A Better Place: Director's Cut – Smodcastle Cinema (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1997
Director: Vincent Pereira
Writer: Vincent Pereira
Cast: Eion Bailey, Robert DiPatri, Joseph Cassese, Carmen Llywelyn, Brian Lynch, Bryan Sproat, Molly Castelloe, Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee

Release Date: May 27th, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 86 Minutes 13 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.50:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $29.95

"Barret Michaelson (Robert DiPatri) is having a bad first day at his new high school - he is badgered, ridiculed, and nearly beaten up. He finds an unlikely ally in local loner Ryan Walker (Eion Bailey, Almost Famous, Fight Club), an intelligent but misanthropic youth with a dark family past. A friendship quickly develops, but Barret begins to worry as Ryan's philosophical ranting turns increasingly violent. When Barret does the unthinkable and makes peace with the local teenagers Ryan so despises, Ryan loses all control and attempts to drag Barret down into his world of hatred and destruction and Barret must find a way to escape." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "Brand-new 2K Restoration of a 3K scan of the OCN & first generation print elements, presented in 1080p in its director intended 1.50:1 aspect ratio."

A Better Place comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 31.4 GB

Feature: 21.6 GB

The source looks excellent; it's been cleaned up and is free of any debris or source imperfections. Flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are strong, there are no issues with compression, and the image looks organic.

Audio: 4.5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English with removable English SDH. The audio is in excellent shape; it sounds clear, balanced, and robust when it should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a newly created trailer (1 minute 26 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), outtakes & bloopers (1 minute 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), 8 deleted scenes (1 minute 14 seconds, 3 minutes 13 seconds, 2 minutes 7 seconds, 1 minute 20 seconds, 2 minutes 27 seconds, 3 minutes 21 seconds, 1 minute 42 seconds, 1 minute 5 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), audio commentary for the deleted scenes with screenwriter and director Vincent Pereira, an introduction by Vincent Pereira (2 minutes 3 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), 3 archival introductions by executive producers Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier (6 minutes 3 seconds, 4 minutes 36 seconds, 4 minutes 19 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a 2001 version of A Better Place (85 minutes 19 seconds, 1.66:1 aspect ratio, in standard definition, Dolby Digital 5.1 English, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary labeled Vintage 'Goof' Commentary with Vincent Pereira and the cast for the 2001 version of A Better Place, an archival audio commentary with Vincent Pereira, cast and crew members for the director’s cut, reversible cover art, and a slipcover (limited to the first pressing).

Summary:

A Better Place was written and directed by Vincent Pereira; it was his directorial debut and, to date, his only film.

Two outcasts, scarred by personal tragedy, bond; one of them continues down their path of self-destruction, while the other has healed their wounds.

Though a lot has come to the surface in the 28 years since A Better Place’s initial release, it is a film that perfectly encapsulates unchecked anger in youths. In the latter half of the 1990s, there was an explosion of violent events connected to disturbed teenagers; the Columbine shootings are widely regarded as a turning point. Unfortunately, there has been a lot of finger-pointing since then and a general lack of consensus on why so many youths have uncontrolled rage. That said, A Better Place not only gives a glimpse of what can happen when such rage is left unchecked, it offers the other side of what happens to those who find someone who listens and really hears them.

The narrative revolves around Barrett, a new kid in town whose father's death left him with some unresolved anger issues, and Ryan, an even more disturbed young man who, as a little boy, found his parents' bodies after a murder-suicide. Where Barrett tries to connect with others despite most of them initially being hostile to him, Ryan is a lost soul who has lost his faith in humanity. Despite Barrett’s friendship initially helping Ryan to refocus his rage, another traumatic event finally breaks him.

A criticism that I read online about A Better Place was about the performances, which I feel is unfair since there is a rawness to them that suits the story that unfolds. Another reason why the performances work so well is the dialog, which never feels stagey; it feels like conversations real people would have. That said, as great as all of the performances are, it is the two leads, Eion Bailey and Robert DiPatri, who stand out in the roles of Ryan and Barrett, respectively.

Though A Better Place is a dialogue-heavy film, that is not to say that it does not have visually arresting moments. Besides the aforementioned deaths of Barrett’s dad and Ryan’s parents, there is a scene where a confrontation with an old man leads to his death, and a boy who Ryan earlier humiliated returns the favor by beating him to a pulp. That said, A Better Place saves its most shocking moment for its finale, where Ryan’s rage is unleashed as he embraces what he views as his destiny.

Upon its initial release, A Better Place received a lot of positive praise, notably being nominated for the Golden Starfish Award for Best American Independent Film at the 1997 Hamptons International Film Festival. And yet, unlike other indie films from that era that launched their directors’ careers, it did not ignite Vincent Pereira’s. When one considers its budget, A Better Place is a well-crafted film that excels in every way, and it is a shame Vincent Pereira never directed another film. Ultimately, A Better Place is a gripping melodrama that explores alienation, fatalism, and existentialism.

A Better Place makes its way to Blu-ray via an exceptional release, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer