Director: Phil Joanou
Screenplay: Dennis McIntyre
Starring:Â Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, Ed Harris, Robin Wright, John Turturro, Joe Viterelli, John C. Reilly, Burgess Meredith
Country:Â USA
Year:Â 1990
Imprint has released a new Dolby Vision presentation of State of Grace (1990) on 4K UHD, restored from the original 35mm negative. It brings the streets of New York’s Hell’s Kitchen into stark immersive gritty neo-noir vision.
The film features a selection of 90s film icons, most of whom were up-and-coming actors at the time, who would go onto become heavyweight mainstays of the industry. The star-studded cast features Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, Ed Harris and Robin Wright, with an equally impressive supporting lineup, including John Turturro, Joe Viterelli, and John C. Reilly with a brief appearance from Burgess Meredith.
The film was inspired by real life Hell’s Kitchen Irish mob the Westies. The gang was based on Manhattan’s west side and were active in the 70s and 80s. The plot follows young Terry Noonan (Penn) as he returns home to Hell’s Kitchen and becomes embroiled with the lives of the Flannery crime family, the people he grew up with. All the while, tensions mount with the Italian-mob.
Orchestrating the project was relative Hollywood newcomer director Phil Joanou, who had a single feature under his belt and had risen through the industry after working on a range of U2 music videos. He taps into the actor’s unique strengths, allowing the stars perform in their style.
Penn delivers a magnetic intense performance, evoking the character’s vulnerability and dual nature. Oldman reliably steals every scene with a fierce larger-than-life performance. Harris has the subtle menacing undercurrents of an ambitious crime boss. Wright is convincing and engaging to watch as she becomes more and more conflicted over where her loyalties lie.
The film is perfectly paced, taking the time to set the scene and flesh out the characters, while also diving headlong into the story. There are moments that feel overly melodramatic, however. Particularly while Penn waxes lyrical to love-interest Wright – but this doomed romance is one of the defining strengths of the movie, so I can forgive a few of the heavier-handed moments.
Picture and Sound
The picture quality is of a high standard; it’s an exquisite transfer. The crystal-clear photography creates an immersive depth of field, where the main focus of the scene is highlighted amidst the backdrop of the bleak and oppressive Manhattan. It’s a shadowy dark world communicated with dark and moody lighting – even the daytime scenes feel murky and shadowy. The characters are frequently bathed in shadows, evoking a classic noir look to the movie.
The sound is rich, clear and impactful. Gun shots slice through the air with a satisfying crack. It features a slow insidious neo-noir score. Harnessing wind instruments, revered composer Ennio Morricone wind instruments to create the film’s brooding melancholy score. The melody infuses the drama with sense of beauty and poignancy. He also uses brass and strings to crank up the tension as the gang war chaos unfolds.
Film:
Special Features
- Audio commentary by director Phil Joanou & film historian Nick Redman
- Excellent audio commentary. Joanou has a likeable personality and speaks with passion about the film. He is great at explaining the choices he made and is quick to credit his collaborators. Redman is a skilled interviewer and draws out some great stories about the cast and crew from the director.
- Deleted sequence featuring actor Michael Gambon with introduction by director Phil Joanou
- 8 mins – Nice personal touch with the director’s intro, explaining why the sequence was cut (it was seen as overly gratuitous by the ratings censors and Joanou himself felt it was distracting from the main plot, Terry’s story). Interesting to see Gambon’s brief appearance. The violence does feel gratuitous, but it’s great to see screen titans Gambon, Oldman and Harris in a scene together.
- NEWÂ Interview with director Phil Joanou
- 19 mins – Joanou speaks about what attracted him to the project, changes he made to the more action orientated Frost draft of the script and how he managed the star-studded cast. Felt repetitious of the director’s commentary but a good thing if you have limited time.
- NEWÂ Interview with cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth
- 18 mins – Croneth speaks about the camera techniques he used in the movie to make the Manhattan backdrop a major part of the visuals, and how he balanced the beauty of grit of the location.#
- NEWÂ Interview with film music historian Daniel Schweiger on the Ennio Morricone score
- 15 mins – A fascinating look at the composer and the score. It covers his rich and varied filmography. Schweiger then speaks about what went into making the film’s two main melodies.
- NEW Interview with producer Ned Dowd
- 11 mins – He speaks about setting up the project and his favourite elements on the filmmaking.
- Booklet: An exclusive 60-page hardback booklet featuring an essay by writer Rachel Walther, and original production notes and publicity photographs.
- Walther’s essay The Bad Old Days is a great quick read, examining the film’s transitory themes, while providing context on the Westies. It also features production notes. I found it very interesting to read the backstories of Penn and Oldman, and how the film came together.
- Aspect Ratio 1.85:1
- Audio: English DTS-HD 5.1 Surround + DTS-HD 2.0 Stereo
- Optional English HOH Subtitles
Disc/package:
