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Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
Released on: March 29th, 2022.
Director: Bill Condon
Cast: Eric Stoltz, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judith Ivey, Dennis Lipscomb
Year: 1987
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Sister, Sister – Movie Review:
Directed by Bill Condon, who co-wrote with Joel Cohen and Ginny Cerrella, 1987's Sister, Sister is set in swampy Louisiana where two sisters, Charlotte (Judith Ivey) and Lucy (Jennifer Jason Leigh) Bonnard, have turned the massive old mansion that they call home into what they hope will become a successful bed and breakfast operation.
One night, a city slicker named Matt Rutledge (Eric Stoltz) shows up in the middle of a rain storm in hopes of booking some lodging. They, of course, welcome him in and let him rent a room and before long, it’s obvious that he’s attracted by Lucy, and before long, she too him as well. As they quickly become romantically involved, strange things start to happen around the home. Of course, as the story plays out, we learn that both sisters are damaged goods in more ways than one that they have some secrets in their collective past that they would each prefer not be made public.
And then things get a bit violent.
Very much a slow burn, Sister, Sister offers some nice twists and interesting characters to complement some genuinely fantastic and ridiculously atmospheric cinematography and production design work. The bayou setting proves the perfect backdrop for this story of love, lust and intrigue and if Condon’s direction would have improved the pacing at times, the cinematography from Stephen M. Katz is truly excellent. This is a film that can, and sometimes does, coast on the strength of its visuals, but it does have more to offer than, such as an excellent score from composer Richard Einhorn that takes an unorthodox but no less effective approach to accentuating the drama and the horror movie elements that work their way into the storyline in equal measure.
The performances are also pretty strong here. Judith Ivey is quite good as the more outgoing and less reserved of the two Bonnard sisters. She plays her part well and suits the role. Jennifer Jason Leigh is, however, just a little bit better in her portrayal of the more reserved sister. Both actresses do a nice job of fleshing out their characters and, sometimes through very subtle tactics, hinting at the damage that lies beneath their attractive surfaces. Eric Stoltz also does good work here, making his more sophisticated urban character interesting enough to hold our attention. There is a bit of a fish out of water element to his take on Matt Rutledge while he and Jennifer Jason Leigh have an interesting chemistry together that gives some of their scenes a bit of a spark.
Sister, Sister – Blu-ray Review:
Sister, Sister arrives on a 50GB region free Blu-ray disc with an AVC encoded 1080p high definition transfer framed at 2.35.1 widescreen newly scanned and restored in 2k from its original 35mm interpositive and taking up 26.6GBs of space on the 50GB disc. There’s some softness evident in the transfer that is presumably inherent in the source material, and it does work in terms of how the movie builds mood and atmosphere. As such, detail doesn’t reach reference quality heights, but the picture does look really good. There’s a fair bit of depth here and colors look nice and lifelike, as do skin tones. There are no problems with noticeable compression issues nor are there any obvious issues with noise reduction or edge enhancement, the picture always looks nice and filmic.
The English language 24-bit DTS-HD 2.0 Stereo track, which comes with optional English subtitles, sounds very good. There are no problems to note with any hiss or any distortion, dialogue is crisp and clear and both the effects and the score all sound very good.
Extras start off with an archival commentary track from director Bill Condon who speaks about his role as director as well as co-writer, giving credit where it’s due to the different cast and crew members that he worked with on the picture, talking up the writing process and explaining what it was like working on the picture behind the camera. He’s also quite blunt about what he feels works and doesn’t work in the film., as well as the hit that his career took when the film was poorly received by critics upon its initial release. A second commentary track features author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and it is a fairly interpretive one. She points out a lot of interesting details and subtleties in the film as it plays out, exploring its themes, the Southern Gothic elements that are a bit part of its appeal and dissecting its characters. Both of these are quite interesting.
Being an Outsider is a fourteen minute interview with actor Benjamin Mouton who speaks about making his film debut with this production, how he landed the part, thoughts on his character, what it was like working with Condon, Stoltz and Leigh and some of his own experiences with the supernatural.
Staying Honest interviews actress Natalija Nogulich for twelve minutes who talks about how she got the part in the movie, her thoughts on filming in the South, what it was like on set and some of the challenges that arose during the shoot and what she tried to bring to her character.
Composer Richard Einhorn is up next in Orchestrating Altered States in a twenty-five minute interview that goes over his early days in the film industry, how he got into composing, connecting with Bill Condon and what he was like to work with, budgetary issues that affected his work on the film, the rushed schedule under which he had to deliver the score and more.
Going To War interviews cinematographer Stephen Katz for fifteen minutes in a piece that sees him speak about what it was like working with Condon, the different projects that they worked on together, shooting on location in Louisiana, how they went about creating the film's specific look and changes that were made to the film at the insistence of its producers.
Rounding out the extras on the disc is a three minute selection of deleted scenes with commentary from Condon, the film’s original trailer, menus and chapter selection.
Vinegar Syndrome also provides some reversible cover sleeve art and a twelve-package full color insert booklet that contains an essay on the film written by film programmer/historian Cristina Cacioppo. Those savvy enough to purchase the film direct from Vinegar Syndrome’s website will, for the first 5,000 copies at least, receive a limited edition embossed slipcover featuring artwork from Haunt Love.
Sister, Sister - The Final Word:
Sister, Sister is a pretty solid suspense picture made all the more interesting thanks to some great cinematography and strong art direction. The cast is also pretty strong here and the movie proves to be one worth seeing. Vinegar Syndrome’s Blu-ray looks and sounds very good and contains a host of supplements that both explore its themes and document its history, making this a really strong package overall.