overblown. This being said, the master still has fine organic qualities, and this happens to be its biggest strength. In other words, the film still looks like film, only rather dated. There is some light image shakiness, but overall stability is fine. A few print dents (the green type) can be seen as well as minor flecks and scratches. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Homebodies Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is stable and the dialog is usually very easy to follow. However, the audio is often too thin and occasionally boxy as well, so if you turn up the volume of your system, you will instantly tell that there is room for improvement. The dynamic strength of the audio is quite inconsistent as well, though you should not worry about serious anomalies, such as sudden drops or spikes. Generally speaking, the upper register is healthy, but minor yet meaningful enhancements can be made there as well.

Homebodies Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Promotional Materials -
  
  1. Vintage trailer. (2 min).
  2. Vintage TV spot. (1 min).

• Commentary - in this new audio commentary director Larry Yust explains how Homebodies was shot in Cincinnati and Los Angeles, and addresses the visuals composition of different sequences, the unique qualities of the six characters from the old building, the film's sense of humor, etc.

• Interview with Producer Marshall Backlar - in this exclusive new video interview, producer Marshall Backlar explains what attracted him to the film business and recalls his collaboration with Larry Yust on Homebodies. There are some interesting observations about the production of Trick Baby as well. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art.

Homebodies Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Is there a legit connection between Larry Yust's Homebodies and Ettore Scola's Ugly, Dirty and Bad? Probably not. However, there are obvious similarities between them which at the very least confirm yet again that the '70s produced some of the boldest and most original films on both sides of the Atlantic. There will never be another decade like it, folks. If you are in the mood to see a different film, and I mean really different, pick up a copy of Homebodies for your collection. I can't guarantee that you will enjoy it, but you will remember it. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a somewhat rough yet decent master that was supplied by StudioCanal. RECOMMENDED.