Cult Leader played by Peter Fonda goes up against sleazy deprogrammer James Woods over the mind of college student Michael O’Keefe in Ted Kotcheff’s Split Image. New to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
The Film
From. The. Director. Of. FIRST BLOOD!
Split Image is not what one would expect from the director of that action classic. Though contextually when looking at director Ted Kotcheff’s larger work… it exactly fits in with the strange psychological thrillers/dramas he’s made before and after First Blood. This “ripped from the headlines” film was topical in the early 1980s and oddly enough has come full circle as again Cults are on the rise in the 2020s.
The film’s setup is simple. Boy (Michael O’Keefe) meets Cult Girl (Karen Allen). Cult Girl tricks Boy. Boy Becomes a Cult Boy with the help of the Cult Leader (Peter Fonda). The family (Brian Dennehy and Elizabeth Ashley) pays a sleazoid deprogrammer (James Woods) to deprogram Cult Boy. The boy and Girl run away after confronting the Cult Leader. Still frame ending.
What is interesting is the complexity with which everything is approached in the film. There is a ripe overwrought sweaty tone to everything. Underneath that grime is a film that is as “balanced” as one could get with the topic of the exploitation of young minds for sexual or otherwise abusive acts. Kotcheff shows Fonda’s Cult Leader a little more … altruistic and Wood’s deprogrammer a little more crassly opportunistic. That uneasy tension creates some of the more arresting moments in the film.
The film all leads to O’Keefe’s Danny/Joshua deprogramming and post-cult life is a bit of an “after-school special” style round-up with a bow-style ending. It feels disingenuous in a film that felt it was trying to say something about the push and pull of Cults. Something did appear to be set up with Woods’ characters talking of deprogrammed kids disappearing if they go back to cults – unfortunately, Split Image doesn’t seem to want to be that movie. Though it bumps and cajoles it never wants to truly shake or disturb.
The Transfer
The all-new HD Master – From a 2K Scan of the 35mm Interpositive is another winner for Kino Lorber. The transfer is sharp, and clean of any dirt or scratches. There are a few moments where the image itself looks oversaturated that run throughout. One cannot confirm if it’s the Interpositive itself or something that is an affectation of the new HD Master. That aside the transfer benefits greatly from the new master from the 2K scan of the Interpositive with the fine details pushed to the forefront including the way the anamorphic lens distorts the image only the way that anamorphic beautifully can.
The Extras
They include the following;
NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian/Filmmaker Daniel Kremer
Theatrical Trailer (Newly Mastered in 2K)
The all-new Audio Commentary by Film Historian/Filmmaker Daniel Kremer opens with Kotcheff’s origins as a Canadian and British filmmaker. Some of the other details include Kremer making a film about cult deprogrammers; the various films at the time about Cults; the topic of real-life Cults including the Jonestown Massacre; the career and films of director Kotcheff; the career, personal life, and films of Karen Allen; the use of widescreen frame by Kotcheff – and a discussion of this being the premiere of the film in its true aspect ratio; a larger discussion of Kotcheff’s filmography; the career, personal life, and films of Michael O’Keefe; the career, personal life, and films of Peter Fonda; a side conversation about the relationship between this and Kotcheff’s Weekend at Bernie’s and First Blood; a larger discussion about real-life Cults in the 70s and 80s; a larger discussion of the various cast and crew that made this film; and much more. Kremer provides a detailed and informative track.
Rounding out the special features are trailers for Split Image [Newly Mastered in 2K] (2:39); Gorky Park (2:24); 52 Pick-up (1:45); The Bedroom Window (1:59); The Wanderers (1:53); The Hard Way (2:04)
The Final Thought
Split Image has been given a great edition of Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
Cult Leader played by Peter Fonda goes up against sleazy deprogrammer James Woods over the mind of college student Michael O’Keefe in Ted Kotcheff’s Split Image. New to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
The Film
From. The. Director. Of. FIRST BLOOD!
Split Image is not what one would expect from the director of that action classic. Though contextually when looking at director Ted Kotcheff’s larger work… it exactly fits in with the strange psychological thrillers/dramas he’s made before and after First Blood. This “ripped from the headlines” film was topical in the early 1980s and oddly enough has come full circle as again Cults are on the rise in the 2020s.
The film’s setup is simple. Boy (Michael O’Keefe) meets Cult Girl (Karen Allen). Cult Girl tricks Boy. Boy Becomes a Cult Boy with the help of the Cult Leader (Peter Fonda). The family (Brian Dennehy and Elizabeth Ashley) pays a sleazoid deprogrammer (James Woods) to deprogram Cult Boy. The boy and Girl run away after confronting the Cult Leader. Still frame ending.
What is interesting is the complexity with which everything is approached in the film. There is a ripe overwrought sweaty tone to everything. Underneath that grime is a film that is as “balanced” as one could get with the topic of the exploitation of young minds for sexual or otherwise abusive acts. Kotcheff shows Fonda’s Cult Leader a little more … altruistic and Wood’s deprogrammer a little more crassly opportunistic. That uneasy tension creates some of the more arresting moments in the film.
The film all leads to O’Keefe’s Danny/Joshua deprogramming and post-cult life is a bit of an “after-school special” style round-up with a bow-style ending. It feels disingenuous in a film that felt it was trying to say something about the push and pull of Cults. Something did appear to be set up with Woods’ characters talking of deprogrammed kids disappearing if they go back to cults – unfortunately, Split Image doesn’t seem to want to be that movie. Though it bumps and cajoles it never wants to truly shake or disturb.
The Transfer
The all-new HD Master – From a 2K Scan of the 35mm Interpositive is another winner for Kino Lorber. The transfer is sharp, and clean of any dirt or scratches. There are a few moments where the image itself looks oversaturated that run throughout. One cannot confirm if it’s the Interpositive itself or something that is an affectation of the new HD Master. That aside the transfer benefits greatly from the new master from the 2K scan of the Interpositive with the fine details pushed to the forefront including the way the anamorphic lens distorts the image only the way that anamorphic beautifully can.
The Extras
They include the following;
The all-new Audio Commentary by Film Historian/Filmmaker Daniel Kremer opens with Kotcheff’s origins as a Canadian and British filmmaker. Some of the other details include Kremer making a film about cult deprogrammers; the various films at the time about Cults; the topic of real-life Cults including the Jonestown Massacre; the career and films of director Kotcheff; the career, personal life, and films of Karen Allen; the use of widescreen frame by Kotcheff – and a discussion of this being the premiere of the film in its true aspect ratio; a larger discussion of Kotcheff’s filmography; the career, personal life, and films of Michael O’Keefe; the career, personal life, and films of Peter Fonda; a side conversation about the relationship between this and Kotcheff’s Weekend at Bernie’s and First Blood; a larger discussion about real-life Cults in the 70s and 80s; a larger discussion of the various cast and crew that made this film; and much more. Kremer provides a detailed and informative track.
Rounding out the special features are trailers for Split Image [Newly Mastered in 2K] (2:39); Gorky Park (2:24); 52 Pick-up (1:45); The Bedroom Window (1:59); The Wanderers (1:53); The Hard Way (2:04)
The Final Thought
Split Image has been given a great edition of Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
Kino Lorber’s Blu-Ray edition of Split Image is out now.
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