The Dead Zone: Limited Edition – Imprint Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA/Canada, 1983
Director: David Cronenberg
Writer: Jeffrey Boam
Cast: Christopher Walken, Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe, Colleen Dewhurst, Martin Sheen, Nicholas Campbell, Sean Sullivan, Jackie Burroughs, Simon Craig, Peter Dvorsky

Release Date: July 21st, 2021
Approximate Running Time: 103 Minutes 44 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVCC
Rating: M (Australia)
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Stereo English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: AUD$39.95 (Australia)

"Johnny Smith (Christopher Walken) wakes from a coma due to a car accident, only to find he has lost five years of his life, and yet gained psychic powers. Foreseeing the future appears to be a ‘gift’ at first, but ends up causing problems." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “1080p presentation from a 2K scan from the original negative.”

The Dead Zone comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45.1 GB

Feature: 29.5 GB

This is most definitely a new 2K transfer and not the same dated transfer that Paramount used for their 2020 Blu-ray release. There is another recent 4K transfer source that Scream Factory used for their 2021 release. Also, Imprint Films and Scream Factory use transfers that come from different sources. The differences in motion between these two transfers are not noticeable. That said, the source used for Imprint Films' transfer is in excellent shape. Colors, image clarity, contrast, and black levels are solid.

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Stereo English)

This release comes with two audio options: a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English and a LPCM stereo mix in English. Both tracks are in great shape; they sound clean, clear, balanced, and robust when they should. The stereo audio mix is the more pleasing of these two audio mixes. Included with this release are removable English SDH subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 14 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Stephen King from 2018 (50 minutes 6 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), vintage interviews with David Cronenberg, Debra Hill and Martin Sheen from 1983 (16 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with burnt-in Japanese subtitles), an archival featurette from 2006 titled The Politics of The Dead Zone (11 minutes 30 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette from 2006 titled The Visions and Horror from The Dead Zone (9 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette from 2006 titled The Look of The Dead Zone (9 minutes 21 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette from 2006 titled Memories from The Dead Zone (12 minutes 18 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a visual essay on The Dead Zone by film Critic Lee Gambin titled Frank Dodd & the Cujo Connection (18 minutes 16 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a documentary titled Dino in the Dark: Adapting the King of Horror (19 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with composer Edward Shearmur who discusses Michael Kamen’s score titled From Coma to Coda: Scoring The Dead Zone (12 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with cinematographer Mark Irwin titled Look Past the Future: Filming The Dead Zone (16 minutes 29 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary by film critics Stephen Jones and Kim Newman, and a limited edition slipcase on the first 1500 copies.

Summary:

Though there had been a few Stephen King adaptations before David Cronenberg’s adaptation of The Dead Zone. Most of these adaptations only used Stephen King’s novels as a foundation, and they often diverged away from their sources. That said, David Cronenberg’s adaption of The Dead Zone is arguably the closest any film has come to staying faithful to its source.

By the time that David Cronenberg directed The Dead Zone, he had already directed eight feature films, all of which he also wrote or co-wrote the screenplays. With The Dead Zone, it would mark the first time that David Cronenberg would not be involved in the writing of a screenplay for a film he directed.

Anyone who’s familiar with the cinema of David Cronenberg knows he has a distinctive style and type of stories that he likes to tell, most notably how most of his films deal with body horror. And though The Dead Zone employs many elements that are synonymous with the cinema of David Cronenberg, the result is David Cronenberg’s most mainstream film.

Besides being a solid adaptation, another area where The Dead Zone excels is its excellent cast, especially Christopher Walken (King of New York) in the role of Johnny Smith, the protagonist who sees visions after a near-fatal car accident. He delivers a superb performance that perfectly captures Johnny Smith's pathos as he struggles with his gift and/or curse known as a "dead zone."

Other notable performances include Brooke Adams (Shock Waves) in the role of Sarah Bracknell, a woman from Johnny Smith’s past whom he is still in love with; Herbert Lom (A Shot in the Dark) in the role of Johnny Smith’s psychiatrist; and Martin Sheen (Apocalypse Now) in the role of Greg Stillson, a narcissist psychopath politician who’s on a path that could lead to the end of the world if he achieves his goals.

There’s no denying that David Cronenberg is one of cinema’s great auteurs. And though he has mostly worked on films that allowed him complete control of his cinematic vision, on a rare occasion like The Dead Zone, where he’s given a sufficient amount of resources, it is interesting to see how he is able to maintain a balance between his artistic intentions and the demands of commercial cinema. Ultimately, The Dead Zone is an exceptional piece of filmmaking that is among the best Stephen King adaptations.

The Dead Zone gets an exceptional release from Imprint Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras, most of which are exclusive to this release, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer