The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 7, 2022

Sofia Coppola's "The Virgin Suicides" (1999) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include original vintage trailers for the film; interviews with the director, cinematographer Ed Lachman, and actors Kirsten Dunst and Josh Hartnett; video program with writer Jeffrey Eugenides; music video and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The cage

Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut, The Virgin Suicides, definitely feels like a distant relative of Peter Weir’s classic film Picnic at Hanging Rock. Most of the time it has the same airy, borderline surreal ambience that is present in Weir’s film that can just about trick your mind to register that you have fallen asleep but with your eyes wide open. Viewing it can be a very special experience.

The narrative is essentially one giant reconstruction of a series of tragic events, most described by a former high-school ‘star’ (Michael Pare) who is now enrolled in a recovery program of some sort in a secluded sanatorium. A few of his former buddies also add up to his recollections.

Back in the ‘70s, when he was the leader of the football team, Trip Fontaine (Josh Hartnett) was the kind of guy that every girl wanted to have as a boyfriend -- tall, athletic, charming and smooth. Basically, he was the ultimate heartthrob that could improve any girl’s image and make her stick out. Trip knew it and frequently took advantage of his admirers -- until one day he bumped into Lux Lisbon (Kirsten Dunst) and she rocked his world. Lux had four sisters, but by the time she started seeing Trip the youngest one, Cecilia (Hanna Hall), had already ended her life. Their relationship was a struggle because Mrs. Lisbon (Kathleen Turner) was incredibly protective of the girls and Mr. Lisbon (James Woods) very rarely had the courage to change her mind. Nevertheless, Trip did not give up on Lux and eventually even managed to convince Mr. and Mrs. Lisbon to let all of the sisters attend the hugely anticipated Homecoming Dance. That night, which was apparently the last time that Trip saw Lux, he got what he was after -- he made love to her and then walked away. Not long after that, after Mrs. Lisbon had withdrawn the sisters from the local school and made them prisoners in their own home, like Cecilia they ended their lives because they could no longer endure their misery.

The film is based on Jeffrey Eugenides’ excellent novel and while it remains very faithful to the original material it really feels like a unique Coppola project. The main reason for this is Coppola’s ability to successfully make the special ambience the center piece of the narrative. So even though the reconstruction of the tragic events and the evolution of the relationships between the main characters remain important, it is the ambience and the contrasts that emerge through it that end up producing all of the crucial themes about the dangerous cultural stereotypes that destroy the sisters.

It also helps tremendously that Coppola allows the beautiful and the ugly as well as the logical and the illogical to overlap as randomly as they actually do in the real world where teenagers and adults routinely misunderstand, misjudge, and mistreat each other. However, this is also the one aspect of the narrative that admittedly makes the entire film a rather easy target for critics who have never been experienced this type of awkward coexistence and therefore cannot rationalize it.

The film’s visual style is very sleek and elegant but not in a pretentious sort of way. It just feels absolutely perfect for the desired by Coppola and veteran cinematographer Ed Lachman surreal ambience.

The popular French duo Air recorded the original soundtrack for the film. Later on, Air released it as an album which also featured additional music that was inspired by the film.

The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Criterion's release of The Virgin Suicides is a 4K Blu-ray/ Blu-ray combo pack.

The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this release:

"Approved by director Sofia Coppola, this new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on a Lasergraphics Director film scanner at Roundabout Entertainment in Burbank, California, from the 35mm original camera negative. The original 5.1 surround soundtrack was remastered from the 35mm Dolby SR magnetic track. On the 4K Blu-ray disc, the feature is presented in HDR (high dynamic range) to preserve the P3 wide color gamut of the theatrical color space. On the Blu-ray, it is presented in high-definition SDR (standard dynamic range).

Transfer supervisors: Ed Lachman, Russell Smith.
Colorist: Joe Gawler, Harbor Picture Company, New York City."

Please note that all screencaptures that appear with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and are downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

The Virgin Suicides appeared on Blu-ray in 2018 after it was restored in 4K under the supervision of Sofia Coppola and cinematographer Ed Lachman. We have a review of this Blu-ray release here. At the time, the only other release of the film I had in my library was this French Blu-ray release from Pathe Distribution, which was sourced from a very old master that was prepared during the DVD era. I mention all of the above because I still have these Blu-ray releases with me and can very easily see and appreciate all of the improvements that are present on the upcoming 4K Blu-ray release.

First of all, I want to make it very clear that I still like the previous Blu-ray release from Criterion a lot. In fact, had it remained the last home video release of The Virgin Suicides, I would have been perfectly happy. It was an all-around winner that offered an outstanding upgrade in quality over my French Blu-ray release. However, the 4K Blu-ray release makes The Virgin Suicides look absolutely astonishing by emphasizing various aspects of Lachman's cinematography that definitely change the viewing experience for the better. I can't say that I am surprised because the surreal beauty of this film is one of the main reasons I enjoy it, but I must admit that it was only after I was done viewing the 4K presentation that Criterion's decision to produce a 4K Blu-ray release made perfect sense to me.

With HDR enabled and in native 4K the visuals boast a very sharp, clean and exceptionally rich appearance that at times could be borderline distracting. Some parts of the film literally look like collections of moving pictures. Fluidity is outstanding too, so if you view your films on a large screen, I think that you will be enormously impressed with the 4K presentation. What would I say is the biggest improvement after the transition from 1080p to 4K? It is not a single thing. It is the superior depth, darker nuances, immaculate fluidity and tremendous color palette that enhance and improve the quality of all visuals, which is precisely what a proper 4K presentation should do. Fantastic. (Note: The 4K Blu-ray release is Region-Free. The Blu-ray copy that is included with it is Region-A "locked").

The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

Criterion's previous Blu-ray release of The Virgin Suicides featured the same English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. Naturally, I do not have any new comments to add other than to mention that I did not encounter any encoding anomalies while viewing the 4K presentation of the film.

The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Bonus content - there are no bonus features on the 4K Blu-ray disc. All bonus features are placed on the Blu-ray disc. They are detailed below.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Revisiting "The Virgin Suicides" - presented here is a video program in which Sofia Coppola, cinematographer Ed Lachman, and actors Kirsten Dunst and Josh Hartnett recall their work on The Virgin Suicides. Additionally, there are very interesting observations about the visual style and tone of the film as well as the manner in which it captures the flavor of Jeffrey Eugenides' excellent novel; the director's willingness to receive input from other people; and the very important role that the music has for the film's intended ambience. The program was produced exclusively for Criterion in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (27 min).

• Jeffrey Eugenides - in this video interview, writer Jeffrey Eugenides recalls how years ago he was contacted by Sofia Coppola and discusses her interest in his novel, her initial plan and research for the film, the vibes of the novel and the film, the similarities between the characters from the novel and the ones played by the actors in the film, the production process and some of the locations that were chosen for the film, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• Strange Magic - in this program, writer Tavi Gevinson addresses some of the main themes in The Virgin Suicides and references some of her writings from a fanzine she made about the film in 2012. The program was produced exclusively for Criterion in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).

• Making "The Virgin Suicides" - presented here is an archival program with footage that was shot by Sofia Coppola's mother, Eleanor, during the production of The Virgin Suicides. In addition to the raw footage, there are also numerous clips from statements and interviews with James Woods, Jeffrey Eugenides, Kathleen Turner, Scott Glenn, and Josh Hartnett, amogst others. In English, not subtitled. (23 min).

• Lick the Star - this short was shot by Sofia Coppola on 16mm film in 1988. shortly before she started working on The Virgin Suicides. It focuses on the unusual triumphs and failures teenagers experience while growing up. In English, not subtitled. B&W. (14 min).

• Playground Love - presented here is the music video for Air's song "Playground Love", which is included in the original soundtrack that the duo created for The Virgin Suicides. The video was directed by Sofia Coppola and her brother, Roman. (4 min).

• Trailers - original vintage trailers for The Virgin Suicides. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).
  
  1. Trailer One produced by Paramount Classics.
  2. Trailer Two produced by Paramount Classics.
  

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by novelist Megan Abbott, as well as technical credits.

The Virgin Suicides 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

At the end of 2022 there will be plenty of intense head-scratching because a lot of people will have an awfully difficult time choosing their best 4K Blu-ray release. I have made up my mind that 4K was invented for black-and-white films, and particularly classic film noirs, because they look simply astonishing on 4K Blu-ray, but then releases like The Red Shoes and The Virgin Suicides definitely make me want to be a bit more flexible. Earlier tonight, I viewed Criterion's 4K Blu-ray release of The Virgin Suicides fully expecting that it would look lovely since I already have the Blu-ray release of the film's 4K restoration from 2018, and I was floored by the 4K presentation. There are parts of the film that look simply breathtaking now. If it is one of your favorites, please consider an upgrade. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.