Beyond the Black Rainbow [Blu-ray]

Just because most of the films you watch have easily discernible plots does not mean that films presented otherwise are poorly made. Think of Beyond the Black Rainbow as poetry, not as a novel. If you need a clear explanation stay away from this film. You'll hate it. If you can enjoy the bizarre, wild mood, and viscerally gorgeous photographic visuals then stick around. If you enjoy films where everything is not spelled out for you then this too might be a sign that Beyond the Black Rainbow is for you. Think of it as the privilege of entering someone else's dream.In the vein of Land of the Lost, Space 1999, Liquid Sky, Altered States, Coma, Looker, THX1138, Scanners, 2001, and filmmakers like Kubrick, David Cronenberg, Stan Brakhage, Kenneth Anger and dozens of other films and filmmakers I know and don't know from the 70s and 80s comes Beyond the Black Rainbow. It is a fever dream of a film that is more experience than linear narrative. Imagine a B film from the 1980s was lost and never seen. Beyond the Black Rainbow is supposed to be that lost film. It's here as if from a time machine. The film is a homage to low budget gems from the past; something only seen in some off the beaten path theater away from civilization.Now despite all reports to the contrary there is some semblance of a narrative here. Remember though that what follows is my interpretation of what I saw. The film is open ended enough to serve yours too. The film is carefully and skillfully constructed so I assume if he wanted things explained more, he would have simply done that. Like the famous Kubrick/Lovecraft quote: "In all things mysterious - never explain."Spoilers / interpretations ahead:If I had to write one line that summed up this films narrative that would be that: "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." The film begins with a short film within a film. An idealistic doctor, Mercurio Arboria, introducing his institutions 1960s mission statement about striving to make a better happier you. The Arboria Institute has very noble and altruistic pursuits. Cut to 1983 and we are witness to the tail end of what ever went on there. Bizarre, uncanny, morbid, awkward, claustrophobic, dreamlike, conspiracy, telekinetic, kaleidoscopic, are all words that help describe what exactly is going on deep inside the Arboria institute. Clearly the ideals that started the place have been abandoned or steered the once noble men into dark corners of science and the mind. Clearly as a species any of us can see what horrors humankinds good intentions have produced. David Cronenberg's early films often showed science run amok. Scanners, Videodrome, and The Fly come to mind where the horrific ends are far from where the science was intended to take the protagonists. This is the crux of what this film is communicating. Human idealism is going to lead us to unexpected places, likely dark, likely far from where we thought we'd wind up. Hence the films title, Beyond the Black Rainbow. Where ever that is, it's far away from where we thought we'd end up.A lone beautiful girl Elena is catatonic in her cell deep in the Aboria institute. She shows signs of telekinesis. Dr. Barry Nyle keeps Elena under control. Her telekinesis is dampened by a mysterious machine and possibly drugs that keep her powers under control. We eventually learn that she is the probable offspring of her doctor and another woman who was killed to make way for the new age of enlightenment. The 2 doctors have gone mad in the warren of corridors and passageways as they pop pills, drop acid, and shoot up Timothy Leary style. Odd automatons that reminded me of the automatons from The Black Hole or the robots from THX1138 roam the institute too. An ignorant nurse also comes across a compiled medical record of Elena and her powers and the years of insanely odd science that had been applied to her. It served as on of the films most unnerving and beautifully collaged moments.Barry Nyle clearly has come to the end of his rope and decades of drugs, clinical observations, and hiding his unnatural appearance under wraps with a bad wig and contacts have taken their toll on him. We glimpse the founder, Dr. Mercurio Arboria, deep in the bowels of the institute. He is the shell of his once former self and seems to be on the tail end of decades of drug addiction and watching idealistic nature films. It seems as though Barry wants to ask him for something regarding his increasing fascination with Elena but we are given a flashback that reminded me of the film Begotten. Harsh black and white imagery serves to show us the bizarre science ritual that Barry had to undergo in years past. He emerges from a black pool a changed man and then proceeds to impregnate and/or kill Elena's mother. The child, Elena, is kept alive. Whatever the hell they wound up doing, Elena is the partial result. I was also reminded of Akira too with the telekinesis and I'm sure the homage's and influences are endless.Eventually Elena escapes or is allowed to escape by her doctor. This reminded me of when THX1138 was eventually off his meds and decided to roam freely and explored the odd world he lived in, eventually escaping to the outside world. Elena too escapes and takes us on the wildest ride you are likely to ever be witness to. Again I was reminded of another film, O Lucky Man, where Malcolm McDowell's character is in a hospital at one point and gets up to have a look see and discovers horrors beyond his wildest dreams.The film ends with a confrontation between Barry and Elena in a field somewhere away from the institute. Two 80s burnouts are unfortunate enough to be in the paranoid path of Barry before he finds her and it's no surprise how the two end up. There is some comedy in here for sure, and again, a nod to many funny awkwardly filmed moments like this from B films of yore.Elena, no longer under the control of the institute's bizarre machine, and is free to easily tangle Barry's feet with roots and smash him to the ground, his head hitting a rock, killing him. Elena wanders off out of the field to the edge of a neighborhood where we see a TV illuminating one room of a darkened house. We know she is heading there. Then the film ends. After the credits roll we are given a quick shot of an action figure of one of the automatons from earlier. Then a quote from Buckarro Banzi: "no matter where you go, there you are." Buckarro Banzi is on of the 1980s more bizarre and odd films to have come out, an odd amalgam of studio authorization of a very bizarre story. It's no wonder the films creator admires this enough to put it in there.Again, this film is for those who don't mind letting art flow over them and endlessly picking a film apart. It's dreamlike and not easily explained. It needs to be interpreted rather than explained. Despite it being bizarre I suggest you don't shy away from it. There are few modern films out there like this and it's a sheer delight to have experienced.

Much like his more famous follow-up work Mandy, I can see why this movie is polarizing. It's a major arthouse production, with long sequences made up of sleepy visuals set to trippy 70s prog rock and electronic music. This is not going to be for everyone. But for a certain sector or art critics and stoner metal fans, this is an all-time great. I'll try to avoid spoilers.The setup: In the 60s, a cult leader started a foundation to change people's minds through a blend of therapy and pharmaceuticals. Today, a mysterious man representing this organization interviews a troubled young woman. At first it seems like he's trying to use the tools of the cult to change her mind. But is she there against her will? And why is this guy so creepy? Major twists happen, and the film takes a deep dive into trippy visuals and massively metaphorical arthouse. Eventually, the girl tries to escape the compound, but she'll have to go through the bowels of the complex to break through.Why people care: Film buffs will note that virtually every frame of this feature oozes metaphor. The doctor is always cast in red light which is explicitly shown to be tied to Reagan era paranoia and right-wing fear. At one point the doctor dawns a rad 80's style leather jacket that reads "Noriega" on the back, a reference to political machinations and excesses of the Reagan era. The director of the film - Panos Cosmatos - is the son of the guy who directed Rambo II. His mother was also a sculptor, so you also clearly see the film bounce between his paternal and maternal side. One scene will be drenched in heavy metal and blood, the next will be achingly slow-paced and linger on still shots. The music is absolutely tremendous. There are many references to John Carpenter and Giorgio Moroder's famous cinematic scores, until the movie dips into atmospheric metal which leans toward Pink Floyd. The acting is amazing, from every person onscreen.Why it's polarizing: The film has an incredibly slow, deliberate pace. Some scenes drag on just to give the score and the visuals more time to implant themselves in your brain. The film is 110 minutes but it easily feels more like 2 and a half hours, and some viewers will scream that things could have been trimmed to 90 minutes or less because the actual story is a very simple one. It's not any sort of spoiler to say that the basic narrative is a copy of THX 1138. The main character escapes the evil lab, and sees some weird stuff along the way. But that's the whole point the director wanted to make - even though this movie is heavy with metaphor, the actual plot is easy enough to follow. Once you settle into the story, no matter how trippy the visuals get, you always know what's going on. Personally, I'm totally onboard with that. For a general audience though, a lot of people end up feeling there's way more style here than the plot can justify.Overall: This is the sort of audio-visual masterpiece where I could pretty much pick out a still from the movie at random, and I'd be happy if I had a painting of that still in my home. There's one shot (with the rainbow pipes) that I absolutely want a print of. At times, atmospheric and peaceful. At times, totally far out and drug-fueled. The movie has a bit of everything, and film fans definitely must see it. General audiences tend to hate the slow pace, so I can't recommend it for the Netflix crowd unless they are willing to show some patience as the narrative develops.

Clearly a step below Mandy, there is something about this film I love and hate. I love the visuals, the music, and the focus on soft moments and weird collages.But I somewhat dislike the lack of any kind of thread to tie things together at least slightly more securely. I think the extremes of the inside facility and the outside, which is at most the last ten minutes or so, are a bit to the point of lulling watchers to sleep. Not really in a good way. I think 2001 had a lot of interesting bits along its space, and while this does as well, it ever so slightly overdoes its stay in areas leading to boredom. The script could have used a bit more flesh to its body, but I'm not too hung up about it. I just felt that there could have been a slight bit more character arc in here, and it would have propped the film up into the stratosphere.I love all the stylization, and the characters were fascinating, but we don't get QUITE enough to understand or care too much. The end sequences kind of happen a bit too fast, and the ending seems underdone to me honestly. I would have preferred more magic at the end. I think there is too little about Elena personally, and her scenes are kind of strange in that the viewer is expected to care about someone they can't really identify with. We barely even know her plight.But for what it is, the film does succeed in introducing us to a strange world with glacial tones, sleepiness, insecurity, madness, ethereal undulations about the universe, critique on new age spiritual cults, and isolation. The synth soundtrack is amazing and ties in perfectly with the visual order. These themes among others are fairly strong, so if you can get in line with the vibe, the slow burn will probably be meaningful to your senses.

Tenía mis reservas al principio porque la mayor parte de las críticas del público parecen odiar rotundamente esta película, sin embargo me llamó mucho la atención la cinematografía y la música. Fue una interesante sorpresa (y de paso fue bueno hacer caso omiso de los comentarios), una mezcla de ficción y horror que por su ritmo y pocos diálogos pareciera tener poco contenido pero realmente tiene varias lecturas. Si consideras aburrida una película que no cambie de escena cada 5 segundos abstente de mirar esta película, el ritmo definitivamente es lento pero no por ello deja de comunicar.Ésta edición en Blu-ray está perfectamente cuidada en video y audio, y sí contiene subtítulos en español.

Ein wie erwartet ungewöhnlicher Film. Optisch andersartig durch die experimentell geführte und in die 70er Jahre entführende Kameraführung, die Atmosphäre ist unwirklich, surreal. Nichts für Actionfans oder Leute mit Erwartungen an eine geradlinige Handlung. Der Film ist dennoch faszinierend und wirkt so hypnotisch andersartig, das man ihn eben aus experimenteller Sicht mal gesehen haben sollte.

DISCLAIMER: This film is very artistic and not for everyone! It deserves the time it takes to watch it. Not for the casual view.What I like I like about this film is that it leaves you with a lot of questions! It doesn't spoon feed you plot points, it doesn't tell you who the good guy is and who the bad guy is. It doesn't even tell you what the hell is going on half the time and lets you piece it together.What I appreciate about the film is that it gives you a fly on the wall perspective that makes you feel as though you are just as trapped at the people in the film. While some may call the music "atmospheric" its pretty much annoying and I'm pretty sure that's done entirely on purpose. The film maker wants you feel uncomfortable because its an uncomfortable film.A lot of the images in this film are confusing eg: 30seconds or so of celling mounted florescent lights passing slowly by. The effect seems to be to allow you to go through what the character is going through with them. In a strange way the confusion brings about understanding and makes one feel closer to the person in the scene.I'm doing a vague review again on purpose because I don't want to reveal the film to you. If you are bored with the regular cookie cutter Hollywood film and want something different, watch this!

Approach this looking for plot, three acts, a script that makes sense, conventional acting or anything resembling reality and you will be profoundly disappointed. However if you love vintage SF like The Groundstar Conspiracy, Cronenberg, Fulci`s zombie music soundtracks, The Andromeda Strain, Phantasm and just a general WTF? quality to your movie-viewing you will ADORE this tone-poem to all that cool stuff. Don`t try and force a narrative onto what unfolds before your eyes, just let the film transport you back to those youthful, heady days when you could while away an entire afternoon just gazing at the box-cover artwork in your local video-rental store imagining the delights within. The director approached the movie with this desire in mind and viewers should do the same when watching it.As if the visuals weren`t enough, the soundtrack by Sinoia Caves is similarly incredible though it remains criminally unavailable to buy.Cannot recommend this highly enough.

Beyond the Black Rainbow es una película de culto esperando su público. Se trata de una experiencia visual hipnagógica que mezcla elementos de la ciencia ficción de los 70 con detalles del slasher ochentero. Cosmatos maneja referencias muy ambiciosas (obviamente Kubrick y el Cronenberg de Stereo, pero también Begotten, la música de Tangerine Dream, o el Michael Mann de The Keep y Manhunter) y aterriza de pié. Todo ello con una estructura narrativa arquetípica de cuento clásico que termina humanizando el formalismo extremo de la propuesta. Una pena no haberla podido disfrutar en cine, pera aún en DVD merece la pena.