Thriller "A Cruel Picture" DVD Review

Thriller - A Cruel Picture - A.K.A. They Call Her One Eye

Reviewed by SuperNova

DVD Released by Synapse Films

Rating: Not Rated
Year: 1974
Time: 107 Minutes
Color: Color
Genre: Exploitation
Language: Swedish

Written, Directed and produced By: BO A. VIBENIUS
Starring: Christina Lindberg and Heinz Hopf

Synopsis:

Christina Lindberg plays Frigga a.k.a. “One Eye”, a victim of sexual indiscretion and contrived manipulation. Her story begins as a child, where one day while walking through a fall scenery she is confronted by a jolly old man who greets her with a surreptitious smile. If she only knew of his iniquitous intentions perhaps she would not have suffered at his unjust and immoral hands. Frigga is unmercifully sodomized and violated in what is perhaps the most unsettling scene in Thriller. Director Bo Arne Vibenius crafts the scenario with a well balanced eye, allowing the viewer to use their mind to imagine the assault while cautiously and carefully planting seeds of congregated suggestions. The delusional tranquil focus displays best for us the uncertainty of Thriller, and the realization that this is only the beginning precedes thoughts of a cinematic catastrophe laying in wait -- only Thriller manages to weave an artistic underlining to dispel such negativity. It’s unbound by derivative characters and outcomes and manages to separate its self from the majority of the debauchery fans have witnessed in the past.

Fifteen years elapse, now all grown up and working at her parent’s farm, Frigga, traumatized by her history has developed a physical muteness that turns into an introverted lifestyle. She often isolates herself from the public eye and strangers alike. The tonality is touching in that Christian Lindberg portrays this voiceless character to a softer degree not allowing the somber emotions to consume her. On her way home, Frigga misses the bus and is approached by a charismatic young man (Tony as Heinz Hopf) who invites her to dinner. Frigga immediately attaches to his overly eccentric and flamboyant attitude, but when the night winds down and Tony’s real intentions are revealed, Frigga desperately tries to find a way out of his web of deceit.

In a scene rumored to be filmed using a real corpse Tony uses a scalpel to slice through Frigga’s openly fixated eye after she rebels against him. The cut is quick, but the vision of the watery substance trickling from the exposed retina membrane of the eye gland becomes eternally implanted in your mind, placing the viewer in a position to assess what we just seen. Obliging to his demands, Frigga performs sexual intercourse with various customers throughout the day. She is a slave to sex and a prisoner to a contaminated lifestyle. The only thing that keeps her sane are the constant use of drugs, which Tony has generously supplied her with.

After discovering her parents have been murdered and suspecting Tony to be the main culprit, Frigga begins to secretly train with automatic weapons and in the art of self-defense. In what is a montage of slow-motion incapacitating shots of vigilantism and poetic justice, “One Eye” seeks out her revenge armed with a sawn off double barrel shotgun and the knowledge of the deadly craft karate. Scenes explode with dynamic power that’s raw and downright relentless. Director Bo Arne Vibenius does a tremendous job emphasizing the poetry amidst violence. Every scene, with the sole purpose to fulfill redemption, moves gracefully toward a specific choreographed finale that’s at times agonizingly slow, but unbelievably breathtaking. The revenge is artistically beautiful; images stylishly shift around until they align to form one final and lasting “Cruel Picture.” Not since Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring (1960) has there ever been a Swedish film with such poise and passion in its direction. Certainly influenced by Sam Peckinpah’s Straw Dogs (1971), Thriller is a definitive examination of humanity’s fascistic approach to gratification.

The Verdict:

Thriller is much like a rhythmic hallucination, where Director Bo Arne Vibenius twists the innocence of all that is expected from childhood life into a hypnotic psychosis of self-abandonment, unrighteous divulgence and pessimistic liberation. The squalor of virginal infatuation and the intermixing of child molestation and pedophiles is enough to turn anyone away. It is a subject matter so delicate that even the safest hands cannot manage to soften the devastation a vision may conceive. These controversial actions that spring from frailty and desperation are unequivocally incomprehensible in the public eye, so much that such a result embodies a crucial ricochet of human self-doubt and withdrawal. This intangible and desolate attitude on life is conveyed from a subdivision of our own inhuman conscious and sexual magnetism that appears to blossom when the frustrations of life’s trials and tribulations become insupportable of our own desires. This is a film not built upon proper etiquette or marketed for neo-evangelical consumerist looking for hockey statements regarding the questioning of ones faith so reminiscent in Meir Zarchi’s Day Of The Woman (1978), instead Thriller is a surrealists dream of creative sovereignty that defies explanation.

At its core -- with its eyes wide open, Thriller exposes the malevolence of an uncovered Pandora’s box while accepting all of the compensatory that satyriasis, brutality, and nihilism has to offer. It isn’t a rarity to feel repulsed when watching Frigga a.k.a. “One Eye” subject herself to the barbarity and harshness by the cold touch of a man probing over her unsullied body with vanity. These acts are purely unwanted and that’s what makes the concept of these scenes work so well. The annotation that these unwilling participants are merely victims to the enhancement of drugs and materialistic manipulation is a statement about society’s abject comprehension and mental imbalance towards synergism, sexism, and temptation. There’s this innocent complexion in Frigga’s congenial quietness that seems to arouse a man’s fantasy, completely out of obsession, while erecting his appetite to please an inner yearning. In Thriller, masculinity is examined as a potent image of authority that overshadows a nauseating hypocrisy. Women are the minority, strung up in lethal dosages of cocaine and self discontentment while forced to exhale in unclenched ecstasy that serves to only distance themselves from a world of rational emotions and genuine feelings.

Thriller uses women to not only exploit the sexual empowerment of a man, but to glorify the tasteless satisfaction of lust as well. These women are slaves to the world of chaotic sex and drugs and must wait lifelessly through an unwelcoming sexual advancement, while biting their tongue in hopes that they don’t succumb to the enchantingly seductive vibrations of climatic enjoyment. It is a fantasy that exists within a nightmare, neither pleasuring nor tasteful, but persistently haunting. A reality that eradicates the innocence of our flower, while cultivating an internal abhorrence for those who unjustly took from us what we value and protect the most. Christina Lindberg does a phenomenal job portraying a well-balanced level of incorruptibility. Her character “One Eye” has a captivating presence that’s alluring to the viewer’s senses and has an appealing erotic undertone. She has the ability to convey how she feels through her posture, her shyness and troubling gaze that sometimes, even words themselves could not express more thoroughly. I believe the loss of conviction and dignity that she feels is powerful even throughout her uncomfortable quietness. One might assume it is like staring into a mirror and finding reassurance in the face that greets you, only the outer shell of your appearance often expresses less of a pain than what you are actually feeling on the inside. Here it is the complete opposite. Frigga’s pain is exposed through layers of alienation, until finally being stripped to the nucleus of all that troubles her.

There’s something captivating about Bo Arne Vibenius’s Thriller, not just the solicited sodomizing, but the motivated assaults and retaliation that seem to float timelessly, as to encircle and commend the justice being sought. One should wonder if retribution is morally virtuous, because in life we question retaliation as though it were unreasonable. Seeking revenge for a commited against yourself or someone dear to you is hard for me to grasp in that, violence is never reacted to with a fulfilling sense of satisfaction, but more something derived out of necessity or anger. Furthermore, I question how easy it is to shed human blood and to take the life of someone without accepting the consequences and the mental recoil of your own actions in a time of complete anguish. It would appear “One Eye” rightfully deserves her revenge, not just because of the explicit violations despicably commited against her body, but because of the malicious actions taken against her family as well. But you have to wonder, how does taking the law into your own hands solve anything? It doesn’t, it only serves to create more problems. We don’t probe over these questions when our minds are fixated on a cold hatred, but even if we did, would we accept them? I don’t believe so.

As a viewer I suppose you have to, in a sense, escape from the realism of laws and physics and accept the primitive culture that exists within exploitation movies, because in many ways they are our only outlet to discover life beyond this proliferated generation. In Thriller, punishment isn’t just a reaction to something it is a way of life. Self-abuse, trickery, these things go hand in hand, creating for us a fabricated world of our own wishes, unanswered questions and distant second voices that plague a destabilized mind. If your mind is frail, remember it must not falter and it must not waver; for to ignore the brilliance of Thriller; the implied systematically disguised social and vigilante narrative is a fault of the viewer’s own lack of responsiveness and not the film; for if you cannot see beyond the sexism and the anarchism you will never grow to appreciate and understand Thriller. I ask you to pay attention; to absorb the crudeness, the credence of the commentary, and the integrated justifiable redemption like a sponge bathed in water and then and only then shall you see Thriller as it is and shall remain -- a compendium decoy of passionate and feverish desires with the utmost logical grace, harboring a message of ethical depravity and sexual contentment that serves to question the addiction of intercourse, societies appeal to drugs, and the worlds constant cynicism towards the human acceptance; our own bodies and each other.

Movie Style and Substance Rating: ***½/*****

Audio:

How’s it sound? Thriller is presented here by Synapse in two Dolby Digital Mono soundtracks. The viewer has the option of listening to Thriller in its original Swedish Language with optional English subtitles or they can hear the movie in an English dubbed track. Dialogue is projected well from the speakers with a great deal of precision. Both tracks are clear from unpleasant distortion and disrupting muffling leaving crisp and lucid sounds to feel the room. While just a little hollow during the final act, I have to say I am very impressed with the way Synapse handled this DVD. Subtitles are a bright yellow and are easy to read.

Sound Transfer Rating: ***½/*****

Video:

How’s it look? I send my deepest gratitude to Synapse films. They did a wonderful job with the materials they acquired. Presented here in an Anamorphic (1.78:1) widescreen transfer, Thriller looks strikingly wonderful. The print has been returned to pristine form. Colors are deeply saturated with a psychedelic undertone. Blacks, whites, and yellows are the most predominant with opaque distinctions in overall density. Flesh tones appear vibrant and brash and match the autumn countryside and fashionable décor adequately. The fall scenery engulfed in an array of soft tan oranges and luscious yellows is the film’s greatest aspect in terms of image thoroughness and accuracy. This is an attractive film filled with exciting colors and a palette that’s never dull or underused.

Image Transfer Rating: ****/*****

Supplemental Material:

What’s inside?
- Extensive Still Galleries of Rare Behind-the-Scenes Photos, Including Many Candid Nude Photos of Christina Lindberg on the Set!
- Alternate Harbor Fight Sequence Reconstructed from Rare Vault Materials
- Thriller: A Cruel Lab Mistake - Rare Photos Detailing an Unused Fight Sequence Ruined by the Film Lab During Production
- Thriller: “The Story in Pictures”
- Actor/Director Filmographies
- Outtakes

Supplements:

Thriller is presented here by Synapse in an Uncut, and Uncensored, Limited Edition (25,000 in circulation) DVD with ALL the gracious hardcore sex scenes and Gore included. I got to meet Don May Jr. at a Horror convention last month. Okay, so maybe I stood there while one of my best friends did most of the talking, but it was relatively easy to see the love and appreciation he had for obscure cult films. I could tell Don May Jr. and his company Synapse really put their best effort into the DVDs they produce and it saddens me that someone who has such a tremendous personality and track record still has trouble getting DVDs distributed across the US, while other companies, some who hold their priorities of lesser quality can manage to get their titles out and make a profit as well. Thriller was a movie that Synapse took a chance on and to them I say thank you. Continuing to deliver the best possible DVD presentation, Synapse once again does a phenomenal job with Thriller. The disc opens to an animated menu with a voice-over before settling into music by Ralph Lundsten. There a nineteen chapter stops with remote access and four separate menus entitled Death, Destruction, Mayhem, and Revenge. Synapse includes two filmographies one on Director Bo Arne Vibenius and another on the extremely talented and very lovely Christina Lindberg as well as a theatrical trailer for “They Call Her One Eye”, a TV Spot, a “Thriller” trailer, and a Double Feature trailer.

Extensive Still Galleries of Rare Behind-the-Scenes Photos, Including Many Candid Nude Photos of Christina Lindberg on the Set! - This is the highlight of the DVD, no question about it. Christina Lindberg is absolutely beautiful, whether she is holding a gun or posing nude. She has an enchanting smile and a gorgeous body. She knows how to present herself in any given situation and can change directions just like the wind, from a delicate angel to a woman without fear. These photos serve to accentuate not only her profound elegance, but her charismatic charm as well. Everything imaginable is covered from behind the scenes photographs to production stills and even the presentation of her refined contours.

Alternate Harbor Fight Sequence Reconstructed from Rare Vault Materials - When “Thriller - A Cruel Picture” was re-edited and released in the U.S. many aspects of the film were changed including the edit of the Harbor Fight sequence. While searching for elements for this special edition DVD, Synapse uncovered trimmed and altered footage and decided to reconstruct the scene. Running just over five minutes, this composite stands as a great supplement for fans to enjoy.

Thriller: A Cruel Lab Mistake - Rare Photos Detailing an Unused Fight Sequence Ruined by the Film Lab During Production - When Director Bo Arne Vibenius turned in his materials into the film lab for development the lab technician declared the print of a fight sequence between Christina Lindberg and two cops to be unusable, because of a confusion regarding Bo Arne Vibenius’s slow motion technique. The negative print sent production behind by two days and Bo Arne Vibenius re-shot the sequence inside of a warehouse. Synapse reconstructs the scene through the remnants of rare still photographs and presents it here in a concise, but effectively detailed album.

Thriller: “The Story in Pictures” and Outtakes - Thriller: ‘The Story in Pictures’ is a short collection of still photographs from the movie presented in a sequential manner that shows us the story of Thriller as seen through pictures, hence the title ‘The Story in Pictures.’ It’s kind of amusing upon first viewing, but be sure to hold onto something, you’ll get kind of dizzy. The outtakes run roughly a minute in length and consist of Christina Lindberg firing a weapon properly, using karate, and Bo Arne Vibenius testing the realism of the special effects.

Overall you have to hand it to Synapse. They are doing such a wonderful job and I’ve never been more proud discovering this movie thanks to their company. I honestly recommend Thriller to fans of exploitation and art house films. This is a solid presentation that showcases the commitment and love of Synapse.

Extra Material Rating: ****½/*****

Packaging Details:
Disc(s): Single Layered Picture Disc
NTSC
Inside: Liner Notes
Package: Plastic Keep Case

Closing Thoughts:

Thriller is a provocative and an unintentionally enthralling exploitation film that’s emotionally absorbing and physically threatening as well. You have to allow yourself, whether it be consciously or unconsciously, the ability to be immersed by the lyrical impartiality of Thriller’s narrative. As a viewer you have to find the medium that sustains you and change your life accordingly to understand the buried messages in what it is your eyes see. Thriller paints for us a portrait of ambiguity -- it is a motif of life’s purity slowly being corrupted by the sins of the world. The motivation behind every depraved gaze and every indirect gesture is a polluted and adulterated correlation of the human conscious’ desire for sex and the eclipsing gluttony cast over all of us. The emphasis couldn’t be placed any more strategically to not understand that perspective. So if you are aware of the boundaries ahead and the obstacles that the mind must not forfeit to, then Thriller will likely be a movie you will grow to appreciate.