Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Shredder Orpheus Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf December 24, 2023

The future belongs to skateboarders. That’s the general idea driving 1990’s “Shredder Orpheus,” which is a punky update of the Orpheus and Eurydice story, with writer/director/actor Robert McGinley bringing the Greek legend down to a more manageable, underground cinema size. It’s an ambitious undertaking with an extremely low budget, but McGinley is determined to do something with his idea, offering a surreal adventure that’s filled with music, challenges, and skateboarding. The scale of the feature is impressive, especially with the limited resources available to McGinley, making production appreciation easy. Sitting through “Shredder Orpheus” is much more difficult.

In the future, the world is run by the Euthanasia Broadcast Network, owned by Hades (Gian-Carlo Scandiuzzi), who maintains mind control over the masses. Citizens with free will live in the Gray Zone, dealing with poverty through the power of music, provided by Orpheus (Robert McGinley), who is deeply connected to his girlfriend, dancer Eurydice (Megan Murphy). Hades can’t deal with the competition, ordering the kidnapping of Eurydice, holding her hostage inside the EBN building. Orpheus, armed with a magic guitar, looks to retrieve his love, facing tests of skill and character as he enters the underworld.

“Shredder Orpheus” creates a world out of a few locations, with Orpheus living in the Gray Zone, which is a collection of shipping containers left for the living. Hades and the EBN seek to control the masses with hypnotic programming, establishing their villainy and compound, as the concrete building provides a maze of experiences for the main character. Plot arrives in the form of a rescue plan, with Orpheus out to retrieve Eurydice, offered challenges to complete to claim possession of his partner, and “Shredder Orpheus” provides a somewhat clear understanding of goals, embellished here with fantasy touches, including the use of a special guitar that breaks mind-control, infuriating Hades, who’s forced to escalate his evil.

Shredder Orpheus Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation is "preserved from a 35mm blow-up print; created from the original 16mm, Beta SP, and 1" tape master elements." It's a visual stew for "Shredder Orpheus," and the viewing experience here has inherent limitations. Frame information is fuzzy, with a soft sense of character appearance and location. Colors are limited, but a mild appreciation of primaries is possible with the stronger hues of the production. Ghostly white faces are also acceptable. Source is in decent condition, with a few points of damage.

Shredder Orpheus Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix carries some signs of age, but largely remains defined. Dialogue exchanges are clear, with a decent sense of performance choices. Musical selections are limited but acceptable, with passable instrumentation. Scoring cues support satisfactorily. Sound effects are blunt.

Shredder Orpheus Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Booklet (18 pages) provides an essay by Amy Rose, an interview with writer/director/actor Robert McGinley conducted by David J. Moore, and an update from Orpheus.

• Commentary features writer/director/actor Robert McGinley.

• VHS Version (SD) of "Shredder Orpheus" is included.

• "Bombshelter Video Promo" (6:20, SD) is hosted by Bill Bored, who plants himself in a coffee shop, enjoying attention from admirers and plugging a few videotapes, including "Shredder Orpheus." However, he shows more interest in the skateboarding video, "Board Crazy," a 1988 compilation of tricks that included Nirvana on its soundtrack.

• Image Gallery (5:35) collects films stills and BTS snaps.

• And a Trailer (1:10, SD) is included.

Shredder Orpheus Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

McGinley takes a big swing with "Shredder Orpheus," and he does well figuring out how to turn his industrial areas into a battle of life and death. There's a lot of creativity swirling around the endeavor, which commits to a big idea of confrontations, adding some artful elements along the way, while McGinley tries to keep his arms around the whole effort as a filmmaker. "Shredder Orpheus" is impressive in many respects, but after introductions are made, it doesn't sustain much in the way of audience engagement, finding the picture more about satisfying the helmer than reaching out to viewers. Skateboarding additions are also a bit awkward in the grand scheme of things, with tricks haphazardly tossed into the mix, confusing the intended tone of the feature. Cult viewers will definitely find something special here, and it's something to see. It's just not something to remember.