The late David Bowie’s big-screen debut returns to home theaters through the digitally restored, 1970s cult classic The Man Who Fell to Earth: Limited Collector’s Edition (Lionsgate Home Entertainment, Rated R, 139 minutes, 2.35:1 aspect ratio, $34.99).
Viewers will appreciate Bowie’s portrayal of Thomas Jerome Newton, an alien visiting Earth and looking for a water supply to save his dying planet.
Its intriguing narrative finds Mr. Newton forming a financial alliance with a patent lawyer Oliver Farnsworth (Buck Henry) to convert advanced technology blueprints from his home world into revolutionary products and large quantities of cash.
The alien uses the newfound wealth to create a mega corporation and hires lead energy engineer Dr. Nathan Bryceto (Rip Torn) to help build a spaceship to hold water and get him home.
Along the way, Mr. Newton’s life gets complicated with flashbacks to his barren planet and by a relationship with a hotel maid Mary-Lou (Candy Clark).
Unfortunately, corporate greed and a suspicious government derail his planet-saving plan and lead to a rather unsettling ending.
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The bizarre 1976 film directed by Nic Roeg keyed a bit too much on pointless graphic nudity for my taste, but the satirical sci-fi drama famously succeeds not only due to the complex subject matter but also thanks to the stunning presence of Bowie.
High-definition moments: Although the movie gets a new restoration from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, approved by Mr. Roeg and cinematographer Anthony Richmond no less, it was a surprisingly inconsistent effort.
An enormous amount of grain in the opening sequence and slightly blurry opening titles got the film off to an unwelcomed start for this digital cinemaphile.
However, clarity and color do stand out when examining Bowie in action, especially when appreciating the actor’s gaunt, near-skeletal facial features, orangish-red hair and sharp fashions.
Watching him stand over an illuminated white sphere, enjoying a group of sword-wielding Kabuki performers or getting a nosebleed on a elevator ride contrasting his pale skin really highlight points of the restoration effort.
Still, I found too many pockets of image softness throughout, screen aberrations and the contrast of black levels not as dark as they should have been, even when viewing the film with an ultra high-definition player and television.
Best extras: Even though the film is a classic and an important piece of cinema, this limited collector’s edition is adequate at best.
Owners do get the film and extras on a single Blu-ray disc as well as a digital download unlock code for the movie. They also get the film and extras in the fairly useless and antiquated DVD format broken out on two extra discs.
The bonus content on the Blu-ray is worth a look and features nearly three hours of interviews with cast and crew present in standard definition.
They include a too-short interview with Bowie on a French television show in 1977 and more recent interviews with Miss Clark, Mr. Roeg, photographer David James, writer Paul Mayersberg, costume designer May Routh and producer Michael Deeley.
Besides the Bowie segment, fans will want to focus on the interviews with Miss Clark, the director and Mr. Mayersberg, each clocking in at around 30 minutes and offering some great background and production fodder.
Other than also watching a 16-minute look at the odd film soundtrack from the Mamas and the Papas’ John Phillips, and why it was never completely commercially released, owners will need to look into the package for more goodies.
The hard-copy extras include a 72-page, full-color informational booklet loaded with photographs and even a few pages of the script, a compacted 1976 press brochure, four color art stills and a miniposter.
• Joseph Szadkowski can be reached at jszadkowski@washingtontimes.com.
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