Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

The Righteous Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 28, 2022

In just the latest incidence of "synchronicity" visiting my review queue, The Righteous, a rather visually striking film from Canadian actor and director Mark O'Brien, bears certain similarities to the (relatively) recently reviewed The Exorcism of God. Both films feature focal characters who are (or in this case, were) priests, each with a somewhat equivalent "sin" in their past which continues to haunt them to the supposedly present day. The Exorcism of God probably tips more overtly into outright horror territory than The Righteous does, though that's not to say that The Righteous doesn't offer a few accruing gory moments, at least in its kind of hyperbolic finale. Some of the metaphysical questions that are at least alluded to in my The Exorcism of God Blu-ray review are once again on tap here, including the timeless (no pun intended) dialectic of how a "believer" can reconcile a conception of an all powerful Deity with elements like Evil (with a capital E). Here that is combined with the kind of (appropriately) Apocalyptic zeal one finds in Revelation, a Bible "finale" of sorts that is utilized for first some subtext and then what I guess I'd call actual text, at least insofar as Bible verses are literally shown and the closing images of the story suggest the kind of "fire and brimstone" that John of Patmos (the ostensible author of the book) seemed to have visions of.

Stark black and white cinematography might hint at the cinematic inquiries of one Ingmar Bergman in films like Winter Light, and the former priest at the center of the film, Frederic Mason (Henry Czerny), is, like Tomas Ericsson (Gunnar Björnstrand) in the Bergman film, suffering a crisis of faith, or perhaps more saliently, conscience, though there are two disparate elements at play here that increasingly rely on a certain amount of less than credible coincidence. The crisis of faith might be instantly understandable by any parent, since Frederic and his wife Ethel (Mimi Kuzyk), have suffered the undeniable tragedy of their young daughter having died. What's kind of odd about this plot device is that it is not ostensibly why Frederic has left the church, and in fact quite the opposite is suggested by another priest friend of his, Graham (Nigel Bennett), who seems to think this is divinity's way of getting Frederic back in the fold.

Before addressing further developments that are revealed vis a vis the Masons' deceased daughter, the crisis of conscience alluded to above is tied to a peccadillo in Frederic's past which has rightfully continued to trouble him, and which literally comes back to revisit him in a certain way (and spoiler phobes may be well advised not to proceed beyond this point). These two plot strands are eventually woven together as, first, it's revealed that the Masons' daughter was actually adopted and that the girl's biological mother, Doris (Kate Corbett), is an acquaintance of the couple. Then, in quick succession, a "stranger" named Aaron Smith (Mark O'Brien) shows up somewhat injured outside the Masons' isolated rural property, and Frederic, perhaps against his better judgment, takes the young man in for the evening, which then of course turns out to have some supposedly unintended consequences.

There's quite a bit to unpack in The Righteous, and one of the odder things about the film is how it combines an almost noir quality in the visuals with a kind of dour, quasi Harold Pinter- or Edward Albee-esque, deconstruction of a marriage in crisis, which it may have benefitted from emphasizing more than what is the "flip side" of this kind of patently weird combo platter, an increasingly supernatural element which is tied to Aaron, who unsurprisingly is not the "stranger" he initially is made out to be. The story starts to offer supernatural phenomena both allusively in its screenplay but more importantly in some overt depictions which to my understanding were presented as actually happening, and not as might have been attempted given some "mental issues" that play into the film, the fever dream of an addled mind (which frankly might have also been a better choice).

There are probably a few too many convenient plot alignments involving the sidebar characters of Doris and Aaron, and the vagaries of "parenthood", to make the more "literal" side of this story register with real authenticity. But that perceived deficit may be counterweighted by a really interesting visual style and some nicely nuanced performances by Czerny and Kuzyk in particular. I'm not sure the "metaphysics" in either this film or The Exorcism of God really stand up to any withering glare of non-believer scrutiny, but this film at least has a certain audacity in its depiction of what might be called the Christian version of Karma.

The Righteous Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Righteous is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains only the following fairly generic information on the transfer:

The Righteous is presented in its original 2.39:1 aspect ratio with 5.1 surround sound. The High Definition master was provided by Vortex Media.

The IMDb doesn't have any technical data to speak of, and while the interview with director of photography Scott McClellan included on this disc as a supplement gets into lots of things like lighting, lenses, and contrast, I didn't hear him mention an actual camera. One of the stills in another supplement (the gallery that plays to the soundtrack) shows an Arri camera, but I couldn't authoritatively state what model, and I'm not sure what resolution the DI was completed in. All of that said, this is a pretty stunning looking presentation which only encounters a couple of actually pretty severe moments of banding (one of them you can actually make out in screenshot 19), when sudden light changes ripple out (in more ways than one) through the otherwise gorgeous black and white cinematography. Really deep blacks (something else McClellan gets into in his interview) are quite noticeable, and there's a definite chiaroscuro look to things throughout the film. Detail levels are typically excellent, especially given a prevalence of midrange and close-up framings. There are occasional oddities toward the edges of the frame where things can look distorted or blurred that I'm assuming were done intentionally.

The Righteous Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Righteous features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 audio options. I heartily recommend sticking with the surround track if you have the setup for it, as there is noticeably more spacious imaging of both an interesting (if not exactly innovative) score by Andrew Staniland, and some rather evocative sound effects mixing that tends to blend ambient environmental effects with the score in a seemingly intentionally hallucinatory way. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Righteous Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Mark O'Brien and Spencer Jones


• Cast and Crew Interviews

  Mark O'Brien (Writer, director and actor) (HD; 33:47)

  
  

  Mark O'Neill (Producer) (HD; 7:01)

  
  

  Henry Czerny (Actor) (HD; 17:08)

  
  

  Mimi Kuzyk & Kate Corbett (Actors) (HD; 17:17)

  
  

  Spencer Jones (Editor) (HD; 11:04)

  
  

  Scott McClellan (Cinematographer) (HD; 10:02)

  
  

  Jason Clarke (Production Designer) (HD; 9:26)

• Grimmfest Q & A with Mark O'Brien (HD; 19:36) was live streamed on October 10, 2021 at the UK premiere of the film.


• Fantasia 2021 Stage Presentation and Q & A (HD; 32:35) features Mark O'Brien and Henry Czerny from the World Premiere in Montreal held on August 15, 2021.


• Radio Silent Roundtable (HD; 1:13:00) features Mark O'Brien, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett and Chad Villella.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:54)


• Original Soundtrack & Stills (HD; 1:05:17) offers the score in Dolby Digital 2.0 playing to a succession of stills.

Additionally, Arrow provides its typically well appointed insert booklet, and packaging features a slipcover.

The Righteous Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Years ago when I was in my metaphysical inquiry phase, I read a really interesting book called The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, which suggested that early Christian mystics, including that aforementioned John of Patmos, may have been munching down certain natural "edibles" that may have opened the veritable doors of perception, allowing them to "prophesy" in imagery that is often opaque at best. The imagery in The Righteous is arguably its most instantly visceral element, but there are definitely interesting aspects to the story, even if the concatenation of "coincidences" ultimately turns out to be less than convincing. Technical merits are excellent and the supplements outstanding, which may outweigh any deficits some may feel the film itself has, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.