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

ADDITION: Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist Blu-ray (June 2021): Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist have transferred Todd Haynes' Poison to Blu-ray. The 86-minute film was shot on 16mm (blown up to 35mm) in the 1.66:1 aspect ratio. The 1080P is in 1.78:1, and show the modest production roots with heavy grain and looser color expression. It looks appropriately 'Indie' in HD - thick, textured but clean and consistent. This seems a reasonably strong representation of the film's production appearance - no gloss, inherent softness but still fair detail in close-ups and occasional depth. Some of the color TV 'tabloid' interviews are skewed (stretched) and I don't know if that was a function of the production but it does, appropriately, distinguish tonal shifts.

NOTE: We have added 68 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist use a less-robust DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel track (16-bit) in the original English language. There are few effects but is supported by a score by James Bennett (Dottie Gets Spanked) especially in the "Horror" sequences. Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist Blu-ray offers the older commentary by Haynes, Vachon, and star/editor James Lyons. They discuss the triad film concept, how it was shot separately, original script interweaving and Haynes discusses the eventual linear expression, its experimental evolution. Producer Vachon discusses production details; locations, cast (children and non-guild for the majority of the cast/crew), budget, financing and eventually the interesting details of interacting with Jean Genet's estate (Poison was inspired by the novels of Genet with quotations from "Miracle of the Rose", "Our Lady of the Flowers" and "Thief's Journal") interspersed throughout. It's a low key commentary but revealing in the amount of flexibility in the filmmaking process. There is also a new, 10-minute, introduction by director Todd Haynes discussing the 30th anniversary Blu-ray and how it helped establish his career of a feature filmmaker and the underground, perverse, elegiac film culture that was evolving at the time around Queer cinema, how he suspected Genet would react to the AIDS epidemic, his second feature, Safe, and much more. He is so well-spoken and names some of the remarkable people involved in Poison that are no longer with us - dedicating this Blu-ray edition to them. There is also a 20-minute Sundance Q&A with Todd Haynes, producer Christine Vachon and executive producer James Schamus, for the 20th Anniversary of the film’s Grand Jury Prize. There is a 9-minute short film by Ira Sachs entitled Last Address that It shows the homes of many artists living and those working in the New York area who have died of AIDS-related illnesses between 1983 and 2007. There is also an original 1991 U.S. theatrical trailer. The package has a booklet with an essay by Dennis Lim, Director of Programming at Film at Lincoln Center.

Todd Haynes' Poison is refreshingly unique. I, of course, loved the homage-y B-movie / mad-scientist "Horror" narrative segment. The three stories are expressed in a variety of styles with the unifying themes involving sex, perversion and toxicity with narration as an explaining function for the plot and inner-thoughts of the characters. I have always thoroughly enjoyed Haynes work - with Safe as a favorite. This is quite avant-garde and not suitable for those anticipating a mainstream film experience. The Kino Lorber/Zeitgeist Blu-ray is excellent offering a fascinating Indie, experimental-embracing, piece of cinema, the, still valid, commentary and other salient extras. Strongly recommended to open-minded cinephiles.

Gary Tooze