I’ve never seen a film quite like Onur Tukel’s Catfight. First thing’s first, though – if you pick this up hoping to see women fighting each other then boy howdy does it deliver. Our combatants, Anne Heche and Sandra Oh, spend a decent proportion of the film beating the absolute shit out of each other.

Neither pulls any punches, either, hurling themselves at each other with crazed, sadistic viciousness. Eyes swell up, lips split and bones crack and still they get up for more, screaming like banshees as they try their best to pound the other’s face into a gooey, comatose mush. This is all helped by the meatiest *thwack* sound effects this side of a Rocky sequel. If you need a direct point of comparison, think the Roddy Piper/Keith David alley fight from John Carpenter’s classic They Live.

The battle that gives “Catfight” its title and dramatic framework is a series of three hyperviolent encounters between Ashley (Anne Heche) and Veronica (Sandra Oh), two equally despicable New Yorkers. Former college frenemies whose fortunes have radically diverged, the women harbor an unspecified grudge that flares to life during a chance encounter and leaves Veronica in a two-year coma.

Suspended animation is, like the bust-ups, a recurring motif in this wildly uneven yet weirdly hypnotic satire from Onur Tukel. Drawing its energy from revenge and its jagged humor from a black well of contempt for the wealthy, the movie fashions a world in which the only likable characters are the crazy and the doomed.

Arrow - Region 'B' - Blu-ray

 

 

 

BOTTOM LINE:
Catfight had some panning but I thought it worked because Oh and Heche are extremely funny - body language, facial expressions and delivering their lines. I was amused by their seriousness. Yes, the film intentionally escalates to absurd, excessive, levels - I also found that funny. I laughed a lot during my viewing. The Dark Sky Video Blu-ray provides a modest 1080P presentation - that I always say 'a superior transfer doesn't make the jokes any better' but the two commentaries give this package much more value. It looks like the Arrow has the same supplements, but most likely, a better a/v transfer. I'm not going to get too obsessive about the BD presentation quality because this is a quick laugh. One I'll probably duplicate. I suggest getting the cheapest version for your viewing pleasure. I found it better than the critics let on. It wasn't meant to be an Oscar nominee - the cast must have had a ball too. Join them.

Arrow is, as we guessed, the superior video transfer, and batter cover but has the same supplements and lossless audio - with optional subtitles. Pretty much the same package - real hardcore fans will opt for the Arrow, and it's vastly higher bitrate, but I still suggest, if you aren't bound by region codes, buying the cheapest Blu-ray you can, for your location. I think this is hilarious.