Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

The Initiation of Sarah Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 30, 2022

There's kind of a delicious irony from several perspectives that when television became a true phenomenon in the United States in the 1950s, the movie studios more or less freaked out at their diminishing audience sizes, and did everything they could think of to lure ticket buyers back to still semi-opulent exhibition houses. The studios soon enough figured out that they could actually provide fodder for the grist mill that was (and in some ways still is) the weekly television series, and Warner Brothers in particular had a slew of series in both the Western and Private Detective idioms that pretty much took over tv by the late fifties. The (then) three major broadcast networks also had a realization of their own, namely that trumpeting "big" films from days of yore that would be making their broadcast debuts on television could attract massive audiences and pleasing ad revenues. That kind of hilariously ultimately then led to a dearth of films to broadcast, which is when the movie folks and the tv folks decided, to quote a certain song from a famous musical which made its debut rather shockingly late in 1970, that "the farmer and the cowman should be friends", so to speak, and a whole new strategy was "thunk" up whereby the studios would produce an ostensible feature which would premiere on domestic television but be released theatrically overseas, hopefully pleasing all the bean counters, if not necessarily audiences. While the first of these "made for television" movies actually premiered on NBC in 1964, for Baby Boomers in particular, that whole production genre is probably best exemplified by ABC's Movie of the Week which premiered in 1969 and ran for several years thereafter. That "series" may frankly be better remembered generally for its still popular theme by Burt Bacharach ("Nikki", which actually has a Hal David lyric, though vocal versions are not that easy to find) rather than any individual films that debuted under that banner. Movie of the Week in any of its ultimate formations was off the air by the time The Initiation of Sarah was first broadcast in 1978, but in many ways it follows the Movie of the Week template to a tee, offering one marquee star arguably past their prime (in this case, Shelley Winters) with a slew of "new emerging" talent, many of whom would go on to significant careers in episodic television.

Sarah (Kay Lenz) and Patty (Morgan Brittany) are sisters, though it's soon revealed that Sarah was an adoptee and is not especially loved by their supposed mother, Mrs. Goodwin (Kathryn Grant). Nonetheless, Sarah is protective of the ostensibly prettier Patty, as evidenced by opening vignette that sees Patty kind of bizarrely agreeing to go with a complete stranger on a beach with Sarah sitting right there, which leads to an attempted sexual assault, which Sarah puts a quick end to with what are alluded to be telekinetic powers. There's already an echo of what would have been at the time of the original broadcast of The Initiation of Sarah the then recent release of Carrie, and indeed there's a moment later in the film that seems deliberately modeled on a certain scene in the Brian De Palma classic wherein Sarah is drenched in various unmentionables.

The two sisters head off to college together, where the "mean girl" sorority instantly takes a liking to Patty, while shunting Sarah off to another, less desirable, sorority. Chief mean girl Jennifer Lawrence (Morgan Fairchild) seems to want to put the kibosh on any interaction between Patty and Sarah, and Sarah is pretty much left to fend for herself at a sorority led by weird house mother Erica Hunter (Shelley Winters). Suffice it to say there's a bit of "competition" between the two sororities that ends up devolving into a Satanic ritual, in this film's almost gleefully gonzo third act.

This is an obviously lower budgeted made for television movie which was attempting to cash in on the Carrie craze, and if it's nowhere near its inspirational source in either chills or family dysfunction, it's kind of amusingly entertaining in its own way. The cast also features a number of recognizable faces, including Tony Bill, Talia Balsam, Robert Hays and Tisa Farrow.

The Initiation of Sarah Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Initiation of Sarah is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.32:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer, which is deemed a "restoration":

The Initiation of Sarah is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 [sic] with mono audio. The film as original produced for American television.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K resolution at Company 3, Los Angeles. The film was graded and restored at Dragon DI, Wales. The original audio mix was remastered by MGM.

All materials for this restoration were made available by MGM.

Arrow continues to release generally great looking transfers of veritable cult items, and this is another nice example. While there are definitely a few variances that can be spotted in terms of general clarity, palette suffusion and grain structure, on the whole this is a very pleasing viewing experience, with ample support for fine detail and solid accounting of a naturalistic palette. Some interstitial moments have noticeable downgrades in image quality, with a kind of yellowish tint sometimes intruding and much rougher, coarser looking grain field, but the bulk of this presentation is sharp and well defined. There's virtually no major damage of any import to report.

The Initiation of Sarah Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Initiation of Sarah features a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that is more than sufficient for a made for television offering that admittedly does not have outsized sonic ambitions. Johnny Harris' somewhat overwrought score is presented with full bodied fidelity, and all dialogue and occasional effects are rendered without any problems whatsoever. Optional English subtitles are available.

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

• Audio Commentary by Amanda Reyes


• Welcome to Hell Week (HD; 16:33) is subtitled A Pledge's Guide to The Initiation of Sarah, and is a pretty cheeky piece with Stacie Ponder and Anthony Hudson which is fun but may definitely be perceived by some viewers as being on the self involved side.


• Cracks in the Sisterhood (HD; 14:48) is an interesting visual essay by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, who examines the film in the context of so-called "Second Wave Feminism". And you thought this was just a little made for television movie!


• The Intimations of Sarah (HD; 16:19) features an interview with Samantha McLaren, who delves into a variety of subjects including witchcraft and female empowerment.


• The Initiation of Tom (HD; 8:58) is a fun interview with Tom Holland, whose first real writing credit this was.


• Image Gallery (HD)

Additionally, Arrow provides their typically well appointed insert booklet, this one featuring essays by Lindsay Hallam and Alexandra West, along with the typical restoration information and production credits. The keepcase features a reversible sleeve with newly commissioned artwork by Luke Insect.

Note: This is now the second release from Arrow of a Metro Goldwyn Mayer property (the other one was Edge of Sanity) that is literally littered with those "views expressed" disclaimers, both at disc boot up and then before several of the supplements. Did MGM get sued by someone over a supplement?

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

The Initiation of Sarah actually was well remembered enough that it sparked a remake in 2006, but this "original" is going to be welcomed by a certain demographic who either saw it when it was originally broadcast, or who have come to love it in the intervening years courtesy of its, um, eclectic cast. Arrow provides a release with solid technical merits and some very appealing supplements, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.