Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.0

Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 27, 2022

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe famously opined that "Architecture is frozen music", which may then beg the question as to what kind of score should accompany a film which kind of humorously uses architecture as part of a horror plot. Composer Vivek Maddala opts for some fairly rote answers to that question, but the underscore here is the least of several problems. Stephen Lang is an actor with one of those almost impossibly long filmographies who has still managed to often stay weirdly anonymous to many people, and he may have hoped Mid-Century would give him the sort of role that would bring instant recognition. Now Lang certainly gets to chew the scenery with considerable aplomb in this odd concatenation of ideas and plot mechanics, and for those who like their Grand Guignol sprinkled with just a soupcon of a wink, Lang and Mid-Century may suffice, though the film struggles pretty mightily to weave together a whole host of disparate story elements, including a mad architect, a ghost or several, a psychic and quasi-occult nonsense that might provoke a chuckle or two.

An opening vignette set appropriately in the middle part of the 20th century at least offers a few passing glances at some very cool vintage cars introduces supposedly iconic architect Frederick Banner (Stephen Lang), who is almost instantly shown to not just be a creep, but a murderous one at that. That would seem to paint the designer as the film's villain, and while that might be true after a fashion, this completely overly convoluted and way too busy plot also throws in at least one other potential bad guy into the mix, though completely unsurprisingly, this character turns out to have a rather strong connection to Banner.

While there are any number of disjunctive flashbacks and what almost play like the horror movie equivalent of the alternate realities seen in a much more enjoyable effort from Lionsgate (and A24), Everything Everywhere All At Once, the main part of this tale involves couple Tom (Shane West) and Alice (Chelsea Gilligan), who end up staying at the home previously belonging to the now deceased Banner. Tom is an architect himself, and so is fascinated with Banner's legacy and the design for the house, but Tom is also something of an empath, which means "strange doin's" start occurring almost immediately upon the couple taking up residence in the former Banner home.

This is such a crazy quilt of plot mechanics that it's almost hard to know where to begin, but suffice it to say that Banner, along with being an architect, was also an avid occultist intent on some secret pathway to immortality. Also suffice it to say that immortality is not exactly an option for a number of other characters, as what turns out to be a series of revelations offers details about various victims of Banner, who not so coincidentally may have been something close to a serial killer.

There is manifest illogic to any number of the "layers" in this script. First of all, the entire premise of Tom and Alice basically "visiting" the Banner home is weird to the max in that Alice is working at her regular job as a nurse and the two seem not to be visiting but residing there. Then a secondary character named Eldridge (Mike Stern, also the writer of this enterprise) shows up and starts wreaking havoc, and then yet another secondary character, a beautiful ghost named Marie (Sarah Hay) starts haunting Tom in particular, as Tom begins to understand that skeletons may not be in any of the Banner closets (so to speak), but they may be lurking around the property elsewhere.

What Stern (the writer) was really after here is kind of confusing. The traditional horror tropes never really amount to much, though Lang's penetrating glare and menacing manner can add a touch of angst to the proceedings. The marital dysfunctions of Tom and Alice would seem to be reflecting more obvious dysfunctions of Banner in times past, but even that is never really developed. The "big twist" the film supposedly delivers in its third act is going to be completely predictable to many, if only because this is a film that clearly telegraphs everything from the get go, as evidenced by the opening vignette which overtly shows us Banner is a murdering psychopath.

Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mid-Century is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.00:1. I haven't been able to track down any authoritative technical data on the shoot, and the IMDb currently offers nothing of substance. This is a competent digital capture that I'm assuming had a 2K DI. The film's production design is one of its inarguable assets. and fine detail tends to be quite good on things like the plush fabrics on props and costumes. Several extreme close-ups also offer sometimes gruesome looks at some wounds and the like. The palette is often skewed just a bit toward blue, as can perhaps be made out in some of the screenshots accompanying this review. Along with other oddities in this film, there are also occasional moments of on screen text, as can be seen in screenshots 3 and 17). This is another Lionsgate Blu-ray where there are moments of noticeable banding. Interestingly the masthead at disc boot up shows it quite badly, whereas the actual logo in the film doesn't have the issue at quite the same degree, but if you pay attention you can see other "ripples" of the anomaly, especially in the closing act of the film, where lighting changes suddenly or in fact light sources can be aimed toward the camera.

Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mid-Century features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that has decent immersion but really not a lot of "showy" moments. A number of scenes taking place in the backyard of the Banner home feature some good ambient environmental sounds, and there are also a couple of startle effects that engage the subwoofer. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Director Sonja O'Hara and Writer-Producer-Actor Mike Stern


• Mid-Century Trailer (HD; 2:13)

Additionally, a digital copy is included and packaging features a slipcover.

Mid-Century Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mike Stern wrote himself a fairly flashy part in Mid-Century, but the problem is he's competing with way too many other figments of his fervid imagination. This is a screenplay that really needed some serious pruning and focus. There are some interesting elements here, and the production design is killer, but the story is frankly a mess and never makes a ton of sense. Technical merits are generally solid for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.