Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Prisoners of the Ghostland 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Lipstick on a pig. (Wait, wrong Nicolas Cage movie.)

Reviewed by Randy Miller III November 14, 2021

Nicolas Cage is no stranger to anything. He's racked up a triple- digit filmography and counting, enough so that his two most recent projects -- the other being Pig -- are both being released on home video within two weeks of each other. With the occasional hits come a few misses, and Sion Sono's sloppy genre mash-up Prisoners of the Ghostland certainly qualifies: it's idiosyncratic to the nth degree, a film so bizarre in execution that mixed reviews are all but guaranteed. (Our own Brian Orndorf scored it a 7/10 in his theatrical review, but I can barely muster of half as much enthusiasm.) Watching this thing wasn't a total Grandpa Simpson moment for yours truly, but my snarky one-sentence summary is this: Prisoners of the Ghostland is what happens when you order Mad Max: Fury Road from Wish.com.

The story can't be explained very well in one paragraph, but who cares? Taking place in post-apocalyptic Japan within the walls of "Samurai Town", it follows recently-freed prisoner Hero (Nic Cage) who's been recruited by "The Governor" (Bill Moseley), a love child of Colonel Sanders and Old Man Marley from Home Alone , to rescue his "granddaughter" Bernice (Sofia Boutella). The young woman -- who's not really a relative but rather a sex slave, like countless other women in Samurai Town -- recently escaped her trade with two friends but is now trapped in "The Ghostland", an area full of outcasts resulting from a nuclear accident years ago. The catch? Hero only has five days to find her, or else his custom-made leather suit will explode and do unspeakable damage to his throat, chest, and/or both testicles.

Of course there's more -- much more -- absurdity where that came from, including the awkward fusion of several cultures and time periods, plenty of colorful characters, and an intermittent back story concerning Hero's previous crime: a chaotic bank robbery with his fittingly-named partner "Psycho" (Nick Cassavetes) that left several victims and still haunts Hero's memory at every turn. But as a whole, the film is so confusingly constructed and carries so much unresolved baggage that most first-timers will instead just resort to staring blankly at the screen while every oddball story element unfolds. I'm all for a bit of tasteful mish-mash and occasional detours, but Prisoners of the Ghostland just feels like a failed attempt to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. There are bright spots, of course: the production design is admittedly intriguing, a few unavoidably great one-liners are dropped, and some of the samurai action is pretty inspired. (Nicolas Cage, on the other hand, is clearly getting too old for this shit.) But what should be a breezy and kinetic 102 minutes feels like every second of its running time and then some: it's not the kind of movie most will be eager to immediately revisit, although perhaps time will be kinder to it than expected.

Even the first time, your mileage may vary: those receptive to previous films by subversive director Sono (such as Love Exposure, Cold Fish, and Why Don't You Play in Hell?), not to mention the more gonzo work of Nic Cage, may find a lot more to like about this one. RLJ Entertainment's new 4K/Blu-ray combo pack is less than $20 as of this writing and offers a solid A/V presentation, a few lightweight extras, and standard Steelbook packaging to boot.

Prisoners of the Ghostland 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Although I had no significant issues with RLJ Entertainment's stand-alone Blu-ray edition (also included in this package, and the source for this review's screenshots as well), the 4K UHD easily beats it in all major categories despite being a 2K upscale. It serves up a tighter overall image that runs at 2-3 times the Blu-ray's bit rate and shows it with fewer compression artifacts, no obvious banding (except for a few of the opening studio logos and a few stray gradients), greater overall depth, and improved textures during close- ups and wide shots alike. Although it doesn't offer a night-and-day difference over the capable 1080p transfer when it comes to brightly-lit exterior shots or other locations like the sterile white bank, mid-range and darker scenes benefit greatly as do characters and backgrounds shrouded in fog (screenshots #1, 2, and 5). Of course, color is another standout here and the 4K's HDR enhancement works overtime during several stretches; neon- infused Samurai Town is an obvious highlight, as are the colorful costume designs and the giant gumball machine that gets shattered during that fateful bank robbery. Some reds are prone to bleeding, so perhaps a more careful touch was needed with the HDR dial... but then again, I doubt any fans of Prisoners of the Ghostland -- or Nicolas Cage, for that matter -- are all that concerned with subtle nuance.

Prisoners of the Ghostland 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Not surprisingly, Prisoners of the Ghostland delivers anything but a painfully straightforward presentation, with the included DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix serving up a delightfully chaotic mixture of surround activity, deep LFE response, crisp dialogue, and a well-balanced dynamic range that feels decently at home in a small home theater environment. Channel panning and discrete effects are numerous and not limited to stray action scenes, with many moments dipping into the sides and rears during moments of room-filling echoes, disturbing flashbacks, and other stylistic detours. Like the visuals, it's at least a well-rendered effort that seems more digestible in a full-on chaotic form, even if some of its biggest moments can't help but border on overcooked. Still, there's a lot to like about this 5.1 mix and, short of a full-on Dolby Atmos presentation, there's precious little room for improvement.

English (SDH) subtitles are offered, although a few bits of Japanese dialogue include burned-in subtitles.

Prisoners of the Ghostland 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This two-disc release ships in Steelbook packaging (detailed below) with no inserts. On-board extras are minimal and found on both discs, but I'd recommend paging through the photo galleries on the Blu-ray disc only -- the 4K image appears washed out and grey for whatever reason.

• The Making of "Prisoners of the Ghostland" (8:14) - This short featurette offers a very brief overview of the story, characters, and on-set experience, including rehearsal footage and short interview snippets with actors Nicolas Cage, Bill Mosely, and Sofia Boutella.

• Movie Still Photo Gallery (25 photos, manual navigation)

• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (14 photos, manual navigation)

• Steelbook Packaging - This two-disc set is tucked inside a Steelbook case with a slightly glossy finish that will resist most fingerprint smudges. Rather than go for a completely different aesthetic, the front cover is more or less identical to the Blu-ray's artwork. The back cover is more subtle with a deep red background image from the film with centered neon green text declaring, "This the the Ghostland. A land of no escape." in all caps. The two-panel interior image is somewhat similar to screenshot #5 below and, annoyingly, both discs are stacked on top of each other on the right-hand side rather than being on separate or overlapping hubs. Overall, it's not the most compelling design but still cooler than a regular keepcase. Why not use this artwork, though?

Prisoners of the Ghostland 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Depending on your personal preferences, there's a lot to like or not like about Prisoners of the Ghostland. It's an absurd genre mash-up with colorful characters and little regard for coherence. The dialogue is bad enough that it plays like an English dub. Nicolas Cage goes full-on "Nicolas Cage" and still isn't always the focal point. None of these elements won me over, although its raw ambition is at least admirable at arm's length. This doesn't make Prisoners of the Ghostland a recommended blind buy, but it's a least worth a once-over due to that whole "your mileage may vary" thing, and RLJ Entertainment's 4K/Blu-ray combo pack offers an outstanding A/V presentation, a few lightweight bonus features, and standard Steelbook packaging. It's also cheaper than the stand-alone Blu-ray as of this writing.