Phenomena – Arrow Video (4k UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1985
Director: Dario Argento
Writers: Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini
Cast: Jennifer Connelly, Daria Nicolodi, Dalila Di Lazzaro, Patrick Bauchau, Donald Pleasence, Fiore Argento, Federica Mastroianni, Fiorenza Tessari, Mario Donatone, Francesca Ottaviani, Michele Soavi

Release Date: February 28th, 2022 (UK)
Approximate Running Times: 115 Minutes 54 Seconds (Italian Version), 110 Minutes 3 Seconds (International Version), 83 Minutes 5 Seconds (Creepers)
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: 18 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Italian, LPCM Stereo Italian, DTS-HD 5.1 English/Italian (Italian Version), DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Stereo English (International Version), LPCM Mono English, LPCM Stereo English (Creepers)
Subtitles: English (for all dialog in Italian), English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £39.99 (UK)

"Jennifer Corvino (Jennifer Connelly, Labyrinth), daughter of a world renowned movie star, arrives in the so called “Swiss Transylvania” to attend an exclusive girls’ school. However, a vicious killer is targeting the pupils, and sleepwalker Jennifer finds herself in the assassin’s headlights when her nocturnal wanderings cause her to witness the death of a fellow pupil. Aided by paraplegic entomologist John McGregor (Donald Pleasence, Halloween) and her own uncanny ability to communicate telepathically with insects, Jennifer sets out to track down the killer before she herself becomes the latest victim…" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, “The original 35mm camera negative elements were scanned and restored in 4K resolution at L’Immagine Ritrovoto, Bologna. The film was conformed and graded in 4K HDR/Dolby Vision at Silver Salt Restoration, London.

The opening titles for the Creepers cut were scanned from a 35mm print in 4K resolution at AGFA and restored and graded in 4K HDR/Dolby Vision at Silver Salt Restoration.”

Phenomena Italian version comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 89.4 GB

Feature: 82 GB

Phenomena International version and Creepers come on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 92.3 GB

Feature: 52.9 GB (International Version), 37.6 GB (Creepers)

The three transfers use the same sources that Arrow Video used for their 2017 Blu-ray release. Those transfers all looked great, and with this 4K upgrade, they look even more amazing. The colors look vibrant and are nicely saturated. Image clarity, contrast, and shadow detail are solid. There are no issues with compression, and the grain looks organic.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with three versions of Phenomena. The Italian version comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Italian, a LPCM stereo mix in Italian, and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English and Italian, derived from the original 4channel Dolby Stereo elements. The international version comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English, a LPCM stereo mix in English, and an alternate LPCM stereo mix in English that features different sound effects and music, derived from the original 4channel Dolby Stereo elements. Creepers comes with two audio options, a LPCM stereo mix in English and a LPCM mono mix in English, mastered from the original 3 track DME magnetic mix. There is a wide variety of audio options to choose from spread across these multiple versions, and sonically, all of these audio mixes are in excellent shape. Included with this release are removable English subtitles for all Italian language dialog and removable English SDH for all English dialog.

Extras:

Extras on UHD disc that contains the Italian version include Italian theatrical trailer (2 minutes 36 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), International theatrical trailer (2 minutes 36 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), Japanese press book (13 images), Jennifer music video (4 minutes 11 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), feature length 2017 documentary produced for Arrow Films, including interviews with co-writer/producer/director Dario Argento, actors Fiore Argento, Davide Marotta, Daria Nicolodi and Fiorenza Tessari, co-writer Franco Ferrini, cinematographer Romano Albani, production manager Angelo Iacono, special optical effects artist Luigi Cozzi, special makeup effects artist Sergio Stivaletti, makeup artist Pier Antonio Mecacci, underwater camera operator Gianlorenzo Battaglia, and composers Claudio Simonetti and Simon Boswell titled Of Flies and Maggots (2 hours 13 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles) and an audio commentary with Troy Howarth, author of Murder by Design: The Unsane Cinema of Dario Argento.

Extras on UHD disc that contains the International version and Creepers include U.S theatrical trailer (1 minute 27 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), two U.S. radio spots (1 minute 3 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a visual essay by Arrow producer Michael Mackenzie comparing the different cuts of Phenomena titled The Three Sarcophagi (31 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles) and an audio commentary for the international version by Dario Argento scholar and author Derek Botelho and film historian, journalist and radio/television commentator David Del Valle.

Other extras include reversible cover art, a fold out double sided poster, six double sided, postcard sized lobby card reproduction artcards and a 60-page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled The Poetry of the Gross-Out: Argento’s Phenomena written by Mikel J. Koven, an essay titled Argento, Armani and the Fashions of Phenomena written by Rachael Nisbet, an essay titled Phenomena as a Key to Unlocking Opera written by Leonard Jacobs, information about the versions and information about the restoration.

Summary:

The thing that immediately grabbed me While revisiting Phenomena, I realized how grounded the story was. Though it is rooted in the world of the supernatural, one of the most common criticisms leveled at Dario Argento's films is how anemic their narratives are and how most of the characters that populate them are one-dimensional. Although some of the secondary characters in Phenomena are merely for show. That said, Phenomena does feature what is arguably the most well-rounded protagonist to ever appear in a Dario Argento film. 

Structure-wise, Phenomena does a superb job of laying the groundwork for its blood-soaked finale. Also, Phenomena finds a satisfying balance between its more carnage-related moments and its more character-driven moments.

For Phenomena, Dario Argento re-teams with cinematographer Romano Albani, who he had previously worked with on Inferno. And once again, Dario Argento does not disappoint when it comes to visuals. The color blue plays a significant role in Phenomenon’s visual palette. And of course, when it comes to murder set pieces, Dario Argento's visual eye is second to none. 

Another area in which Phenomena stands out is its special effects, which, even by today’s standards, hold up really well. A key collaborator on Phenomena was filmmaker Luigi Cozzi (Star Crash), who helped with the Phenomena’s special effects. 

The one area where Phenomena stands out most is its soundtrack, which includes a wide variety of collaborators and styles. The soundtrack includes the following contributors: Goblin, Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli, Simon Boswell (Andi Sex Gang), Franky Goes to Hollywood, Motorhead, Iron Maiden, Bill Wyman, and Terry Taylor. The most memorable song is titled The Valley. This song is featured in Phenomena's opening.

Looking through the various films that Dario Argento has directed, one area that he generally excels at is casting. And with Phenomena, he assembles one of his strongest casts. In one of her first film roles, Jennifer Connelly (Once Upon a Time in America) is cast in the role of the protagonist, Jennifer. So much of the phenomenon is carried by her. And she proves to be up to the task. Not to be overlooked is Daria Nicolodi (Deep Red) in the role of Frau Brückner, the woman who has been given the task of taking care of Jennifer. Throughout her collaborations with Dario Argento, she has played a wide variety of characters. Her performance in Phenomena is equally diabolical and entertaining. Other performances of note include Donald Pleasence (Halloween) in the role of an elderly entomologist who befriends Jennifer and Patrick Bauchau (The Pretender) in the role of a detective who has been given the task of catching the killer.

Though Dario Argento is primarily known for his operatic thrillers, one must not overlook his supernatural cinematic endeavors. Most notably, Suspria, a film that many critics and the vast majority of his ardent fans regard as his masterpiece, On the other end of the spectrum is his 1985 thriller/supernatural hybrid, Phenomena, which was butchered upon its original U.S. theatrical release and released under the title Creepers. So, it is not surprising that Phenomena has had trouble finding its audience due to the aforementioned cuts (about 28 minutes). Over the years, Phenomena has slowly gained a following. And most of this can be attributed to the film finally being released in its 116-minute version, so Phenomena can finally be viewed with fresh eyes.

Synapse Films' Phenomena 4K UHD release is identical to Arrow Video’s 4K UHD except for their outer packing. Synapse Films’ release comes with a slipcover case, while Arrow Video’s comes with a chipboard slipcase.

Phenomena gets an exceptional 4K UHD upgrade from Arrow Video, highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer