The Ringmaster (Finale) – Jinga Films Ltd (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Denmark, 2018
Director: Søren Juul Petersen
Writers: Carsten Juul Bladt, Steen Langstrup, Søren Juul Petersen
Cast: Anne Bergfeld, Karin Michelsen, Damon Younger, Kristoffer Fabricius, Mads Koudal

Release Date: July 6th, 2021
Approximate Running Time: 99 Minutes 2 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: R
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Danish/English/German, LPCM Stereo Danish/English/German
Subtitles: English, English SDH, Spanish
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $24.95

"Two young women working the night shift at a secluded gas station unwittingly become the stars of a terrifying show streamed live on the dark web. Held captive by a sadistic ringmaster and his cohorts, their survival instincts are stretched to the limit as they are forced to participate in a torture game with an unseen audience deciding their fate. Based on the award winning novel by Steen Langstrup, The Ringmaster explores our curiosity and complicity with voyeurism and violence in the age of the internet." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4/5

The Ringmaster comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 24 GB

Feature: 23.5 GB

Though there’s no information given about the source, this transfer is in great shape. Colors, image clarity and black levels look strong throughout.

Audio: 4.5/5

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Danish/English/German and a LPCM stereo mix in Danish/English/German. Both audio mixes sound clear, balanced and robust. Included with this release are removable English SDH subtitles, English subtitles for Danish and German dialog and Spanish subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a trailer for The Ringmaster (1 minute 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles) and three trailers for other films also released by Jinga Films Ltd. 

Summary:

Content wise, The Ringmaster follows in the footsteps of extreme horror cinema like Hostel, Saw and The Purge. Just like those films, The Ringmaster focuses more on gory spectacle than it does the plot. With its bread and butter being its violent torture/murder set pieces.

Though The Ringmaster covers familiar ground. This is sure to not be a minus for fans of modern extreme horror cinema that's sometimes called torture porn. Structurally the narrative’s peaks and valleys make sure that there’s rarely a moment for the viewer to catch their breath. With the finale providing what has become an all too familiar climax. That said, The Ringmaster clearly knows its audience and its regard it succeeds as a film.

Jinga Films Ltd. gives The Ringmaster a solid audio/video presentation.

Written by Michael Den Boer