Vibrations Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Vibrations Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 2, 2018

Joe Sarno's "Vibrations" (1968) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Media/Something Weird Video/Film Movement Classics. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers, audio commentary by critic Tim Lucas, and mini-commentary by Peggy Steffans Sarno. The release also arrives with a 14-page illustrated booklet featuring Tim Lucas' essay "Sarno After Inga: A New Lease on Lust". In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Pleasure games

Vibrations is included with All the Sins of Sodom on this release from Film Movement/Something Weird Video. Both films have been remastered as part of the recently launched Joe Sarno Retrospect Series which aims to preserve and reintroduce -- via limited theatrical screenings and on home video -- a number of the director’s best films.

Vibrations was shot back-to-back with All the Sins of Sodom with essentially the same cast. I have to say, however, that their quality isn’t identical. While opinions will vary -- and I will explain why this is inevitable -- Vibrations seems slightly rushed and a bit less elegant than All the Sins of Sodom. Because Sarno and his crew had a limited amount of time to use Morris Kaplan's studio in New York City, it is probably fair to speculate that a lot was shot very quickly without second or third takes to get it right. A second scenario is also likely, which is that Sarno actually did intend for Vibrations to be more fluid and have a more casual sexploitation edge. Indeed, when comparing it to All the Sins of Sodom it is really quite clear that there is less of the arty vibe in it that makes many of Sarno’s bigger films look like distant cousins of some of John Cassavetes’ early projects. In other words, most people will likely determine which is the ‘better’ of the two films based largely on their preference for this arty vibe -- those that prefer more of it would instantly pick All if the Sins of Sodom as the stronger film, and conversely those that prefer Sarno’s rougher and more casual work should have a better time with Vibrations

For a film of this nature the plot is not exactly straightforward. A young novelist named Barbara (Maria Lease) has moved into a tiny apartment somewhere in Manhattan where she hopes to overcome a severe writer’s block. However, the recovery process has been incredibly slow and as a result most of the time she struggles with severe bouts of depression. When she feels better, she works part-time as a typist so that she can make enough to pay her rent.

Barbara’s life changes dramatically when her unemployed sister Georgia (Rita Bennett) unexpectedly appears and asks if she can stay with her until she finds a place of her own. Instead of scouting for a cheap apartment, however, Georgia discovers that Barbara’s neighbors spend long hours indulging in intense pleasure games and after some additional detective work concludes that it would be in her best interest to befriend them. And so she does, and then, after it becomes addicted to the pleasure games, she also convinces Barbara to join the party.

The entire film is shot with a degree of seriousness that makes the erotic footage look almost a bit surreal. The ‘players’ begin to act like junkies but instead of repeatedly coming back for their daily fix they return for a solid dose of sexual pleasure. They also create a ritual of sorts where pleasure-seekers and pleasure-givers constantly interchange their roles while using their favorite toy. (A helpful tip: the title of the film identifies it).

There is something of a subplot that focuses on an important element of the two sister’s relationship that supposedly reveals why Georgia is able to break Barbara’s initial resistance to join the sexual games, but I did not find it to be that significant.

The erotic segments are shot with the same interesting use of light and shadow that make All the Sins of Sodom look very stylish, but here quite a few of them are actually substantially longer. It is where Sarno is basically at his very best.

Vibrations Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Joe Sarno's Vibrations arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Media/Something Weird Video/Film Movement Classics.

The release is sourced from a new restored master and the film looks really nice in high-definition. While there are a few areas where very small scratches and blemishes remain, the main characteristics that we typically scrutinize in our reviews are indeed solid. Depth and clarity are pleasing, image stability is very good, and the transfer accurately reproduces the desired by Sarno stylistic appearance of the film. This being said, it is also obvious that there is still room for minor optimizations and enhancements that could have been done to ensure that the presentation flawless. For example, the previously mentioned scratches and specks could have been removed manually, and then the entire film could have been placed on a separate disc for optimal results (grain exposure in particular could have benefited). Still, the entire film does have a nice and more importantly very consistent organic appearance. My score is 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Vibrations Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English Dolby Digital 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

While ideally a lossless track would have been preferable, I actually found the lossy track to be very, very good. The dialog is very clear and easy to follow and overall balance is excellent. I also thought that the range of dynamics was very nice for a film of this caliber. For the record, there are no audio dropouts, pops, or digital distortions to report.

Vibrations Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers - a collection of trailers for other restored films from the Joe Sarno Retrospect series.

• Commentary with Tim Lucas - the bulk of the information in this audio commentary addresses the production history of Vibrations and the specific environment in which the film emerged.

• Mini-Commentary with Peggy Steffans Sarno - this a wonderful commentary in which Peggy Steffans addresses a number of half-truths and myths about Joe Sarno's working methods and the various people he collaborated with, as well as the production history of Vibrations and its intended stylistic appearance, with wonderful comments about the management of light and shadow.

• Booklet - 14-page illustrated booklet featuring critic Tim Lucas' essay "Sarno After Inga: A New Lease on Lust".

Vibrations Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is a very good reason why Joe Sarno was frequently referred to as 'the Ingmar Bergman of 42nd St.' Even his very low-budget films -- which given the nature of his work were actually very low-budget -- had a striking style and oozed a type of elegance that at the time of their theatrical releases virtually no one associated with sexploitation cinema. I personally like quite a few of these films and think that they are so good that I would not hesitate to place them next to many of John Cassavetes' critically acclaimed films. Of course because Sarno spent his entire life working in the same persistently demeaned and disregarded field, he never really 'earned' the right to be viewed or studied as a talented filmmaker with a unique style. For a very, very long time he was basically unceremoniously dismissed as an opportunistic pornographer. (For years Radley Metzger was discarded for many of the same reasons, until eventually people woke up and realized that much of his work was not just good, but tremendously sophisticated). I think that Vibrations is one of Sarno's smaller films, but it is included on the same release with his wonderful All the Sins of Sodom, which should not be missed by anyone interested in his work. RECOMMENDED.