Mad God Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Mad God Blu-ray Movie Review

Black on black.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III December 13, 2022

Advertised as a "nightmare 30 years in the making", Phil Tippett's Mad God is a stop-motion fever dream that actually began production in the late 1980s when the director, largely known for his special effects contributions to Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Robocop, and later Jurassic Park, poked away at an unrealized project that would eventually become this feature-length film. But this wasn't a continuous labor of love; after the CGI spectacle of Jurassic Park, Tippett was all but convinced that stop-motion animation was extinct and reluctantly pushed it to the back of his mind. He reconsidered in 2010 and, on the strength of a very successful Kickstarter campaign (one that tripled his initial goal), resurrected the unfinished film; with the benefit of much more cost-effective digital photography at his disposal, Tippet and company were able to complete it despite his penchant for the slow, methodical approach.

A synopsis of Mad God is almost pointless, as this largely dialogue-free production is a visually-driven, yes, nightmare that follows a rogue, unnamed "Assassin" through a post-apocalyptic labyrinth of hellish landscapes where frightening creatures -- many of which resemble the deepest of deep-sea creatures -- dwell, hunting their victims and torturing them in brutal, often unspeakable ways. Perhaps its closest one-sentence description is a Tool music video stretched out to 84 minutes... so if that sounds like your idea of a good time, just order this thing already. Artistic merits are through the roof here: Mad God presents a painstakingly detailed world with handmade textures, unique visual effects techniques, and plenty of nightmare fuel at its disposal, with a vague narrative through-line that pairs multi-layered horror with intense psychological drama and pathos. It's certainly not for the squeamish... but if you consider yourself a disciple of H.R. Giger, Alejandro Jodorowsky, or H.P. Lovecraft, you should feel right at home here.

My only real reservations about Mad God begin with the unavoidably uneven tone generated by that several-decade lapse in time between portions of its content. (Consider me part of the cynical minority that dismisses "30 years in the making" as a somewhat misleading marketing tactic.) This obviously includes the separate recording formats -- 35mm and digital photography, both of which are sometimes intentionally degraded -- but also extends to Mad God's screen subjects, including a number of actors shot in live action. Although this film's unsettling atmosphere almost lends itself to a collage-like visual approach, the live-action footage largely took me out of the experience and almost felt like a cheap way to cut corners. (This is combined with some of their equally distracting performances, including Alex Cox as "Last Man", a bespectacled figure with filthy teeth and absurdly clean, long fingernails and toenails.) The potential enjoyment of this material is also dependent on your tolerance for torture porn: several parts of Mad God justify their extreme visuals, but others just seem like fully-realized versions of an edgelord's high school sketchbook.

But make no mistake about it, Mad God is nothing if not a uniquely bizarre film with as much a singular mindset as possible considering this was made with the help and participation of countless Tippett friends, contemporaries, and contributors. There's a real handmade craft to the material that fans of stop-motion and practical effects will certainly enjoy, elevating the end result comfortably above most in this narrow genre. RLJ Entertainment's new Blu-ray edition may be even more impressive, though, with a outstanding A/V presentation flanked by plenty of creator-driven bonus features and standard-issue Steelbook packaging to boot. It's a good enough effort that I had to hastily append my forthcoming "Top 10 of the Year" list to make room for one more well-deserved honorable mention.

Mad God Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

It's tough to judge a film that prides itself on being endlessly dark and sometimes intentionally degraded, to the point where it might be even more visually unsettling on a third-generation VHS dub. Truth be told, though, there's a beauty to Mad God's nightmarish scenarios with their excessive noise and film grain (again, during some scenes), scattershot color palette, and deep shadows, and RLJ Entertainment's 1080p transfer seems to capture these key visual attributes as accurately as possible. There are no obvious compression issues or other such anomalies to report, though from a perspective of full disclosure it's my first time seeing the film, which likely holds true for anyone who didn't see it at a festival or stream it on Shudder. Either way, I'd image that this safely exceeds the latter's limitations, as it really is an impressive presentation that immediately grabs you with its odd compositions, interesting color choices, and of course visceral subject matter. Short of a 4K release, there's not much room for improvement here.

Mad God Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix offers perhaps a more uniformly impressive presentation overall, at least one that isn't as easy to differentiate between the older-shot footage and material recorded in more recent years. I'm guessing either the earlier sound design was either incomplete or just reworked entirely to match modern surround sensibilities, as all the expected echoing clangs and unsettling noises you'd anticipate from a film of this nature echo frequently and deeply into the rears, as does most of composer Dan Wool's original score. It's invigorating at times but not surprisingly a bit taxing on the senses after awhile, what with no real (or at least extensive) dialogue to use as any kind of sonic anchor point. Yet like the video, there's precious little room for improvement here... maybe an Atmos track?

Mad God Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This two-disc set ships in Steelbook packaging with terrific cover art, an inner print, and a promotional insert. Both discs sit on overlapping hubs on the right-hand side. Extras are plentiful and all are found on the Blu-ray.

• Audio Commentary #1 - This session pairs up director Phil Tippett with filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro, which turns out to a great formula for an entertaining and informative feature-length track. As you would imagine, Del Toro serves mostly as a moderator here and lobs a number of choice questions Tippett's way, allowing him plenty of time to explain the creative process while still saving room for a few stretches of joint discussion.

• Audio Commentary #2 - The second commentary sees Tippett return with key members of his creative team including composer Dan Wool, audio mixer Richard Beggs, cinematographer Chris Morley, animator Tom Gibbons, fabricator Kayte Sabicer, and editor Ken Rogerso. Although this is obviously the busier of the two tracks it still stays on target, letting each contributor share their thoughts during select sequences while Tippett takes on more of the moderating duties this time around. Another track well worth your time, for sure.

• Interview with Phil Tippett (4:38) - This brief, undated audio-only interview features the director's mission statement of sorts, set to black-and-white production footage of the film in progress.

• Mad God Influences & Inspirations (6:33) - As its title implies, Tippett returns to share some of the films and other media that influenced the creation and overall visual aesthetic of Mad God.

• Maya Tippet's The Making of Mad God (10:19) - Hosted by Phil Tippett's daughter Maya, this behind-the-scenes piece features workers and volunteers whose efforts helped bring the film to life.

• Maya Tippett's Worse than the Demon (12:33) - This one's surprisingly not a debut short film following in her dad's footsteps, but rather another video interview with the director and his unique creative process; as expected, it's more intimate than most of this type due to their close association.

• Academy of Art University & Mad God (5:14) - A collaborative piece about Tippett and the San Francisco college which, according to about two minutes of research on the latter, looks kind of shady.

• Mad God Behind-the-Scenes Montage (12:32) - Moody segments from the film's production.

• Behind-the-Scenes Photo Gallery (2:15)

Mad God Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Phil Tippett's long-gestating stop-motion film Mad God is a uniquely nightmarish ride whose visual impact and intense atmosphere should appeal to fans of H.R. Giger, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and H.P. Lovecraft. RLJ Entertainment's Blu-ray is a release of merit with strong visuals, an equally impressive audio mix, plenty of solid extras, and even standard-issue Steelbook packaging. New viewers should probably stream it on Shudder first if they can, but anyone halfway interested in Tippet's brand of visuals should consider a worthwhile blind buy. Firmly Recommended.