From the Collection: Altered States
Ken Russell’s Altered States has entered the Criterion Collection.
The ultimate cinematic head trip of the 1980s, British renegade Ken Russell’s first Hollywood production—adapted by the legendary screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky from his own novel—is part hallucinogenic freak-out, part gonzo creature feature, part transcendent love story, all played at a fever pitch. When researcher Eddie Jessup (William Hurt) begins using himself as a test subject for his mind-expanding psychological experiments, it sends him on an increasingly dangerous, substance-fueled odyssey from humankind’s primordial past to the outer limits of consciousness. It’s all visualized by Russell in a psychedelic supernova of out-there imagery that encompasses everything from the pagan to the cosmic sublime, culminating in a brain-wave-blasting battle between the mind and the heart.
Here’s What the Disc Includes:
- New 4K digital restoration, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
- New audio commentary featuring film historian Samm Deighan
- Archival interviews with director Ken Russell and actor William Hurt
- New interview with special-visual-effects designer Bran Ferren
- Trailer
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- New cover by Richey Beckett
- An essay by film critic Jessica Kiang
This was my first time seeing Altered States, and it was a mind-blowing experience. Ken Russell took us deep inside the mind of madness and deep into the depths of hell to portray a man obsessed with wanting to know more. Some of the images are powerful, terrifying, and shocking, and the film’s conflict between science and religion would make a perfect double feature with William Friedkin’s The Exorcist. And beyond all the imagery and shocks is a surprisingly endearing love story about recognizing what really helps the human soul and mind. William Hurt delivers a masterful debut performance that shows signs of a brilliant actor just waiting to burst onto the scene.
The 4K Blu-ray is gorgeous. The images are vivid and detailed, and the sound design is brilliant, fully engulfing us into the mind of Dr. Jessup and his descent into madness. The disc doesn’t have too many bonus features outside of some insightful interviews with Russell, Hurt, and special visual effects designer Bran Ferren.
You can find Altered States on the Criterion Collection website or wherever you find Criterion DVDs.
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From the Collection is an analysis of non-new-release movies, whether seen on DVD, streaming, or in a theater. It includes a brief history of the film, a review of the film, and content about the experience of seeing the film and/or the contents of the film’s DVD.
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