BLACK CIRCLE (2019)
2-Disc Blu-ray + CD
Label: Synapse Films
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 102 Minutes 38 Seconds
Audio: English DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Adrian Garcia Bogliano
Cast: Christina Lindberg, Felice Jankell, Erica Midfjäll, Hanna Asp, Johan Palm, Incer Nelsson, Felice Jankell, Hans Sandqvist
In the Adrian Garcia Bogliano (Here Comes the Devil) directed mind-altering body-snatcher flick Black Circle (2019) two sisters, Celeste (Felice Jankell, The Bunker Game) and Isa (Erica Midfjäll), come into possession of a mysterious vinyl record album from the 1970s, a rare self-help hypnosis LP that advertises that it will bring the listener to a state of calming self-hypnosis and bring out your better inner-self when you listen to it as you fall asleep at night. While there are initially some positive effects from the self-hypnosis LP there are other less positive side-effects, such as the fact that repeated listening of the LP your inner-self will manifest as an insidious doppelganger, one that drains you of your strength, growing stronger by the day, until it replaces you altogether. Realizing this the sisters seek out the woman who originally created the recording, hypnotist Lena Carlsson (Christina Lindberg, Thriller: A Cruel Picture), in an attempt to banish the doppelgangers back to their own world before their lives are lost forever.
This doppelganger tale is a serious slow-burn so prepare yourself, but if you're patient and ready to accept the overly long, at times snail-paced crawl, this offers some surreal moments that at times made me think of the works of Panos Cosmatos (Beyond the Black Rainbow) by way of The Ninth Gate or Cigarette Burns. It was great to see Swedish exploitation icon Christina Lindberg (Thriller: A Cruel Picture) back on film n a role that proves to be rather interesting but shrouded in mystery. The idea is interesting enough that I was with it right up till the end, it's not cinema perfection by any means, but an intriguing imperfection just the same with some strong moments of low-budget psychedelia, paranoia and existential dread that did get under my skin. I don't think the finale fulfills the promise of the set-up but if you're a fan of creep-fest body-snatcher flicks there's quite a bit here to love, and any issues I had are outweighed by my overall enjoyment of it. I also liked how it opens with one of those persistence of vision illusions with a moving black and white image that when it transitions to the next scene in the film, of a corpse, it appears to be moving in a trippy way for a few seconds when in fact it is not, it sets up the film quite nicely with the trippy visuals. Also, kudos to Synapse who jumped on board as executive producers for this film, joining other film labels like Shout! Studios, Severin, and Vinegar Syndrome in not just releasing cool independent horror flicks, but financing them as well!
Audio/Video: Black Circle (2019) arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Synapse Films in 1080p HD framed in 2.35:1 widescreen. The flick was shot on film and looks quite filmic, there's been different process applied to alter image with psychedelic imagery, but it never not looks like it was shot on film with well-managed grain, good color saturation, and modest depth and clarity. Audio comes by way of Swedish DTS-HD MA 5.1 with optional English subtitles, the track sounds great, it has moments of creepy sound design and the electronic score from Rickard Gramfors is well-balanced in the mix.
Extras include an Audio commentary with director Adrian Garcia Bogliano; the 10-min Original Short Film: Don’t Open Your Eyes which feels like a proof of concept with footage later recycled in the film; a 9-min Inside Black Circle Behind-the-Scenes featurette with interviews with the cast and crew; a 14-min Still Gallery set to the soundtrack from the film, plus the Original Teaser Trailer.
Another substantial extras include a nearly hour-long Interview with Adrian Garcia Bogliano and Christina Lindberg, really Bogliano interviewing Lindberg, its quite an intimate and career spanning look back at her career, from her early years in life, , breaking into film, how she fit or didn't fit into the feminist movement in Sweden in the 70s, her films Thriller and Exposed, some great stories about touring Japan as part of a PR campaign, her relationship
with Stellan Skarsgård, why she walked away from her film career when she did, her journalism career, and Tarantino screening her films during one of his festivals and getting to come to L.A. for a week.
Another fantastic value-add is the inclusion of the CD Soundtrack featuring the atmospheric and eerie electronic score by Rickard Gramfors (the director of Thriller: A Cruel Documentary) with additional music by Ragnar Berthling and Mats Molund, 18-songs in total that runs about 58 minutes. The 2-disc BD/CD release from Synapse Films arrives in a dual-hubbed black Elite keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork. Inside the CD are held on separate hubs, there's a Synapse Film's catalog inside, as well as an insert with the CD track list and soundtrack credit.
Special Features:
- Haunting original motion picture soundtrack on included Compact Disc
- Audio commentary with director Adrian Garcia Bogliano
- Original Teaser Trailer (1:08)
- Don’t Open Your Eyes (10:56) HD – Original Short Film
- Interview with Adrian Garcia Bogliano and Christina Lindberg (57:27)
- Inside Black Circle – Behind-the-scenes featurette (9:04)
- Still Gallery (14:07)
Black Circle is currently available on Blu-ray in a Limited Edition Slipcover edition from Synapse Films and DiabolikDVD!
Screenshots from the Synapse Films Blu-ray:
