Ginger Snaps: Collector's Edition (1990)

Details: By Loron Hays; 27 July 2014

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Ginger Snaps - Blu-ray Review

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Never before in the history of motion pictures have the changes that happen inside the female body when a girl gets her first period been explained so clearly then in Ginger Snaps, a female-led werewolf movie from the early part of the 1990s. Oh, sure, the werewolf metaphor for puberty has been tackled before in Gene Fowler Jr.'s 1957 I Was a Teenage Werewolf and Rod Daniel's 1985 Teen Wolf, but they took on the typical male point of view with hair cropping up in unusual places and strange, new body odors. Ginger Snaps goes with the mighty female side of things and, quite literally, scares the hell out of us.

This angst-ridden, lycanthropic film (full of great practical effects) is directed by John Fawcett and expertly written by Karen Walton, who was so averse to writing a horror script that she went out of her way to make it original. Two sisters, Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) and Brigitte (Emily Perkins), deep in their shared basement bedroom, make a suicide pact in their Us vs. The World mindset. Meanwhile, in their oddly normal Ontario suburb, a savage beast is prowling the grounds killing dogs almost on a nightly basis. The town is spooked to be sure but they continue to go about their business. No human has been attacked … yet.

The alienated sisters – after their mother (Mimi Rogers) makes a big stink when Ginger’s big day arrives with ''our little girl is a woman now” comments – sneak out of the house at night to play a prank on one of the idiots in their school. But trouble finds them. Ginger is violently attacked by the dog-killing beast. Brigitte gets her home and discovers that Ginger’s wounds are healing abnormally fast. That’s not the only thing she notices over the next couple of days. Ginger is changing; transforming into someone she doesn’t recognize. Boys are her new desire. And she’s always hungry…

Ginger Snaps, being a Canadian production, obviously gets its main inspiration from David Cronenberg’s many explorations of bodily horrors. Fawcett and Walton take the body as horror element a bit deeper, however; and throw a hefty amount of clever satire into the mix. To be clear, though, Ginger Snaps is not camp. There are moments of humor thrown in but the satire – largely full of sociological and psychological elements - is of a serious-minded nature. This foundation makes for a strange mix when the horror gets serious in the final thirty minutes of the film and Ginger must be silenced forever by Brigitte or else join her.

Better written than Jennifer’s Body and more poignant than the nightly news, this forgotten gem of the horror genre gets a proud restoration (and overall treatment with supplemental materiel) thanks to the fine folk over at Shout! Factory.

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MPAA Rating: Unrated.
Runtime: 108 mins
Director: John Fawcett
Writer: Karen Walton
Cast: Emily Perkins, Katharine Isabelle, Kris Lemche
Genre: Horror
Tagline: She's got the curse.
Memorable Movie Quote: "A girl can only be a slut, a bitch, a tease, or the virgin next door."
Distributor: Cinema Village Features
Official Site: http://www.gingersnapsthemovie.com/
Release Date: April 21, 2001
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: July 22, 2014
Synopsis: Two death-obsessed sisters, outcasts in their suburban neighborhood, must deal with the tragic consequences when one of them is bitten by a deadly werewolf.

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Ginger Snaps - Blu-ray Review

Blu-ray Details:

Available on Blu-ray - July 22, 2014
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit); English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Discs: 50GB Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD); DVD copy
Region Encoding: A

It is probably safe to say that Scream Factory’s treatment of Ginger Snaps is one of their best outputs thus far. This 1080p, MPEG-4 AVC encoded 1.78:1 transfer of the film is of very high quality. The colors are crisp; the skin tones are natural; and the viscous blood pops in a bright and bold red. The film grain is kept beautifully intact, and even in the film’s darkest scenes there isn’t a great deal of deterioration. No major restoration/DNR processing signs appear noticeable, which leaves a faithful print. Similar to the video, the audio is of utmost quality. Capturing every nitty-gritty noise, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is impacting and balanced. This is one for the collectors and cinephiles alike.

Supplements:

Commentary:

None

Special Features:

Carrying over a few features from previous releases of the film and commissioning a mass of new interviews, this collector’s edition is packed with hours of features. First up is Ginger Snaps: Blood, Teeth, and Fur, a one-hour featurette with the cast and crew. This mini documentary offers a wealth of information, answering most of the questions that could be posed of the film. Second up, Growing Pains: Puberty in Horror Films is maybe the crown jewel of the set; a critical perspective of film from the insight of industry professionals and scholars. Also included are deleted scenes with optional separate commentary by John Fawcett and Karen Walton, a making of the creature featurette, a one minute video behind the scenes of the film, Theatrical Trailers, TV Spots, and Production Design Artwork.