The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		2.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 28, 2019

A lot of the films that the American Genre Film Archive has presented on Blu-ray tend to be exploitation movies that may appeal mostly to aficionados of so-called grindhouse fare. The Films of Sarah Jacobson, which is in essence Mary Jane’s Not a Virgin Anymore coupled (pun unavoidable) with a bunch of shorts by Jacobson, is something else entirely, though what that is may be up for debate, and a couple of sexually explicit scenes may at least hint at an exploitative aspect. Mary Jane’s Not a Virgin Anymore begins with an almost comically graphic depiction of the “wonders” of teenage sex, which is about as far removed from glossy Hollywood renderings of love and romance as possible. It’s a scene which in fact quite capably shows that Mary Jane (Lisa Gerstein) is not in fact a virgin anymore.

Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore seems to have been a labor of love for Jacobson (who sadly died of cancer in 2004), and the film has an undeniably heartfelt quality as it documents the teenage traumas of Mary Jane (who goes mostly just by Jane) after her introductory and unsatisfactory experience with sex, as she works at a local movie house and hobnobs with a bunch of other often aimless kids. While there is a plot trajectory here, and a kind of melancholic ambience that may appeal to morose teens in particular, the film does come off as somewhat screedlike, with a suggestion that all (or at least most) men are unconscionable boors who couldn't care less how women feel. The performance acumen of the mostly young cast is pretty widely variant, with some of the characters coming off as at least relatively believable, but others who might have more charitably been left on the cutting room floor.

The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of the American Genre Film Archive with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. The back cover of this release states that this transfer is culled from a "brand new 2K preservation from the only 16mm film elements in existence". Additional information included in the insert booklet states "every effort has been made to retain the original theatrical experience of these films". A cursory glance at the screenshots accompanying this review will provide ample evidence of the look of this piece, which is understandably pretty gritty a lot of the time, and not especially abundant in fine detail, perhaps most noticeable in the many dark or nighttime scenes. That said, the palette is rather nicely suffused for the most part, although a couple of weirdly lit or graded scenes offer pretty minimal detail levels along with a fairly mottled looking grain field (see screenshot 6 for an example).

The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore features a surprisingly robust DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track, one that capably supports some of the rock oriented source cues and underscore while also delivering dialogue without any issues whatsoever. Occasional ambient environmental effects are also in the mix and sound fine throughout. I noticed no issues with regard to dropouts, distortion or other damage.

The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Short Films aggregates a bunch of Jacobson shorts:

  Bra Shopping (480p; 11:30)

  
  

  The Fabulous Stains (480p; 11:49)

  
  

  Road Movie (480p; 9:58)

  
  

  Spferic Waves (480p; 3:24)

  
  

  Sweet Miss (480p; 4:09)

  
  

  Technicolor Yawn Fluffy (480p; 31:33)

• I Was a Teenage Serial Killer (1080p; 25:10) is listed as a bonus item here (as the "second feature" on many AGFA releases typically tend to be), and deals with another woman reacting negatively to sex, albeit this time a bit more dramatically.

Additionally, this release has an insert booklet with two essays and information about the transfers.

The Films of Sarah Jacobson Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While there's a bit of nudity here and there (including some full frontal male stuff, for those who are squeamish about such things), this is really not the same kind of exploitation fare that AGFA has built its reputation on. There's a more intimate, "indie" feel here that speaks to Jacobson's strong feelings about how women are often treated by men. The technical presentation varies from okay (video) to quite good (audio), and the supplements will be interesting to many fans, for those who are considering a purchase.