DVD REVIEW: INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS COLLECTOR'S EDITION
DVD REVIEW: MGM [ 2007 ] 117'
DVD REVIEW: AVG. BITRATE: 8.75 Mb/sec
WTFFILM RATING:

I first happened upon this film during the Halloween season as it was playing on Turner Classic Movies - I couldn't have been older than 12 at the time and was quite ill-prepared for it given that the films preceeding it had been the likes of IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE [1958]. Over the years Philip Kaufman's rendition of Jack Finney's delightfully creepy story THE BODY SNATCHERS has become one of my all-time favorite science fiction / horror films.

MGM originally released this movie to DVD in 1998 - near the beginning of the DVD boom, the original box art for this disc touted "Experience MGM DVD! Discover all the thrills, chills and suspense of Invasion of the Body Snatchers on DVD - the state-of-the-art entertainment format that brings theatre-quality audio and video right into your home!" A dual-sided single-layered flipper with both full-screen and widescreen versions of the films available (not to mention some choice audio and subtitle selections and a full-length commentary from the director), this was quite a decent release for the time. But the transfer of the film, artifacty and interlaced, has not held up so well given the advances in the format over the nearly 10 years since the original disc was released (and the 2 or 3 since it was pointlessly repackaged to artificially boost sales) and it's high time that a new and improved release became available.

THE FEATURE PRESENTATION:

Boasting an impressively high average bitrate of 8.75 megabytes/second, the new anamorphically-enhanced and progressive scan 1.86:1 aspect ratio transfer is a huge improvement over that of the 1998 disc (see comparison images below). Both colors and contrast are much more natural - the original disc had issues particularly in the contrast department (much too dark) and this new transfer reveals a good amount of detail that was hidden in murky shadows previously - and Michael Chapman's all-important cinematography really shines. On top of that, the new transfer opens up the image a good deal at both the top and left of the frame, though it does lose a bit of information at the bottom in comparison.

Audio options this go around are improved a bit over the previous release as well - in addition to the English surround and French monophonic tracks, this re-issue also includes a Spanish surround option. Audio fidelity on the English track seems to be improved a bit over that of the previous disc, allowing Denny Zeitlin's unnerving score and Ben Burtt's equally important sound effects to come through nice and clearly. As a quick look at the bitrate would suggest, there are no noticeable video artifacts to be seen throughout the film's 117 minute running time. All in all this is an excellent new transfer - my only complaint is that the old United Artists logo that began the feature originally has been replaced with a new, shinier one. An idiotic and pointless change, to be sure, but nothing that ends up detracting from the film itself.

THE EXTRAS:

First up in the extras and on disc one of the set is a nice carry-over from the previous release - Philip Kaufman's full-length commentary. Dry for the duration, the commentary is none-the-less interesting and exposits a treasure trove about the making of the film and the motivations behind it. This sounds to have been remixed for this release and the audio fidelity is an improvement. The only other extras to be found on disc one are two oddly chosen dvd trailers for THE GREAT ESCAPE and THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY.

Disc two - single-layered - contains a decent array of featurettes with a total running time of around 37 minutes. Covered are the general production, the special effects, the sound effects, and the cinematography. Oddly missing from the mix is composer Denny Zeitlin - he's been interviewed previously (and at length) about the score for the film previously but his absence here is still an odd one. Veronica Cartwright and Donald Sutherland are both on hand, as are Kaufman and a good number of crew. These are genuinely interesting featurettes and, while I feel they were far too short in running time all told, are a welcome addition. Also included is the theatrical trailer for the film which looks to have been newly transferred as is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. All things considered this is a nice array of extra features to have for the title and, while not Criterion in multitude, are certainly more than one can expect from many major studio releases.

THE OVERALL PRESENTATION:

The packaging for this release is sufficient, if not breathtaking. The DVD case comes housed in a shiny cardboard sleave that mimics the DVD insert without copying it exactly. The style of the various cover arts is carried over to the two discs, both of which show Donald Sutherland's podifying double. This sort of consistency is lost when one takes a look at the booklet, however. Re-designed but featuring exactly the same information as the previous disc's boolet (good information as it may be), the front page art looks like something you might see advertising a Scifi Channel Original Production and is entirely different from that which graces the rest of the package. On-disc the menus are well designed and easily navigatable. Aside from the inconsistent look of the booklet I have no gripes here.

THE VERDICT:

While MGM's repackaging schemes (take their new re-boxed Outer Limits releases - it's the same discs as before being sold at an even higher price) are annoying, to say the least, it's good to see that they're still capable of putting together a good new release. There's nothing to complain about with this two disc redux of INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS and, given the quality of the new transfer compared to the old, it looks to me like the redux was more than justified. While the retail price is floating at around $20, this can currently be picked up at Amazon.com for a meager $10.99 - $4 less than I payed to purchase the original release of this title back in the summer of 2003. If you're a fan of the film and already own the old disc then the new transfer here is worth the price of upgrading - for those who haven't seen it, what are you waiting for? This is easily one of the best science fiction / horror films ever to grace the silver screen presented in a cost-effective package worthy of space in any good DVD collection. This one comes highly recommended.