7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
She's sexy, shameless and loves taking people to their limit. She's a dangerous young woman who dreams about a jaguar that licks her naked body and sleeps by her side. Her past is bathed in blood and weird passions. Now she's met the man of her wildest dreams. He's dark, tough and mysterious. He likes robbing banks, trafficking in corpses and spicing it all with voodoo rituals. Together, the duo sets off toward Mexico destined to become the most feared outlaws in the continent. With a pair of teenage hostages, this non-stop murderous road trip will take you on a bullet-riddled ride of sex, violence and high-octane evil.
Starring: Rosie Pérez, Javier Bardem, Harley Cross, Aimee Graham, James GandolfiniHorror | 100% |
Foreign | 96% |
Erotic | 31% |
Dark humor | 5% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
There’s a rather interesting and perhaps potentially humorous disclaimer that is offered at the beginning of a short but fascinating overview of the apparently real events underlying Perdita Durango which is offered on this Blu-ray disc as a supplement. At the beginning of Narcosatanicos: ‘Perdita Durango’ and the Matamoros Cult viewers are cautioned that some nefarious types have twisted religious beliefs (in this case relating to Santeria) to their own villainous ends, and that other, more righteous, believers have followed these traditions without things like, you know, human sacrifices and the like resulting. If that reprehensible behavior isn’t part of mainstream worship circles (at least in anything other than vestigial ways, a la the Bible story of Abraham and Isaac), it would be very easy to generalize the warning to reflect various objectionable “interpretations” of religious tenets by all sorts of people. If the title and woman’s name of Perdita Durango may strike some as a bit familiar, it may because they’ve seen Isabella Rosselini’s relatively brief but memorable turn as the character in Wild at Heart. That film, like this one, was culled from a novel by Barry Gifford, though, as evidenced by the title of Narcosatanicos above, a title which is itself in a Spanish language version that of a non-fiction book by Jim Schutze, there are elements of Perdita Durango that are at least a bit reflective of actual events. In 1989, a Texas university student named Mark Kilroy was kidnapped in Matamoros, Mexico and was ultimately tortured and killed in a human sacrifice ritual. Completing this virtual round robin of interdisciplinary influences, a number of elements of this true life criminal horror story were evidently influenced at least in part by John Schlesinger’s 1987 film The Believers, and there are certainly elements in both that outing and Perdita Durango that kind of refract off of each other.
Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 version. More screenshots from the 1080 presentation can be seen accompanying our
Perdita Durango Blu-ray review.
Perdita Durango is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Severin Films with a 2160p transfer in 2.35:1. This is another often quite striking looking
4K presentation from Severin, who offers a little bit more of a generic "restored in 4K" on this film's accompanying press sheet, than Severin's The Day of the Beast 4K, which stated it was sourced
off the original camera negative. I'm scoring this just a little less favorably than I did the 4K release of The Day of the Beast, though when
this presentation is hitting on all cylinders, which it does in more brightly lit outdoor moments in particular, it arguably looks as good as the other de la
Iglesia offering. There are some fluctuations in clarity and fine detail levels, though, and a few interstitial scenes don't quite have the "pop" that a lot of
this transfer does. That said, HDR has added a number of really lustrous highlights, including almost orangish yellows to the opening vignette with
Perdita and a leopard, or some of the later reds and (again) yellows, which are often almost sumptuously saturated. The credits sequence offers a
noticeable downtick in saturation and clarity, but other moments, like the almost sepia toned sequence after the bank robbery, still show excellent fine
detail levels. Grain does ebb and flow and can occasionally look pretty yellow itself, but on the whole resolves naturally. My score is 4.25.
Both the 4K UHD and 1080 presentations of Perdita Durango feature nicely rendered DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks in English or Spanish. I toggled back and forth between these, but admittedly spent most of my time on the English language track. I didn't notice any huge differences in amplitude or general mix levels between the two languages. The frequent use of source cues and underscore tends to provide a nice consistent bed of surround activity, and the many noisy scenes, including some of the ritualistic aspects, offer smart channelization of individual effects. Some of the more calamitous events as things spiral out of control also present good opportunities for sound effects like gunfire. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.
The 4K UHD disc offers only Trailers as supplements.
Perdita Durango , though evidenty based at least in part on real events, is an increasingly more surreal viewing experience, though it's an often completely visceral one. This film perhaps unavoidably reminded me of Wild at Heart, but some of its more gonzo presentational aspects also brought to mind over the top films about murderous couples like Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers. Bardem and Perez are unforgettable, and fans of either or both of these performers who haven't seen this film are in for a (disturbing?) treat. Severin is offering a release with secure technical merits and the 1080 disc has some nice supplements. Recommended.
El día de la Bestia
1995
江戸川乱歩全集 恐怖奇形人間 / Edogawa Rampo zenshû: Kyôfu kikei ningen
1969
Yi boh lai beng duk / Yī bō lā bìng dú / 伊波拉病毒
1996
Morte sospetta di una minorenne
1975
Limited Edition | Indicator Series
1979
Special 2-Disc Limited Edition
1971
1983
מי מפחד מהזאב הרע / Mi mefakhed mehaze'ev hara
2013
Special Edition
1988
殺し屋1 | Koroshiya 1 | Remastered
2001
사자 / Saja
2019
1975
1993
Hēi tài yáng 731 xù jí shā rén gōng chǎng / 黑太陽731系列:殺人工廠
1992
The Death Dealer / Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare
1974
Mulgoe
2018
口裂け女 / Kuchisake-onna
2007
Standard Edition
1982
片腕マシンガール | Definitive Decade One Deluxe Edition
2008
Nihon bundan: Heru doraibâ
2010