Dr. Caligari – Mondo Macabro (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1989
Director: Stephen Sayadian
Writers: Stephen Sayadian, Jerry Stahl
Cast: Madeleine Reynal, Fox Harris, Laura Albert, Jennifer Balgobin, John Durbin, Gene Zerna, David Parry, Barry Phillips, Magie Song, Jennifer Miro, Stephen Quadros

Release Date: June 13th, 2023
Approximate running time: 78 Minutes 54 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC & 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $29.99

"Madeleine Reynal plays Dr. Caligari, the granddaughter of the original Doctor, whose own experiments in psychosexual therapy have led her to the brink of a radical treatment involving hormonal exchange. Having drugged and imprisoned Mrs. Van Houten’s sexually repressed husband, Caligari sets out to extract the brain fluid of an incurably nymphomaniac Mrs. Van Houten and inject it into the head of a cannibalistic serial killer (John Durbin) addicted to electroconvulsive therapy. What could possibly go wrong?" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (1.85:1 Aspect Ratio, 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio)

Here’s the information provided about the transfers, "Brand new 4K transfer from film negative."

Dr. Caligari comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45.8 GB

Feature: 21.9 GB (1.85:1 Aspect Ratio), 20.5 GB (1.33:1 Aspect Ratio)

The source used for this transfer looks immaculate. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated and appropriately vibrant, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image looks organic.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and included are removable English SDH subtitles. The audio is in excellent shape. Dialog always comes through clearly; everything sounds balanced; ambient sounds are well represented; and range-wise, things sound robust when they should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a Mondo Macabro preview reel, a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Jerry Stahl titled Bongo His Glug-Glugs (9 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actress Laura Albert titled The Scandalous Mrs. Van Houten (20 minutes 16 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actress Madeleine Reynal titled Meet the Doctor (18 minutes 18 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with director Stephen Sayadian titled Beyond the Door (30 minutes 27 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary with Stephen Sayadian, and an isolated music and effects track.

Summary:

Stephen Sayadian and Jerry Stahl are the creative minds behind Dr. Caligari. Their other collaborations include Nightdreams and Café Flesh. Stephen Sayadian is most known for his role as the creative director of humor and advertising for Larry Flynt Publications, and screenwriter Jerry Stahl’s autobiographical novel Permanent Midnight about his addiction to heroin was adapted into a feature film.

Though Dr. Caligari is billed as an unofficial sequel to the German silent film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, it is best described as an homage instead of a continuation of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.

Content-wise, Dr. Caligari is equal parts horror film, erotica, and black humor. From its opening moments, it is clear that anything can and will happen in a film that literally has no boundaries. And nowhere is this clearer than when it comes to Dr. Caligari’s outlandish production design.

It should not come as a surprise that a film like Dr. Caligari does not feature conventional performances. Though there is a stilted delivery to the dialog and every character feels like an exaggerated caricature, the performances across the board are actually outstanding, especially Laura Albert in the role of the protagonist, Mrs. Van Houten, a woman who suffers from erotic trauma to her libido.

Though limited when it comes to budget, Dr. Caligari is one of cinema’s greatest examples of how a film can flourish despite its limitations. Notably, when it comes to the production design, which is a combination of simplicity and overflowing with imagination. Despite being drenched in weirdness, the narrative is easy to follow. Also, there is an ample amount of nudity and sexualized objects like deformed breasts, oozing orifices, and fellatio performed on an extremely large tongue. Ultimately, Dr. Caligari is a cross between German Expressionism and Salvador Dalí.

Dr. Caligari gets a definitive release from Mondo Macabro, highly recommended.

 Written by Michael Den Boer