Cronos (Directors Suite) (1993) |
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Cronos (Directors Suite) (1993) |
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| BUY IT |
| General | Extras | ||
| Category | Horror |
Audio Commentary-Director Guillermo del Toro Interviews-Crew-Original interview with director Guillermo del Toro Interviews-Crew-Cinematographer Guillermo Navarro Featurette-Making Of-with Federico Luppi Gallery-Sketches, storyboards and production stills Theatrical Trailer Trailer-Four Madman Trailers |
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| Rating |
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| Year Of Production | 1993 | ||
| Running Time | 92:14 | ||
| RSDL / Flipper | RSDL | Cast & Crew | |
| Start Up | Menu | ||
| Region Coding | 4 | Directed By | Guillermo Del Toro |
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Studio
Distributor |
 Madman Entertainment |
Starring |
Federico Luppi Ron Perlman Claudio Brook Margarita Isabel Tamara Shanath Daniel Giménez Cacho Mario Iván Martínez Farnesio de Bernal Juan Carlos Colombo Jorge Martínez de Hoyos |
| Case | Amaray-Transparent | ||
| RPI | $34.95 | Music | Javier Álvarez |
| Video | Audio | ||
| Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None |
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0  (192Kb/s)English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) |
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| Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | ||
| 16x9 Enhancement |
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| Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
| Original Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | Miscellaneous | |
| Jacket Pictures | No | ||
| Subtitles |
English English Alternate Subtitles |
Smoking | Yes |
| Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
| Action In or After Credits | No | ||
Madman's Directors Suite label has released this directorial debut by Guillermo del Toro on DVD and Blu-ray. The review of the Blu-ray can be referenced here. I would like to quote fellow Michaeldvd reviewer, Ray Nyland's fine plot synopsis for this movie below:
In 1536 an alchemist fleeing the Inquisition arrived in Mexico. There he created the cronos device: a mechanical golden scarab, inside of which was a parasite that held the gift of eternal life. Four hundred years later the alchemist died when his heart was pierced in an accident and his possessions sold. There was no record of the cronos device in the inventory. Thus starts Mexican director Guillermo del Toro’s masterful 1993 film Cronos.
Forty years later, elderly antique dealer Jesus Gris (Federico Luppi) and his granddaughter Aurora (Tamara Shanath) discover the device in a wooden statue of an angel. Gris inadvertently engages the clockwork mechanism of the scarab and his hand is pierced by its mechanical arms, drawing blood and inserting under his skin a metal sting. At first he only experiences an increased thirst and becomes younger looking, much to the surprise of his wife Mercedes (Margarita Isabel), but he soon develops a fixation for human blood. However, the cronos device is being sought by dying industrialist De la Guardia (Claudio Brook) who has in his possession the alchemist’s book of instructions for controlling the device. De la Guardia sends his nephew Angel (Ron Perlman) to Gris to obtain the device, but he messes up the job and kills Gris instead. But Gris has the parasite in his blood and is now immortal. He awakes in the mortuary and escapes before his body is cremated. Revealing himself only to Aurora, Gris sets out to confront De la Guardia in an attempt to find the secret behind the cronos. There his humanity, and his love for his granddaughter, will be sorely tested.
Cronos was Mexican director Guillermo del Toro’s first film and it brought him to the attention of Hollywood. It is easy to see why: Cronos is a visually impressive and scary film, a new take on the old vampire tales by a brand new talent. Cronos owes far more to European horror and to Catholicism than to American horror films and it is no surprise that del Toro cites directors such as Terence Fischer, Mario Bava and Dario Argento as his influences. Cronos does not rely upon slasher shocks for its terror and it is not a sexy vampire tale of love and sweet young things – it is a vampire tale for adults, a reflection upon immortality, eternity, love, family, redemption and resurrection.
The analogies are not subtle: in Cronos there is a character named Jesus, who is resurrected and who is called upon to make a supreme sacrifice to save those he loves, a dark avenger called Angel and a granddaughter Aurora (which is dawn – a new beginning). The acting is impressive with Federico Luppi especially good as he goes through both physical and emotional changes, and Ron Perlman as the somewhat dim-witted and fragile Angel is also very good. Perlman obviously enjoyed working with del Toro and would star in his Hellboy films a decade later. Also of note is the look of the film. The sets, courtesy of production designer Tolita Figuero and art director Brigitte Broch, are multilayered and elaborate with the antique shop and De la Guardia complex wonderfully realised, while the cinematography of Guillermo Navarro is all light and shadows, evoking the light and shadows in the soul of Gris.
Cronos is a fabulous film. It is not a sexy vampire tale – it is a vampire story for adults, reflecting upon immortality, eternity, love, family, redemption and resurrection, beautifully realised by Guillermo del Toro. It is easy to see why Hollywood came knocking.
The video transfer is a port of the Region 2, 2006 Optimum Home Entertainment release of the film.
The aspect ratio of the film is 1:78:1, enhanced for widescreen televisions.
In my opinion, if you were to watch the film without comparison to the Madman Blu-ray or Criterion Region 1 releases, you could excuse the video transfer as being fine effort in relation to the low-budget of the film. However, this port from Region 2 suffers from being a tad too dark, lacking shadow detail and suffering from slight edge enhancement in places.
The overall colour timing is soft, it's not as sharp as the comparative Criterion Region 1 release. Madman's transfer is 4.2 gb in size with an average bitrate of 6.18 m/b per sec. Criterion's transfer is 4.8 gb in size with a better average bitrate of 7.10 m/b per sec.
Film artefacts are minor, scattered throughout the film (in this case, you can attribute this to the budgetary constraints of the producers who had $US 2 million to make it) .
Subtitles are provided for the Spanish portion of the film (as there are extended English dialogue sequences), in white or alternative yellow.
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Madman includes a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, based on the original remastered Dolby Digital Stereo soundtrack.
There are two main soundtracks, a Spanish and English 5.1 mix encoded at 448 kbps and a Spanish and English 2.0 surround-encoded mix encoded at 192 kbps. The director's commentary is also encoded at 192 kbps.
Dialogue is clear and synchronised.
The music score by Javier Alvarez supports the themes of the film, adding suspense and intrigue where necessary. The score is present in the film's introduction and sets up the mood for the rest of the film quite nicely.
The surround channel usage is remarkably similar in both the Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 surround mixes. The 5.1 mix is more dynamic though, and would be the audio track of choice to enjoy the film, but it's nice to have both options.
Like the Blu-ray, the subwoofer supports the effects and music.
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This audio commentary is the same as the director's commentary on the Region 1 Criterion release. This is presented in an enthusiastic manner, with barely pause, with del Toro discussing the production, technical details, his cameo and the state of the Mexican Film Industry at the time. It's informative, entertaining and in English.
This interview covers many topics, including the director's development from working with 8mm film to professional filmmaking, various influences on Cronos such as Terence Fisher, Frankenstein, German Expressionism, David Cronenberg and Clive Barker. Guillermo del Toro also discusses the film, the casting, the selection of Guillermo Navarro as cinematographer, the music, the sound effects, the budget and the general reaction to the finished film. Some comments are repeated from the audio commentary and there are no visual references to shots from the film (like Criterion routinely do with their interviews) but nevertheless it is entertaining. The interview is in Spanish with English subtitles.
Navarro discusses his relationship with del Toro and the shoot, but does not specifically talk about the cinematography.
This contains behind the scenes footage on the set. In Spanish with English subtitles.
A series of sketches, storyboards and production stills from the film.
Director's Suite previews for The Exterminating Angel (03:57), The Fifth Element (01:40), You, The Living (02:01) and An Actor's Revenge (02:49).
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
As mentioned, The 2006 Region 2 Optimum release is identical to the Region 4 Madman Directors Suite release. The Region 1 Criterion release contains the following extras:
The Region 4 Madman release has a more dynamic default audio track than the Region 1 Criterion, however, the Region 1 release has a better video transfer and includes the optional Spanish voice-over introduction, as well as a comprehensive booklet. Otherwise, the extras are on par in comparison. I think the Region 1 Criterion release is slightly better, but the Region 4 Madman Directors Suite version is similarly acceptable to fans of the film.
Just as Shallow Grave hinted at Danny Boyle's directorial skills in future projects such as Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours, likewise Guillermo del Toro's debut as a filmmaker hints at his greatness in movies such as Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth.
Although the video transfer could have been better, there are a decent set of extras here to enjoy and the film itself will lead to repeat viewing. Highly recommended!
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| Review Equipment | |
| DVD | Sony BDP-S550 (Firmware updated Version 020), using HDMI output |
| Display | Samsung LA46A650 46 Inch LCD TV Series 6 FullHD 1080P 100Hz. Calibrated with THX Optimizer. This display device is 16x9 capable. |
| Audio Decoder | Sony STR-K1000P. Calibrated with THX Optimizer. |
| Amplification | Sony HTDDW1000 |
| Speakers | Sony 6.2 Surround (Left, Front, Right, Surround Left, Surround Back, Surround Right, 2 subwoofers) |