Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 13, 2022

Tab Murphy's "Last of the Dogmen" (1995) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new audio commentary by Tab Murphy, producer Joel B. Michaels, and documentarian Douglas Hosdale as well as vintage promotional materials for the film, In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Spooky noises

Last of the Dogmen remains Tab Murphy’s one and only feature film, which is a great shame because it reveals tremendous potential. I gather from the new audio commentary Murphy recorded with producer Joel B. Michaels and documentarian Douglas Hosdale that the disastrous promotional campaign, distribution, and inevitable poor box office performance of Last of the Dogmen hurt him really, really bad, but in the film industry, these types of compounded flops are not exactly rare. Perhaps other even bigger reasons contributed to Murphy’s decision to concentrate on writing as well, but I think that he made a huge mistake giving up on directing. I really do. When I look back at some of the promising young directors that emerged from the ‘90s and made it to the present as well as the type of films they directed, and especially some of the promising young directors that are being praised at the moment, I cannot but shake my head. Last of the Dogmen has a lot of flaws, and many of them are easy to recognize too, but it is even easier to tell that it was the creation of a man with a proper understanding of how to tell a moving cinematic story. At the time Murphy lacked something that virtually all young directors do when they make their directorial debuts -- confidence and finessed style. But it would not have taken a very long time for Murphy to acquire both, and then he would have delivered some spectacular films.

A small town in Montana. Hard-drinking bounty hunter Lewis Gates (Tom Berenger) is asked by Sheriff Deegan (Kurtwood Smith) to help him track down three prison escapees who have disappeared in the nearby mountains. Gates reluctantly agrees and goes to work together with his dog Zip. However, he makes a strange discovery that forces him to come back and seek the professional assistance of renowned anthropologist Lillian Sloane (Barbara Hershey). At first, Sloane misjudges Gates as just another rambling cowboy with a weird story, but when he presents her with evidence suggesting that his discovery may be legit, she decides to follow him back to the mountains. Not too long after that, Yellow Wolf (Steve Reevis), a leader of a tribe of Cheyenne Indians that has been living in secrecy for over a hundred years, and his men capture Gates and Sloane and then transport them to an area where time appears to have stopped.

It may seem unusual to attempt to link Last of the Dogmen to Soldier Blue, but despite the their drastically different period settings the messaging that emerges from them is actually extremely similar. They even share a similar fondness for romance, though only one of them finds a proper way to attach it to its message.

Last of the Dogmen is the better and much more authentic film, but it is Soldier Blue that takes pride in reconstructing a true story. Why does the former excel? Because it allows its audience to arrive at a very obvious conclusion without manipulating it for political points, which makes a crucial difference. Indeed, everything that Berenger and Hershey experience once they enter the mountains is utterly ridiculous, but the sincerity with which it is presented to the audience is very touching and attractive. Without this sincerity, which comes directly from Murphy, Last of the Dogmen quite simply cannot work.

The same sincerity is what must have compensated for Murphy’s lack of experience behind the camera because what happens in front of it looks inspired and within the context of the story authentic as well. Yes, there are small bits of footage that could have been shot or edited better, but the performances are very good and the continuity of the material is essentially flawless. In the new audio commentary, Murphy repeatedly points out different sections that were shot in Mexico and the Canadian Rockies but the transitions in the film are impossible to recognize.

Murphy also confirms that initially Last of the Dogmen had a very different ending. He describes it, too. It would have made perfect sense too, but the current ending is much, much better.

*Kino Lorber's release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that was supervised and approved by Murphy and cinematographer Karl Walter Lindenlaub. Also, the release makes it possible to view Last of the Dogmen with or without the narration that was recorded for different parts of it. The theatrical presentation of the film did not feature the narration.

Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Last of the Dogmen arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that was apparently graded, supervised and approved by director Tab Murphy and cinematographer Karl Walter Lindenlaub. Unsurprisingly, the visuals frequently boast tremendous delineation, clarity, and depth. In fact, there are quite a few outdoor panoramic shots that gravitate around the type of quality you would expect to see from a native 4K presentation of a proper new 4K master. The fluidity of the visuals is outstanding as well, so if you have a larger screen, or project, you will be extremely pleased with the consistency of the moving visuals as well.

However, I found the color balance on the new master a bit unconvincing. I don't know where the master was graded, but it often conveys a warm appearance that is very similar to the one that is present on StudioCanal's 4K Blu-ray release of Cliffhanger. As a result, plenty of the daylight footage acquires a light creamy appearance that emphasizes unnatural yellowish hues that tend to interfere with some primaries. The two primaries that are affected the most are green and blue, though there are quite a few areas, most of them dark, where they are present and the balance is still pretty good. I think that trained eyes will quite easily spot the unnatural shifts because the cinematography is quite striking and there are many very beautiful outdoor vistas with subtle nuances that have to look right to preserve its natural balance. (This proper balance and consistency is what you would have seen on a 35mm print). You can see obvious examples in screencaptures #20 and 31. Despite the shifts, I think that the film still looks quite good after the 4K makeover, but I would have preferred to see a more consistent overall balance that would have produced more visuals like the one seen in screencapture #33. Image stability is excellent. A few tiny white specks pop up here and there, a couple of small blemishes too, but there are no debris, cuts, warped or torn frames. All in all, this release is still very easy to recommend, but I think that with slightly better precision the technical presentation of Last of the Dogmen could have been simply terrific. My score is 4.25/5.00. (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).

Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are four standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (Original Audio), English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (Original Audio), English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (with narration), and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with narration). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. Additional subtitles for the narration are included as well. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I viewed the entire film with the original English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. I thought that it handled the film's original soundtrack incredibly well. The outdoor footage from the forest and some of the action sequences have very interesting nuances and contrasts that sound terrific on the 5.1 track. The music adds a great deal of flavor as well. The dialog is always very clean, sharp, stable, and easy to follow.

Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - an original U.S. trailer for Last of the Dogmen. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• TV Spot - a vintage TV spot for Last of the Dogmen sourced from a VHS. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by writer and director Tab Murphy and producer Joel B. Michaels, and is moderated by documentarian Douglas Hosdale. The gentlemen explain how the original idea for Last of the Dogmen materialized and discuss the various outdoor locations where different parts of the film were shot (interestingly, the Indian village was apparently built in Mexico, not in the Canadian Rockies), the various casting choices that were made, the decision not to use subtitles for the Cheyenne lines, the feelings and dilemmas of the lead characters, etc. There are some particularly interesting comments about the original ending of the film, which was altered so that Tom Berenger gets out of jail. This made his reunification with Zip possible as well. It is a very nice commentary.

• Booket - a 6-page booklet featuring an essay by critic Julie Kirgo.

Last of the Dogmen Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you sit down to view Last of the Dogmen, please do it without using the added narration, which is awful sugarcoating that only hurts its very obvious message. Without the sugarcoating, for a short period of time, it becomes pretty easy to believe the unbelievable as well. Last of the Dogmen has its fair share of technical flaws, and they are quite easy to identify, but Tab Murphy should not have given up directing. It is too bad that in the early '90s Last of the Dogmen was mishandled by multiple parties, but this is a fate that a lot of films have suffered over the years, so if it was the only reason Murphy called it quits, I have to conclude that he made a mistake. For my money, Last of the Dogmen is a very promising directorial debut that looks a lot better than the various big blockbusters Hollywood currently has parked at your local cinema. Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release is sourced from a good exclusive new 4K master. It could have been graded a bit better, but this release offers the best technical presentation of Last of the Dogmen that I have seen to date. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.