6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Not ready for marriage, a fashion model moves into an unbelievably nice Brooklyn Heights apartment, where scary occurrences turn into a much more frightening turn of events.
Starring: Cristina Raines, Chris Sarandon, Sylvia Miles, Beverly D'Angelo, John CarradineHorror | Uncertain |
Supernatural | Uncertain |
Mystery | Uncertain |
Drama | Uncertain |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Though some film fans may take issue with the pull quote adorning the cover of the new Blu-ray release of The Sentinel which proclaims it “one of the best horror films of the ‘70s” (take that, The Exorcist and/or The Omen), but few would probably argue with the fact that this lesser remembered outing from 1977 boasts one of the most fascinating casts of its era, at least for a horror film. Among the various stars wandering in and out of this outing (some admittedly in bits that are little more than cameos) are José Ferrer, Burgess Meredith, Arthur Kennedy, Ava Gardner, Martin Balsam, Eli Wallach, Sylvia Miles, Jerry Orbach, Christopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum, Beverly D’Angelo, John Carradine, Tom Berenger and Deborah Raffin. Now that’s a cast, as most would agree, which makes it all the more unfortunate that all of this talent is put to use in a largely derivative if occasionally smarmily shocking story that plays more than a bit like Rosemary's Baby, with a frightened young woman navigating the terrors of a Gothic apartment house where the other tenants seem to be a bit on the demonic side. Adding to the film’s stumbling quality is the fact that the cast list above doesn’t actually include the two putative stars of the piece, Cristina Raines as the aforementioned damsel in distress, a model named Alison Parker, and Chris Sarandon as her boyfriend, a widower business entrepreneur named Michael Lerman. As co-writer, co-producer and director Michael Winner makes abundantly clear in his commentary included on this Blu-ray, the film’s cast “should” have included Martin Sheen in the Sarandon role, a casting choice Winner insists would have made the film materially better, which is admittedly an arguable stance to take. While Winner reserves most of his directorial umbrage for Sarandon, other less involved eyes might find at least as much to complain about in Raines’ performance, for she matches if not exceeds Sarandon’s somewhat wooden, listless quality.
The Sentinel is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This is by and large a very solid presentation with only some transitory issues that may rise to the level of concern for the more demanding videophile. Elements utilized for this transfer show a minimal amount of age related wear and tear, though there is some variability in both fade and general densities on display at various times, aspects which can materially affect the palette. Generally speaking, though, colors appear accurate if not especially vivid, with flesh tones occasionally veering toward the pink side of things. There are a number of optical shots where grain and dirt take an expected uptick. Otherwise, grain looks natural and resolves well, with only a few moments that flirt with compression anomalies. Shadow detail is negligible in several very dark sequences, something that probably only helps increase the unsettling mood.
The Sentinel's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track is a bit narrow sounding, lacking just a bit of depth in the lower registers, but still delivering the requisite amount of force for startle effects and a good rendering of Gil Melle's score. Dialogue is cleanly presented and well prioritized, though just a couple of lines can tend to get swallowed in noisier scenes, as in the big climax.
There's quite a bit of interesting content in The Sentinel, though a lot of it is patently derivative. What's so compelling about the film is actually Winner's presentation, where he goes more or less completely overboard in several scenes that depict depravities of various sorts. Some may find some of these elements fairly smarmy and objectionable, but they're unforgettable (for better or worse). It's hard to outright recommend The Sentinel to the public at large, but horror fans and/or those who are gobsmacked by the sheer concatenation of cast members may well want to check this out. Technical merits are generally very good and as usual Scream Factory has assembled impressive supplements for those considering a purchase.
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