Addiction, The (4K UHD Review)
- Review Date: Jan 23, 2025
- Format: 4K Ultra HD
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Director
Abel FerraraRelease Date(s)
1995 (December 10, 2024)Studio(s)
Fast Films/Guild/October Films (Arrow Video)- Film/Program Grade: B
- Video Grade: A+
- Audio Grade: A-
- Extras Grade: A
Review
An experimental film that hearkens back to Abel Ferrara’s early career with similarities to films like Ms. 45 and The Driller Killer, The Addiction is a totally cerebral and eccentric vision of an urban world inhabited by both sinners and the innocent, and how they intermingle with each other. It stars Lili Taylor as Kathleen, a young college student studying philosophy who’s bitten by a vampire (Annabella Sciorra), which consequently gives her an uncontrollable thirst for the crimson. Traipsing her way from victim to victim on the streets of New York, she muses on life, death, and the meaning of it all as she viciously and hungrily feeds her gruesome habit.
What could have been a setup for a high class Frank Henenlotter movie turns out to be an unusual, but no less effective, take on the vampire mythos. Abel Ferrara and his screenwriter Nicolas St. John aren’t particularly concerned with telling a traditional horror narrative. It’s actually never fully conclusive if she or anybody else is even really a vampire or not. It’s more of a theology exercise in disguise with constant references to Nietzsche and Sproul, among many others. For Kathleen, drinking blood is more of a metaphor for drug addiction, that is if you choose to interpret it that way. I certainly do.
The drive of The Addiction is Lili Taylor’s singularly fearless and hypnotic performance. She’s absolutely dynamite as someone who becomes consumed with her newfound dependency, chasing the allegorical dragon with seemingly and tragically no end in sight. Her path leads her to another vampire waiting in the wings in the form of Christopher Walken, who more or less cameos for a couple of scenes, but totally and utterly steals them in the process.
Ultimately, it doesn’t really matter what’s wrong with Kathleen. Ferrara is far more interested in seeing her overcome this evil, rather than anchoring her to something obvious. In that respect, it’s not a film for everybody, especially genre fans who want nothing more than surface-level results. The Addiction isn’t that, at all.
The Addiction was shot by cinematographer Ken Kelsh on 35mm black-and-white film using Panavision cameras and spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Arrow Video debuts the film on Ultra HD with a new 4K 16-Bit restoration of the original camera negative, which has been graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, and presented on a triple-layer BD-100 disc. Abel Ferrara and cinematographer Ken Kelsch had final approval on their Blu-ray presentation, but seeing as Kelsch has since passed away, it’s safe to say that this one didn’t get the same approval. Arrow Video’s 2018 Blu-ray was a masterful presentation, and seven years later, they’ve given the same care and attention to the film once again in 4K. Grain is a little more finely-attenuated with strikingly high bitrates that often run between 80 to 100Mbps, but more like 90 to 110Mbps at any given moment. Detail has been minimally boosted, which the HDR grades dutifully aid in achieving. The previous Blu-ray had already drawn out so much detail in Kelsh’s deep, deep shadows that it’s surprising there’s more to be gained. They’re even deeper now with beautiful contrast and superb grayscale. The image is clean, stable, and gorgeous from one end to the other. Direct approval or not, it’s excellent.
Audio is included in English 2.0 LPCM and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio (which can only be selected from the main menu), with optional subtitles in English SDH. The 5.1 presentation has a bit more ambient activity in the rear speakers, but not a lot to offer when it comes to panning. The stereo track is no slouch, and is probably more appropriate for long-time viewers of the film. Dialogue is clean and clear throughout while the score and song selection is definitely enhanced by the additional clarity.
Arrow Video’s 4K Ultra HD release of The Addiction sits in a black Amaray case with a double-sided insert featuring artwork by Peter Strain on the front (as well as the slipcover) and the original theatrical artwork on the reverse. Also included is a 32-page insert booklet containing cast and crew information, the essays This Is My Blood: Ferrara’s Addictions by Michael Ewins and Vampire Chronicles by Paul Duane, restoration details, a set of production credits, and special thanks. The following extras are included:
- Audio Commentary by Abel Ferrara
- Talking With the Vampires (HD – 30:55)
- The Addiction: A New Interview with Abel Ferrara (HD – 16:21)
- The Addiction: An Appreciation by Critic Brad Stevens (HD – 8:47)
- Abel Edits The Addiction (Upscaled SD – 8:42)
- Trailer (Upscaled SD – :38)
- Image Gallery (HD – 15 in all)
- Easter Egg (HD – 6:17)
Arrow Video carries over all of their previous extras, some of which were created by Abel Ferrara himself. Besides the great audio commentary, there’s Talking With the Vampires, a documentary that features interviews with Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken, composer Joe Delia, and cinematographer Ken Kelsh; an interview with Ferrara; an appreciation of the film by critic Brad Stevens; rare footage of Ferrara editing the film in his editing suite; a trailer; and an Image Gallery containing 15 behind-the-scenes photos. The Easter Egg can be found by pressing right when the interview with Abel Ferrara is highlighted, which reveals a series of outtakes from the same interview. These bonus materials are all well worth your time.
Although The Addiction wasn’t a great box office success, it was well-received by critics and fans of independent cinema. It’s not an easy film to gauge right away as it’s one of those films that takes a bit of time to not only acclimate to, but also to come to grips with. Following Kathleen along on her journey of theological and philosophical reflections and deliberations, there’s ultimately more to the story than what can be seen at first glance. All in all, Arrow Video’s 4K release of The Addiction features a top of the line presentation with an extremely satisfying supplemental package. Highly recommended!
– Tim Salmons
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