Demonlover (2002)

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General		Extras
Category	Thriller	Main Menu Audio Featurette-Making Of Interviews-Cast & Crew Featurette-Making Of-Making of The Soundtrack With Sonic Youth Gallery-Photo-Stills (21) Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	2002
Running Time	116:12
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Olivier Assayas
Studio Distributor	SND Groupe M6 Madman Entertainment	Starring	Connie Nielsen Charles Berling Chloë Sevigny Gina Gershon Jean-Baptiste Malartre Dominique Reymond Edwin Gerard Thomas M. Pollard Abi Sakamoto Julie Brochen Jorgen Doering Jean-Charles Dumay Jean-Pierre Gos
Case	Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip
RPI	?	Music	Jim O'Rourke Sonic Youth

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.30:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    French writer/director Olivier Assayas creates a visually stunning world of corporate greed and espionage with his 2002 film Demonlover. It is a brave but somewhat flawed film that is sure to confuse and probably aggravate as many as it will please.

    The French-based multinational Volf Corporation is in the final stages of acquiring TokyoAnimé, a Japanese animation company who produce immensely popular animated manga pornography. TokyoAnimé are also on the verge of introducing a new and revolutionary 3-D video game, which is another reason why this company is such an attractive acquisition.

    To complicate things, two competing companies are vying for exclusive web licensing rights to Volf's new venture. Japanese company Magnatronics and the secretive U.S. based Demonlover are looking to get a piece of this new and exciting technology.

    We learn from the opening scenes that Mr. Volf's personal assistant; Diane (Connie Nielsen), is not absolutely dedicated to her boss or his corporation. Diane is operating as a double agent for Magnatronics and her covert mission involves undermining the Demonlover bid. She highlights the possible connection between Demonlover and a secretive underground web site that involves extreme sexual torture called The Hell Fire Club.

    The premise of the film follows a consistent and sometimes confusing theme of things not being as they seem. Character loyalties become shadowy and undefined as the level of their espionage intensifies. Diane's work partner, Hervé  (Charles Berling), is keen to develop their relationship beyond one of pure business - but are his emotions and intentions really genuine? Tormented Volf Company Assistant Elise (Chloë Sevigny) also has hidden loyalties and agendas that are slowly unravelled.

    Demonlover looks stunning for the most part and Sonic Youth's haunting soundtrack is the perfect accompaniment to that vision. The film does suffer from some overindulgence, especially in the second half. However, there is enough to like through the rest of the film to recommend it. Whatever your opinion of Demonlover , there is no denying it is a brave film from a very confident filmmaker.

Video

    The video transfer is generally very good.

    The film is presented in an aspect ratio of 2.30:1, which is very close to the film's original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. This disc also features 16x9 enhancement.

    If you look into the making of this film, you will note that many different film sources were used, with varying results. While many scenes are deliberately grainy and occasionally soft, the overall levels of sharpness and clarity are quite good. Blacks and shadows were of excellent quality generally and were free of low-level noise.

    Colour usage is very hard to define in this film. The palette ranges from drab and plain office settings to vibrant and erratic colours of nightclubs and animation scenes. Blues were used to stark effect during night scenes and highlighted the excellent use of colour over the entire film.

   MPEG artefacts were not an issue with this transfer. Film-to-video artefacts weren't problematic and film artefacts were not noticed.

    Three languages are widely spoken throughout the film, French, Japanese and English. This disc contains English subtitles, which are easily read in bold yellow.

    This DVD is a single sided, dual layer disc. The layer change occurs at 28:00 and is very easily noticed. This could and should have been much better placed.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio transfer is impressive, without being overindulgent.

    There are two audio tracks available on this DVD; English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) and English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s).

    All of the English dialogue throughout the film sounded clear and was easily understood. There was one minor blemish on the audio of this disc. A minor and very brief audio drop-out occurs at 57:03, with the silence lasting about half a second. Audio sync appeared to be excellent.

   The musical score by New York band Sonic Youth is moody and brooding. Indeed, much of the film's surreal atmosphere is ode to this haunting score. Their unique blend of conventional and experimental sound works a treat in Demonlover .

    The surrounds were used in an excellent partnership with the score, offering both direct sound placement and ambient sound. Two scenes that worked the surround channels beautifully were the noisy office scene at 12:52 and the squash game at 17:02, with the ball sounds moving around the channels.

    The subwoofer was highly active throughout the film, enhancing music and direct sound effects. Gunshots and explosions were obvious highlights, with the Hellfire Club montage scene at 72:00 a standout scene for  subwoofer usage.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

    The selection of extras on offer complements the overall presentation very well.

Menu

    The menu is surprisingly disappointing considering the other aspects of this edition. The menu is a basic and static design which is 16x9 enhanced. A looped sample of Sonic Youth's brooding score accompanies the static image.

Featurette: The Making Of Demonlover  (56:43)

    This is an excellent behind-the-scenes look at the making of Demonlover. There is a candid and fascinating insight into the composition of many scenes, with the various technical aspects highlighted. We also get an intriguing look at the special effects used in the film. This forthright documentary also features informal interviews with Olivier Assayas, Denis Lenoir, Charles Berling and Connie Nielsen.

Featurette: The Making Of The Soundtrack With Sonic Youth  (30:17)

    It's not often you get a documentary about the making of a film's soundtrack, so this featurette is quite welcome. This is a fantastic look into the process of scoring the film with American band Sonic Youth. The band uses various methods of distortion and effects to reach their desired outcomes. It is also interesting to note the amount of input the film's director Olivier Assayas tries to have into the score. This featurette gives fantastic insight into the behind-the-scenes aspect of marrying image with sound and is a must for anyone with even a slight interest in the process.

Interviews With Cast And Crew

    The actors briefly discuss their roles, while Olivier Assayas discusses the birth of the project, the script and working with American actors. The only interview in English is the one with Chloë Sevigny . All others are in French, with yellow English subtitles.

• Connie Nielsen (6:43)
• Charles Berling (3:21)
• Chloë Sevigny (5:35)
• Olivier Assayas (4:55)

Stills Gallery

    A collection of twenty one images from the film and also behind-the-scenes images.

Theatrical Trailer

    Demonlover (2:04)

Easter Egg (4:46)

    Highlight the Stills Gallery and then press either the right or left hand side arrow on your remote control. This will reveal the word "Demonlover". Highlight the word, then press enter to view the Hell Fire Club scene.

    The R1 edition contains exactly the same extras as this local edition, with the addition of a question and answer session at the Ohio State University. This thirty-nine minute extra has Olivier Assayas answering audience questions after a screening of the film.

    The R1 edition also has an additional 6.1 dts-ES audio track and the option of Spanish subtitles as well as English subtitles.

    If you're a big fan of the film, you may wish to track down the R1edition for these additions. For myself, I'd be happy to stick with this local version.

    Demonlover is a reasonably good corporate thriller that certainly won't please everyone. It is occasionally sexy and generally always visually exciting and atmospheric, with a wonderful brooding soundtrack by Sonic Youth .

    The video and audio transfers are both excellent.

    The selection of extras is relevant and very worthwhile.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall