Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.5

Spring Night Summer Night Blu-ray Movie Review

Spring Night Summer Night is an American independent film produced by Joseph L. Anderson and Franklin Miller. The film was little-seen for years and was released with an exploitation-market cut entitled “Miss Jessica is Pregnant.” The black-and-white independent drama features performances by Larue Hall and Ted Heimerdinger.

Jessica (Larue Hall) and Carl (Ted Heimerdinger) live in the small mining community of Canaan, Ohio. The environment is sparse and desolate. Both Jessica and Carl struggle to live out their lives in such a small-town environment. Half-siblings, Carl sexually assaults Jessica, and the events that follow turn into an illicit affair.

Spring Night Summer Night is difficult to recommended as it has such questionable morals regarding consent. Carl chases after Jessica, forcing himself on her, and the film seems to glamorize the action. Later in Spring Night Summer Night, Carl apologizes to Jessica, and Jessica responds by saying she “could have stopped you if I really had wanted to.” The scene is disturbing and reprehensible.

The performances are reasonably good. Larue Hall is charming in her role and manages to imbue the film with her graceful presence. The actress manages to carry the film in passages that are wordless: bringing style and charm where there otherwise would be none.

The cinematography by Brian Blauser, David Prince, and Art Stifel is shot in impressive black-and-white: one of the few impressive components of the filmmaking. The visuals are one of the key elements of the narrative. The style infuses the likes of a foreign-language production with an independent American sensibility. Alongside the authentic production efforts of art director Dennis Livingston, Spring Night Summer Night exudes some impressive stylistic flourishes.

Directed by Joseph L. Anderson (America First), Spring Night Summer Night is a film that is full of art-house potential but it falters with the problematic screenplay by Anderson (alongside co-screenwriters Franklin Miller, and Doug Rapp). Aside from the problematic and disturbing events of the storyline, events in the film unfold at a snails-pace and are never as compelling as Anderson wishes. A rather underwhelming film – one in search of a narrative it never finds.

Spring Night Summer Night Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Flicker Alley, Spring Night Summer Night is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the theatrical aspect ratio of 1.67:1 widescreen. The film received a new 4K restoration. The release was scanned entirely in 4K from the 35mm film elements. The restoration was produced by Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive). The picture-quality was superb throughout the presentation. The print is crisp, clear, and dynamic. The black-and-white cinematography is remarkably sharp and there is little to no print damage during the scan.

Spring Night Summer Night Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a uncompressed PCM mono audio track. The 24 bit depth high-resolution audio manages to make a solid impression. Dialogue is consistently crisp, clear, and easy to understand. A subdued and quiet sound-mix but one that is surprisingly robust in clarity and never overly harsh to listen to. There are no egregious issues to report in regards to hiss, crackle, warps, pops, and clicks.

Optional English SDH subtitles are provided.

Spring Night Summer Night Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release of Spring Night Summer Night is a Blu-ray + DVD combo pack edition.

The release features reversible cover-art with alternative art work.

Collectors edition booklet featuring an essay on the film by Ian Mantgani, Glenn Litton's memories of Spring Night Summer Night director Joseph Anderson, a discussion on the restoration by Peter Conheim, a look at the career of film distributor Joseph L. Brenner, an overview of the critical reactions to Spring Night Summer Night, alongside film credits.

The Bluegrass Trilogy presents a collection of early short films directed by J.L. Anderson and Franklin Miller.

Football As It Is Played Today (1961) (HD, 5:40)

How Swived (1962) (HD, 5:26)

Cheers (1963) (HD, 5:06)

In the Middle of the Nights: From Arthouse to Grindhouse and Back Again (HD, 13:19) is an analysis by Ross Lipman on the differences between the original cut of Spring Night Summer Night and the exploitation cut entitled Miss Jessica Is Pregnant.

I'm Goin' to Straitsville (HD, 14:07) features an exploration by Peter Conheim on the locations used in the filming of Spring Night Summer Night.

16mm Behind-the-Scenes Footage (1967) (HD, 1:02:57) showcases rare and previously unseen footage of the film's production behind-the- scenes. Optional audio commentary by Peter Conheim and Frank Miller is provided.

Spring Night Summer Night: 50 Years Later (HD, 24:23) includes a selection of interviews with the Spring Night Summer Night cast & crew (as interviewed by Glenn Litton). The cast discusses the significance of the production and its cinematic legacy.

Cleveland Cinematheque Q&A (2016) (HD, 47:15) is a panel discussion with the cast and crew of Spring Night Summer Night. The panel was held before a screening of the film in Cleveland, Ohio in 2016.

Slideshow Gallery features photographs by Jon Webb (as photographed during the production of Spring Night Summer Night). A click-through gallery.

Spring Night Summer Night Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Spring Night Summer Night is a problematic film with a questionable narrative. Though the film paints the story as an illicit love affair between half-siblings, Spring Night Summer Night also raises serious questions over consent during sequences that are disturbing to watch. The film has some sequences which showcase impressive black-and-white cinematography yet the narrative falters. The release received a 4K restoration produced by Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive). While the release is loaded with extras, Spring Night Summer Night is not worth checking out. SKIP IT.