SPIRAL (2007) (Ronin Flix Special Edition Blu-ray Review + Screenshots)

SPIRAL (2007) 

Special Edition Blu-ray 

Label: Ronin Flix

Region Code: Region-Free 

Rating: PG-13 

Duration: 90 Minutes 47 Seconds 

Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles

Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.78:1) 

Director: Adam Green &  Joel David Moore

Cast: Joel David Moore, Zachary Levi, Amber Tamblyn, Joel David Moore

 

Psychological-thriller Spiral (2007) was co-directed by Adam Green (Hatchet) and Joel David Moore (Avatar), who also stars in the film. It's set in the almost always drizzly Portland, Oregon, where we meet a painfully awkward asthmatic named Mason (Joel David Moore, Grandma's Boy), he's socially inept and clicks his teeth when anxious. He works at one of those fluorescent light lit call center offices, and his only friend seems to be Berkely (Zachary Levi, Shazam!), the call center's office manger, who seems to be trying to help him be more sociable but also seems like a real asshole. Outsider Mason is a loner who sketches and paints images of women in his free time at home, where he listens to jazz music, and has recurring visions of a woman we see in a sketch book which he carries around with him. 

One day at work while eating lunch alone outside a co-worker named Amber (Amber Tamblyn, Y the Last Man Standing) unexpectedly makes attempts to reach out to him. She's bubbly and sort of forces herself into a friendship with him, showing interest in him which starts to bring him out of his shell just a bit. Eventually she becomes his new muse, posing for sketches and later paintings for him in his apartment. He's still a bit cagey, but it seems as though a romance is blossoming between. 

We know from the start that Mason is a bit odd at the very least, when he's at his apartment he strangely avoids his bathroom, brushing his teeth at the kitchen sink while glancing nervously at the bathroom door. When it become clear that Amber will be visiting his apartment soon we see him dispose of something large he drags out of the bathroom... oh shit, what's this nice girl got herself mixed up in? Amber is unaware of a past trauma suffered by Mason that has haunted his life,  which has made him into the twitchy weirdo that he is today, and by the time she realizes what kind of damaged soul he is it might be too late for her to escape his derangement. 

I remember this being heavily advertised as a Hitchcockian thriller when it first made the rounds, and while it's definitely a psychological thriller, let's not be too generous and call it Hitchcockian. I would put it more along the lines of a Repulsion or May than I would say Hitchcock's Psycho, but it's a solid psycho-thriller, even if it broadcasts a lot of it's mystery early on. Joel David Moore does twitchy and awkward quite well, and he comes across as deranged but sympathetic. I thought the character Amber was far too sweet and too naive, but it still works within the context of the flick, and the twisty turns there at the end while not exactly startling have a nice emotional punch to it, and I like that it's a bit open-ended and could be interpreted a bit differently depending on your viewing. Not a perfect film, but I like it quite a bit, and if you like twisty psychological thrillers Spiral (2007) is certainly worth a watch. 

Audio/Video: Spiral (2007) arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Ronin Flix, advertised as a "film restoration completed by Ronin Flix", framed in 1.78:1 widescreen, 1080p HD. It;'s a sharp looking transfer, the neon in the opening scenes look luminous, colors are bold, the fluorescent lighting of the call office cubicles is appropriately sickly. Depth and clarity far surpass my old Anchor Bay DVD, skin tones are quite improved, and the grain is nicely resolved, with close-ups showcasing textures, facial pores and stubble with a nice sharpness. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround with optional English subtitles. The track is clean and well-balanced, it's largely a dialogue driven film with some nice atmospheric touches, the nearly all-Jazz score by Todd Caldwell and Michael Herring sounds terrific, plus we get pop song "Sometimes" by Alex Lloyd that also sound great. 

New extras exclusive to this release include the 27-min Paint it Red: Making Spiral: Behind-the-Scenes Documentary featuring new  interviews with Adam Green (co-director), Joel David Moore (lead and co-director), Zachary Levi (actor and producer), Will Barratt (cinematographer), and Cory Livingston; plus a new Audio Commentary with co-directors Adam Green and Joel David Moore, director of photography Will Barratt, and editor Cory Livingston.

Archival extras include the original Audio Commentary with co-directors Adam Green and Joel David Moore, writer Jeremy Boering, director of photography Will Barratt, and actors Zachary Levi and Amber Tamblyn, and the 2-min Theatrical Trailer. 

The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork, there's also a Slipcover with the same artwork as the wrap, which is available with the first-pressing only. 

Special Features: 

- Limited Edition Slipcover (1st Pressing Only)
- High Definition Blu-ray 1080p Widescreen Presentation (1.78:1)
- English Lossless 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
- NEW! Film Restoration completed by Ronin Flix
- NEW! Paint it Red -- Making Spiral: Behind-the-Scenes Documentary featuring NEW interviews with Adam Green (co-director), Joel David Moore (lead and co-director), Zachary Levi (actor and producer), Will Barratt (cinematographer), and Cory Livingston (editor) (26:41) 
- NEW! Audio Commentary with co-directors Adam Green and Joel David Moore, director of photography Will Barratt, and editor Cory Livingston.
- Archival Audio Commentary with co-directors Adam Green and Joel David Moore, writer Jeremy Boering, director of photography Will Barratt, and actors Zachary Levi and Amber Tamblyn.
- Theatrical Trailer (2:07) 
- NEW! English Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Screenshots from the Ronin Flix Blu-ray: 

Extras: 

Buy It!

Amazon

#ad