Initiation, The (Blu-ray)
Anthony Arrigo
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Starring Daphne Zuniga, Clu Gulager, Vera Miles
Directed by Larry Stewart
Distributed by Arrow Video
By the time 1984 rolled around slasher films had been done to death and back… although that didn’t stop producers from pumping them out right on up through the end of the decade. Still, since most viewers knew the formula by that point some slashers chose to operate outside that box and do things a little differently. One of those pictures is The Initiation (1984), another sorority slice-and-dice venture that is mostly notable for being Daphne “Where is she now?” Zuniga’s film debut. Rather than just dumping a bunch of hard-bodied hotties on a campus and watching a killer work his way through to the Final Girl, The Initiation changes things up by spending the first half focusing on recurring nightmares and emotional baggage before settling into a bit of the old stalk-and-slash. And there’s also the big twist which, while a bit shocking, makes almost zero sense in the grand scheme of things.
Ever since she was a child, Kelly Fairchild (Daphne Zuniga) has suffered from a repeated nightmare of a man being burned alive in her parent’s bedroom. She has no explanation as to why this vision persists, but one of the assistants in her psychology course, Peter (James Read), offers to help Kelly by analyzing her dreams. Despite her mental predicament Kelly is still trying to be a normal college student, part of which includes pledging at a popular sorority house. It’s Hell Week and the sorority sisters have a task for their pledges: break into Kelly’s father’s department store and steal a guard uniform. If Kelly and her two pledge sisters, Marcia (Marilyn Kagan) and Alison (Hunter Tylo), are successful they will pass the initiation process.
Meanwhile, a group of patients from a local mental hospital have escaped, killing a nurse in the process. This event is initially unrelated, but eventually our unseen killer makes his way over to the same department store where our leading guys and gals will wind up after hours. Before that happens, Kelly sees Paul to get her nightmares analyzed and he comes to a shocking conclusion – her perpetual nightmare is really a repressed memory! Kelly’s mother, Frances (Vera Miles), and her father, Dwight (Clu Gulager), don’t like the idea of this “dream doctor” probing around in her head. Gee, I wonder why? Kelly winds up face-to-face with her horrific vision when her friends start getting picked off one by one, forcing her to face her fears and uncover the truth.
There is a surprising amount of character depth on display here, more so than similar pictures of the era. Kelly is a person with a traumatic past, one she has to suppress on a daily basis. Our unseen killer dispatches new victims sporadically, enough to keep the viewing audience invested, but most of the first half is concerned with setting up Kelly’s mental state as well as her family life, which from the outside appears loving and “normal”. There are cracks in the porcelain, though, and Frances’ wild concerns over her daughter’s dreams being analyzed seem to be pointing to her covering up an ages old secret. The major secret in question will likely be obvious to anyone well versed in cinema, but there is a second reveal that produces a serious shock – even if it is beyond preposterous.
Later, when the sneaky sextet of kids are sitting around in the department store, chugging brews and getting into deeper-than-expected discussions, one of the girls – who has been teased relentlessly for being a virgin the entire movie – admits to be abused earlier in life as the reason why she’s never gone the distance with any guy. At first it plays like she’s going to yell “Sike!” at some point but eventually it becomes painfully clear she is divulging some heavy shit that catches everyone off guard. Little moments like that are what make these archetypes a bit more rounded and human.
Unexpected personification aside, there real reason we’re all here is to watch these college kids die, preferably in gruesome, inventive fashion. Very few slasher films do such a masterful job of developing characters that you genuinely feel bad when they eat a knife. Even here, outside of Kelly the most human character is the aforementioned girl who was molested and nobody is likely to shed a tear if she dies. The Initiation gets creative – someone’s neck is impaled with a gardening tool, another guy gets shot with a spear gun, the store security guard has one helluva yell when he gets stabbed – these kills might not live in slasher film infamy but they are much more visceral and unique than most.
Arrow Video presents The Initiation on Blu-ray, with a 1.85:1 1080p picture that comes from a new 2K scan of the original 35mm negative. This isn’t an image likely to blow viewers away, but the high quality yielded from the new scan is clearly evident during the many daylight and close-up scenes and shots throughout the film. The flashback scenes have that “blurred remembrance” quality to them, so expect to see plenty of softness. Black levels look great, although sometimes details are lost to overwhelming shadows. White levels look a touch hot to my eyes, mostly during the first act, though. Again, you won’t be blown away but this is a clear upgrade over the old Anchor Bay DVD and should please all but the most picky videophile fans.
The audio comes via a very simple LPCM 1.0 mono track. Support for dialogue and sound effects is strong, though there is some minor hissing on a few occasions. The ‘80s synth score by composer’s Gabriel Black and Lance Ong isn’t one of the decade’s best, not by a long shot, but it adds some lo-fi atmosphere that is emblematic of that period. The film ends with a bizarre, jazzy little number that doesn’t quite fit but it is a fun listen. Subtitles are available in English SDH.
There is an audio commentary track with… The Hysteria Continues? Whatever that is. Shame they couldn’t get any people who, you know, actually made the movie.
“Sorority Saga” is a great interview with writer Charles Pratt, Jr.
“Pledge Night” is a sit-down with actor Christopher Bradley.
“Dream Job” is an informative chat with actress Joy Jones.
There is an extended scene, although it doesn’t amount to much, featuring some additional party footage sans audio (but with scripted subtitles).
The film’s trailer is also included on the disc, while the screenplay and production schedule can be found via BD-ROM. A booklet is also included.
Special Features:
- Brand new restoration from original film elements
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- Original Uncompressed Mono PCM audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Brand new audio commentary by The Hysteria Continues
- Brand new interview with actor Christopher Bradley
- Brand new interview with actress Joy Jones
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Justin Osbourn
- FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by critic James Oliver
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The Initiation
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Special Features
Categorized:Reviews
