Repo Man (1984) [Masters of Cinema] (LTD Edition Steelbook) [Blu-ray]
![Repo Man (1984) [Masters of Cinema] (LTD Edition Steelbook) [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ZQlwm22LL._SL160_.jpg)
A volatile, toxic potion of satire and nihilism, road movie and science fiction, violence and comedy, the unclassifiable sensibility of Alex Cox’s Repo Man is the model and inspiration for a potent strain of post-punk American comedy that includes not only Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction), but also early Coen brothers (Raising Arizona, in particular), Men in Black, and even (in a weird way) The X-Files. Otto, a baby-face punk played by Emilio Estevez, becomes an apprentice to Bud (Harry Dean Stanton), a coke-snorting, veteran repo-man-of-honour prowling the streets of a Los Angeles wasteland populated by hoods, wackos, burnouts, conspiracy theorists, and aliens of every stripe. It may seem chaotic at first glance, but there’s a “latticework of coincidence” (as Tracey Walter puts it) underlying everything. Repo Man is a key American movie of the 1980s–just as Taxi Driver, Nashville, and Chinatown are key American movies of the ’70s. With a scorching soundtrack that features Iggy Pop, Fear, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, and Suicidal Tendencies. –Jim Emerson
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Great Film, Watch Out For Audio Problems,
Been a fan of this film for many years, having been into the West Coast punk scene many years ago (more sophisticated tastes these days!).
Had a problem initially with the audio, in that inserted disc into BD player (Sony BDP-S780) and audio would only output in front right speaker, with no speech. Tried on a Sony PS3 and Pioneer BDP-320 and exactly the same results. Eventually figured that unlike all the other BD discs I have, you have to change the settings on the BD players to output audio to PCM only.
Very strange, but at least I can now view the disc and hopefully this is of help to anyone with similar problems.
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|Quirky and Cool.,
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I used to enjoy BBC2’s Moviedrome cult film offerings back in the late eighties which was hosted by the director Alex Cox, although the movies were not actually chosen by him. These films did pose the question “but what exactly is cult?”. Cox himself comes into the cult bracket. He eschews Hollywood conventions and concentrates on the anarchic and eccentric elements of human nature. He works on a shoestring budget and his films sometimes have the look of a home movie. Now you can still do all this and make a poor film, but Cox to his credit seldom makes a truly bad film. When offered the chance to drink from Hollywood’s moneyspinning poison chalice he sticks to his own absurdist visions.
This son of Liverpool now resident in the US brings all his offbeat talents to bear in his astonishing writer/directorial punk debut film “Repo Man”(1984). The film is pretty difficult to give a synopsis on. It has a surreal plot involving the CIA, aliens, some incompetent Mohican stick up guys and a motley crew of repossession men, ie legally sanctioned car thieves. Emilio Estevez is the young punk who is drawn into their circle by the lure of money. Things then get kinda weird and crazy, but even so there are a lot of savvy jokes at the expense of Ronald Reagan’s America. Cox wears his heart on his sleeve and puts plenty of attitude into proceedings. The film which is full of foul mouthed tirades may not be everyones cup of tea, and there will be those who fail to see the joke, but then Cox is the sort of political director who will always divide audiences. Cox put together a very decent ensemble cast and got some fine performances out of Harry Dean Stanton, Estevez and Sy Richardson. The film also adds some nice oddball touches. Look at the branding of items like beer cans and the final credits to see what I mean! Cox even pays homage to his beloved spaghetti westerns in one scene where Stanton remarks in a shop “its too quiet”, queue the Mohicans. Masters of Cinema have given this film a new lease of life, and deservedly so. Cox himself gives his usual idiosyncratic introduction to the film, something he has done for other DVD’s over the years. This is the sort of offering that appeals to wannabe film buffs like me.
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|Cult oddity,
Maverick director Alex Cox created this 1984 movie on a shoestring budget, but hit the jackpot in terms of casting, cinematography and mood. Emilio Estevez is atypically restrained as shiftless teenage punk Otto, living in a nihilistic near-future LA with his TV-addicted parents, and working as a shelf-stacker in a supermarket. After getting unceremoniously fired from his crumby job, Otto stumbles into a career as a Repo Man, and his pointless existence gains some interest and danger – not to mention involvement with extra-terrestrials and a bunch of inordinately shady secret agents.
With its minimalist feel, surreal storyline, deliberately one-dimensional characters, and edgy tones, this is a deservedly acclaimed film, and easily the best thing Cox has made to date.
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