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| Martin
Sheen, Sissy Spacek, Warren Oates, Ramon Bieri |
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Anamorphic
widescreen |
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Dolby Digital
5.1 |
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DTS |
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Trailer(s) |
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Featurette(s) |
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Documentary |
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Audio commentary
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Deleted scenes
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Concept art
/ storyboards |
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Multi-angle
feature |
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(after
the shooting of Cato)
Holly: How's he doing?
Kit: I got him in the stomach.
Holly: Is he upset?
Kit: Didn't say anything to me about it.
Loosely
based on the Charles Starkweather murder spree in the 1950s, Badlands
tells
the story of two teenagers on the run after killing the girl's father.
One
of the most remarkable things about Badlands is how simple and
effective the central story is: told in voice-over narration by teenage
Holly (Sissy Spacek), it shows what happens when people have no moral
center to hold on to and can turn to murderous actions for no apparent
reason. Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek deliver totally realistic performances.
Sheen is frightening and likeable at the same time: he utters self-contradictory
lines like "listen to your parents and teachers, they got a line
on most things so don't treat them as enemies" a mere few days
after shooting his girlfriend's father, whose objection to their relationship
proved too much of an obstacle to deal with in any other way. His contradictions
are fascinating and they are never explained away as he grows more and
more wrapped up in his own mythology and pathology. Similarly, as Holly's
attraction to Kit is a puzzle for the viewer: her boredom and naiveté
more than anything else seem prime motivators to hang out with Kit.
Badlands has the feeling of a dream: the charactersnever seem
to be fully present, and the discrepancy between the actual story events
and Holly's romantic schoolgirl narration leads to some wonderfully
strange moments. Their narrative only seems to make sense within their
own world, and the viewer is slowly drawn into their mindframe as Malick
works with stillness as much as with pictures. The stunning cinematography
and music make up the other elements that turn this movie into such
a complete and powerful emotional experience that it will stay with
you for weeks and that offers rewarding material for repeated viewings. |
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Badlands is currently only available
for Region 1.
The anamorphic widescreen transfer
is framed at 1.85:1, while the full-frame version uses an open matte
to reveal more image at the top and bottom of the screen. The widescreen
framing however reveals the director's intention, and the framing is
clearly much better. Keep in mind that the movie was shot at a budget
of $350.000 and you know this DVD won't produce miracles. It is however
by far the best this movie has ever looked: great colors, stunning landscapes
and natural-looking fleshtones. There are plenty of grain, nicks and
scars in the print but this is never distracting.
The original mono soundtrack has been remixed into Dolby Digital 5.1
but this fails to add much to the experience. Except for 2 or 3 moments,
the surround speakers have nothing to do and it seems more natural to
watch it in stereo and not have so much coming over the center speaker.
The dialogue is always clear and there's hardly any distortion on the
track with the music sounding especially good.
There
are no extras on this disc.The
menu screens are static with images from the movie.
Gerard Castelein
Reviewed: 2001
Click
here for IMDB info on Badlands.
Click here
to return to the front page.
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