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 S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

Directed by Philippe Mora
USA 1989

 

Oct.4 and Dec.26 the Strieber family drives from NYC to their cabin in the woods. Both nights there are some powerful lights outside and maybe aliens. The dad is mentally affected by the "bad dream", goes to the shrink and is hypnotized.

***

In 1985, New York based author Whitley Strieber (Walken) lives with his wife and child in Manhattan and seems to be successful. However he is woken at night by paranoid dreams that someone else is in the room.

On a trip to the family cottage in the woods, on the first night the intruder alarm is triggered and Strieber sees a face watching him from the doorway. Bright light fills the cottage windows and wakes his son and two other family friends but his wife remains asleep.

Disturbed by this they all return to New York and life seemingly returns to normal but Strieber finds that his work and personal life are becoming affected by recurring nightmares and visions of strange alien beings including greys, blue doctors and bugs. This upsets his son and puts strain on his marriage.

After an incident at their cottage in which Strieber is so convinced that there are alien beings inside the home that he pulls his gun out and almost shoots his wife, and signs that his son is beginning to have the same visions, he is finally convinced to see a psychiatrist specialising in hypnotic regression therapy (Sternhagen).

Excerpt from Wikipedia located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: November 10th, 1989

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Review: Cult Media - Region FREE - Blu-ray

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Bonus Captures:
Distribution Cult Media - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime 1:49:16.508     
Video

2.35:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 22,078,112,753 bytes

Feature: 21,234,683,904 bytes

Video Bitrate: 23.82 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:

Audio

Dolby Digital Audio Italian 448 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 448 kbps / DN -27dB
Dolby Digital Audio Italian 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -27dB
Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -27dB
Subtitles Italian, None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Cult Media

 

2.35:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 22,078,112,753 bytes

Feature: 21,234,683,904 bytes

Video Bitrate: 23.82 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Edition Details:

• Gallery (2:25)


 Blu-ray Release Date: October 4th, 2015
 Standard Blu-ray Case

Chapters 7

 

 

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Cult Media Blu-ray (March 2021): Cult Media (Italy?) have transferred Philippe Mora's 1989 alien abduction film Communion to Blu-ray. This seems suspicious but It is in 1080P and looks okay. It doesn't appear to be a bump and is actually adept. It's only on a single-layered disc but has a supportive bitrate. It does show some grain, no distracting artifacts and generally looks like the standard less effective 80's stock it was shot on. Perhaps we will compare one day but I was not totally displeased with the HD presentation. Details in the many close-ups was surprisingly good.   

NOTE: We have added 84 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Cult Media offer only Dolby lossy audio transfer options in Italian DUBs (2.0 channel and 5.1 surround) and also stereo in the original English language. It modestly exports the film's audio effects and although no credited score has music like Irving Berlin's Putt'in on the Ritz and Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, sounding clean with unremarkable depth. It is very quiet and I really needed to up the volume. Cult Media offer optional Italian subtitles (fully removable) on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Cult Media Blu-ray offer only a gallery as a disc supplement.

Communion draws comparisons to Fire in the Sky as another alien abduction film attempting to adapt a true-life story. Communion is based on the Whitley Strieber book, whose story is a real-life account of his own encounter with "visitors". It's fascinating stuff done with an arty edge blending in hallucinations and Walken's receptive performance. I am also a huge fan of Lindsay Crouse (House of Games, The Verdict.) This was a very enjoyable film experience in many respects. The Cult Media Blu-ray is bare-bones with lossy audio but allowed me to enjoy the film in 1080P. At the right price - this is, presently, recommended (until - if ever - anything better comes along.)

Gary Tooze

 

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Distribution Cult Media - Region FREE - Blu-ray


 


 

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