Movie Muser

Comparing The Book Of Life to Fifty Shades Of Grey may seem od, but there is one thing that brings them together – in my head at least. If Fifty Shades had been written by a man, I can’t help but feel it would have been thought of as horrifically sexist, and with The Book Of Life, I couldn’t help but wonder if some would have accused it of racism if it hadn’t been directed and co-written by people from Mexico.

I’m not necessarily criticising the film, but the movie doesn’t have many qualms about delving into Mexican stereotypes. However the fact is that behind the scenes it had a massive Mexican influence, not just from director Jorge R. Gutiérrez and co-writer/producer Guillermo Del Toro, but also many of the crew, who may infuse the movie with sombreros and bullfighting, but they do so with snarking or belittling, instead attempting to pay tribute to the rich culture.

In the film the good La Muerte (Kate Del Castillo) and the evil Xibalba (Ron Perlman) make a bet over whether in a small Mexican town, Maria (Zoe Saldana) will end up marrying Manolo (Diego Luna) or Joaquin (Channing Tatum). Manolo loves music but is stuck between his own passions and the desires of his family, who want him to be a ‘man’ and take on their bullfighting mantle. His childhood friend Joaquin meanwhile becomes a hero, winning hundreds of medals and getting a massive ego as a result.

Maria must decide who to marry, with her father and many others wanting her to take Joaquin as her husband, as he can protect the town. However she has strong feelings for Manolo. After being tricked by Xibalba, Manola dies and must fighting his way through the worlds of the dead in order to find Maria again.

It’s a witty movie with a sweet (if slightly problematic) story, but what really makes this a treat is the creativity of the visuals. Despite a very tight budge, it looks gorgeous, with the whole thing being a riot of colour full of an endless array of great images, from Manolo and co. being designed to look like wooden puppets, to the neon glow of the world of the dead.

Some have criticised the use of well-known pop songs in the film, which Manolo periodically bursts into, but to be honest I didn’t think that was too much of an issue, and certainly younger viewers shouldn’t mind at all. What I did take a slight issue is that the movie does essentially treat Maria as an object to be fought over by men and whose existence is largely about who she’s going to marry. It’s not exactly a paragon of feminist thought, but it does at least attempt to show that Maria have her own difficult issues to deal with, even if they do pretty much all revolve around her marriage plans.

However while the movie could do with a few lessons in modern womanhood, it’s largely an awful lot of fun and has plenty of genuinely humorous moments. And as you would hope, it looks great on Blu-ray. There are also some really good special features, which look at the thought and care that went into making the movie and plenty of other things too.

Overall Verdict: It might lean towards sexism at times, but otherwise The Book Of Life is a great ride with some wonderful Mexico-inspired visuals and plenty of pace and humour.

Special Features:
The Adventures of Chuey
Closer Look at The Book of Life
The Music of Life
Digital Carpenters: The Art Direction of The Book of Life
Music Machine
“No Matter Where You Are” Music Video
Audio Commentary by Jorge R. Gutierrez
Gallery

Reviewer: Tim Isaac

After bringing Shivers to Blu-ray last year, Arrow Video continues to release David Cronenberg’s early work in HD with his follow-up, 1977’s Rabid. Despite the success of the earlier (if controversial movie) it’s in many ways a simpler movie, although still an interesting and effective one.

After a horrific motorcycle accident Rose (Marilyn Chambers) is in need of plastic surgery. Her doctors decide to try an experimental skin graft technique, despite it never being tested before. However things don’t quite go as planned, as when Rose wakes up, she has an insatiable lust for human blood – in fact she can’t eat anything else.

It’s not just a case of her killing to survive, as those she bites become infected, and start exhibiting symptoms of a strange rabies-like disease, where victims go mad and become violent, before they die. With no one knowing Rose is behind it, the city turns to chaos, with the infected running rioting.

Rabid isn’t as good a movie as Shivers – indeed there’s a slight feeling that even the director isn’t as invested in the story as he was in his earlier tale, but it’s still a good watch for horror fans. That’s particularly true for those interested in the history of the genre, as in some respects the story is similar to many of the endless straight-to-DVD movies we get today, but in prototype form, as it was films like Rabid that helped create this sort of film.

You can feel it playing with both vampire and zombie tropes while deliberately avoiding being directly related to either, instead attempting to keep it stuck firmly in a real, modern (or at least 1970s) world. As with many more recent tales, it’s a story about the dangers of science and its inadvertent consequences. Throughout Cronenberg’s career he’s been fascinated by how modernity has the potential to suck the humanity out of people, and that’s very present here.

While effective and entertaining, it’s not Cronenberg’s greatest movie, and indeed if you’re interested in his early work, you’re definitely better off starting with Shivers. However that’s not to say Rabid isn’t a worthwhile and entertaining movie in its own right, and well worth watching.

It looks pretty good on Blu-ray too. As it’s a low budget Canadian movie from the 1970s you can’t expect a perfect picture, but it’s a good print with decent colours and a respectable clarity. And as we’ve come to expect from Arrow’s releases of cult classics, there’s a very good selection of features, including a new look at the film and the legacy of Cinepix, the company that made Rabid and helped revolutionise Canadian cinema. There are plenty of other bits and pieces, all of which are worth a look.

Overall Verdict: It may not be quite as good as Shivers, but Rabid is still and effective slice of horror and picking it up on Blu-ray is a good move for Cronenberg fans.

Special Features:
Audio Commentary with writer-director David Cronenberg
Audio Commentary with William Beard, author of The Artist as Monster: The Cinema of David Cronenberg
Archive interview with David Cronenberg
Brand new interview with executive producer Ivan Reitman
Brand new interview with co-producer Don Carmody
‘Make-up Memories: Joe Blasco Remembers Rabid’ Featurette
‘Raw, Rough and Rabid: The Lacerating Legacy of Cinépix’ Featurette
‘The Directors: David Cronenberg’ Documentary

Reviewer: Tim Isaac