Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray

Kiss of the Spider Woman

 (1985)

Drama



Two very different men are cell mates in a Brasilian prison; Luis Molina is a gay window- dresser jailed on a morals charge, while Valentin is a left-wing journalist accused of subversive revolutionary activities. To escape reality, Molina re-enacts a melodramatic film, impersonating its glamorous, but politically dubious heroine. Valentin's machismo and political convictions at first make him suspicious of Molina, but he gradually succumbs to his cell mate's kindness, and the two men develop a bond of friendship and respect for their sexual and social differences.

For more details about Kiss of the Spider Woman on Blu-ray, see the Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray Review

Starring: William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga, Jose Lewgoy, Nuno Leal Maia
Director: Hector Babenco

Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray, Video Quality

 


Kiss of the Spider Woman debuts on Blu-ray with an AVC encoding that averages about 25 Mbps. Despite a healthy bitrate and a fairly good amount of detail, the visual presentation is problematic. The source of the Blu-ray transfer is at times riddled with artifacts such as scratches and dirt flecks. Though not present throughout the film, these bits of debris are still quite noticeable when they do appear on the screen. Grain seems to be unaffected however, as the film carries a fine layer during playback. Much of the story takes place in a shadowy prison cell, and as such, the black levels are put to the test on this release. They come out well, with rich, dark levels that never overwhelm the characters or the meagerly dressed settings. The colors of Molina's flamboyant fashions stand out, with good tonal reproduction that provides a welcome contrast to the otherwise drab environment.

Another aspect of the film is the intentional softening of the segments filmed for Her Real Glory. In these sections, the characters have a blurry "halo" of sorts around the edges of their faces and clothes, affecting an old, badly-preserved film appearance, as well as that of something loosely recalled, as the story is by Molina. It represents a dream-like state, and is not a technical fault on the part of the transfer. Overall, the film has certainly never looked better, although its transfer flaws still leave something to be desired.

Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray, Audio Quality

 


With four audio tracks to choose from, Kiss of the Spider Woman is well-equipped to tell the story at hand, albeit with some confusing listings. One multichannel option is included - a remixed Dolby Digital 5.1 track in English. The other three are listed as "original mono," but are in fact a false two channel mono from the left and right speakers. With Spanish, French, and English options provided in this Dolby Digital 2.0 mix, one wonders why a Portuguese track was excluded from the Blu-ray. Spider Woman is, after all, a Brasilian film, directed by a Brasilian citizen who barely knew English at the time filming was to begin. The script was in fact written completely in Portuguese at one point, with the idea to hire on strictly Brasilian actors to play the parts. The lack of a Portuguese dub, or even subtitles, is a bit puzzling.

A dialogue-heavy film, Spider Woman's multichannel mix provides a satisfactory presentation, if a bit flat at times. Hardly a sound emanates from the back channels, and LFE is slim to nil. A lossless codec could have surely improved the sometimes murmuring conversations between Valentin and Molina - as it was, the subtitles were flipped on occasionally just to double check what was being said. The false mono tracks feel even further boxed in, but that is the natural consequence of such single channel mixes. Even for an introspective film like Kiss of the Spider Woman, a lossless audio track could work wonders. What is provided is sufficient for the storytelling, nevertheless.

Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray, News and Updates

• Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray Exclusively at Amazon - June 25, 2008

Kiss of the Spider Woman Blu-ray, Forum Discussions

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