Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.0

The Strange World of Coffin Joe Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 17, 2024

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of the Inside the Mind of Coffin Joe collection from Arrow Video.

If you know about Coffin Joe, no introduction is necessary, and if you don't, no introduction could probably ever suffice. That said, for those who aren't aware of this weirdly iconic Brasilian character, he (it?) sprang from the febrile imagination of one José Mojica Marins, a writer and director who in addition to those tasks in fact played Coffin Joe in several films aggregated in this gonzo new collection from Arrow Video. Rather interestingly, and perhaps saliently, one supplement in this immense set has the redoubtable Stephen Thrower refusing to call Marins "insane", despite the fact that other pundits have described Marins as meeting that clinical definition, while another supplement is devoted to Marins as a "neuro divergent" and at least possibly ADHD afflicted filmmaker. That rather wide gamut of reactions will probably be matched by the general public, though if Marins was "crazy", he was crazy like a fox, as they say, and his films, while intentionally provocative and rather frequently horrifyingly graphic in terms of bodily immolations and the like, generally have rather impressive production values, which suggests a certain competency at least. One way or the other, virtually all of Marins' films are suffused with mood, even if narrative structures can be on the wobbly side. This is another impressive effort from Arrow Video that is obviously designed to cater to a cult audience, but that particular demographic should find themselves very well served by this release.

Though no video reportedly still exists of this effort, José Mojica Marins as Coffin Joe was evidently a television host for a horror anthology that ran for some time in his native Brasil, and The Strange World of Coffin Joe finds the character as a veritable Rod Serling introducing three tales of ostensible terror. While not an "official" Coffin Joe film, aside from those aforementioned hosting duties, Marins is also on hand in the third story as the somewhat similarly named Oãxiac Odéz, a supposedly "different" character who still indulges in behaviors that would rather easily be associated with Coffin Joe himself.

The Dollmaker is in its own way rather redolent of episodes of either of the Serling anthology series, and involves a craftsman whose playthings have rather realistic features, including one element which won't be overtly spoiled here, other than to say it's an element that is recurrently featured in Marins' filmography, often with gruesome injuries involved. When a bunch of hooligans hear the dollmaker has ready cash and a bevy of beautiful daughters in his shop, they decide to take advantage (in more ways than one) of the situation, only to find out of course that things may not be as they seem.

Obsession is an unavoidably provocative entry involving necrophilia and foot fetishism, which is probably all most will need to know about this one.

The third entry, Theory, offers Marins as a very Joe-esque character who imprisons a family and subjects them to all manner of indignities, in a plot trope that at least somewhat mimics Joe's "auditions" for a suitable mate in the first two actual Coffin Joe features. This is just one of several pieces in Arrow's set that features some pretty graphic depictions of bodily immolation and/or cannibalism.

The Strange World of Coffin Joe Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Strange World of Coffin Joe is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Arrow's insert booklet offers some general information about all of the transfers, followed by more individualized information about this particular film, as follows:

The Coffin Joe films by José Mojica Marins have been exclusively restored by Cinecolor, in cooperation with One Eyed Films and Arrow Films. All restoration work was overseen by producer Paulo Sacramento in collaboration with Arrow Films.

The original film elements sourced for this project represent the best existing film elements available, and while every effort has been made to present these films in the highest quality possible, some instances of damage remain, in keeping with the condition and age of these materials. Likewise, the audio soundtracks which at times have a slightly rough quality of are in keeping with their production origins. In places audio synch will appear loose as very little audio was ever recorded live and the mixes were generally recorded and created in post-production.

The Strange World of Coffin Joe / O Estranho Mundo de Zé do Caixão is presented in its original 1.37:1 aspect ratio with mono Brazilian Portuguese audio.

The film was scanned and restored in 4K resolution from an original 35mm Interpositive and an original 35mm theatrical print.

The audio was remastered from an original 35mm print.

Additionally, a prefatory text card offers the following further information:

2023 4K restoration executed at Cinecolor Brazil Lab with the support of Arrow Films and under the supervision of Mojica's last producer, Paulo Sacramento.

Digital restoration done from the original 35mm image interpositives (printed in 1996) and a 35mm print supplied by Cinemateca Brasileira.

The audio files were restored from the preexisting telecine of a 35mm print.

Somewhat like This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse, this transfer struck my eyes as being just a tad on the dark side, something that probably subliminally reinforces the ostensible horror, but the good news is despite passing deficits in shadow definition, detail levels are quite appealing (if that's the right word, given some of the bodily injuries depicted) throughout. Contrast is once again solid (within the "dark" context), and blacks are commandingly deep. This entry has fewer opticals than the two preceding films in this set, and that probably helps keep clarity and grain resolution more generally consistent looking.

The Strange World of Coffin Joe Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Strange World of Coffin Joe features LPCM Mono audio in the original Portuguese. There's some "Carnaval"-esque music offered here which is another quasi-tether to Black Orpheus, but this is another dialogue and or monologue heavy film. As with many of the other offerings in this set culled from this same general timeframe, post-looping is more than obvious, and the overall sound can be just slightly boxy and hollow, but there's no seriously problematic fidelity or damage to report. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Strange World of Coffin Joe Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Arrow has packaged This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse and The Strange World of Coffin Joe on one disc, with the following supplements:

• Audio Commentary for This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse is an archival piece featuring writer, director and star José Mojica Marins with filmmaker and writer Paula Duarte and film scholar Carlos Primati. In Portuguese with English subtitles. This is accessible under Special Features once the film has been chosen.


• Audio Commentary for The Strange World of Coffin Joe is an archival piece featuring writer, director and star José Mojica Marins with filmmaker and writer Paula Duarte and film scholar Carlos Primati. In Portuguese with English subtitles. This is accessible under Special Features once the film has been chosen.


• Eccentric of Cinema: A Retrospective on José Mojica Marins (HD; 1:27:28) is a first rate overview by Stephen Thrower which addresses both Marins' filmography and his personal peculiarities.


• On Tonight's Horror Show! (HD; 17:14) is another really interesting feature by Miranda Corcoran which tethers Coffin Joe to American horror hosts (and hostesses, like Elvira) on television.


• Alternative Ending for The Strange World of Coffin Joe (HD; 00:54) is a fascinating curio Marins crafted to overcome objections by the then ruling military dictatorship in Brasil.


• Alternative Ending for The Strange World of Coffin Joe - with Commentary (HD; 00:54) is an archival piece featuring writer, director and star José Mojica Marins with filmmaker and writer Paula Duarte and film scholar Carlos Primati. In Portuguese with English subtitles.


• Trailers

  This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse (HD; 2:30)

  
  

  The Strange World of Coffin Joe (HD; 1:49)

The Strange World of Coffin Joe Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The first vignette in this "trilogy of terror" is arguably the strongest, which means the subsequent two entries can't help but feel like things are on a downward spiral. Technical merits are generally solid and this disc offers some of the strongest supplements in Arrow's collection, for those who may be considering making a purchase.