'Swimming To Cambodia' Blu-Ray Review - Jonathan Demme Captures An Electrifying Performance
Noted playwright, novelist and monologuist Spalding Gray spent eight weeks in Asia as an actor in Roland Joffé's Academy Award Winning historical drama The Killing Fields, chronicling the history of the Khmer Rouge regime. In his famed one man show, Swimming to Cambodia, Gray laid bare his experiences on set and contextualizes his anecdotes with the stark history of the region.
Directed for the screen by Jonathan Demme (Stop Making Sense), rendering Gray's heartfelt, often very funny, monologue cinematic with the help of collaborators like cinematographer John Bailey (Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters), editor Carol Littleton (Beloved), and multidisciplinary artist Laurie Anderson, who is responsible for the film's evocative score. Cinématographe is proud to bring one of the great performance films, and an oft-overlooked entry in Jonathan Demme's career, to blu-ray for the first time in the world in a 2K new restoration from its original camera negative.
For thoughts on Swimming to Cambodia, please check out my thoughts on No Streaming Required:
Video Quality
This new Blu-Ray debut from Cinématographe gives Swimming to Cambodia an AVC-encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1 derived from a 2K restoration from the 35mm Original Camera Negative. The fact that this title has been missing on the format for so long is unfortunate, so it is greatly appreciated that the label rectified the situation. This is a gorgeous transfer that all but eliminates any blemishes to the print including any white specks, tiny cuts or other potential blemishes. The transfer maintains impeccable film grain support throughout with nothing looking unnatural and no major instances of spiking. When you consider the age of the film and the source material, it is pleasing to see the footage looking so strong. There does not appear to be any issues with compression artifacts or any other such digital anomalies. The frame shows off some fine detail in the clothing of Gray and in some of the background elements of the stage. Colors present with a nice vividness that livens up the screen. This presentation does a stellar job of giving life to the performance.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray comes with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mono track that captures every word spoken by Spalding Gray with the utmost clarity. These stories are balanced perfectly with the light amount of manufactured environmental effects. There is not much in the way of music featured in this movie, but anything that comes up has great clarity and fidelity. This track shows no signs of age-related wear and tear such as hissing, humming, or popping. Cinématographe delivered the goods with this remastered audio track. Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included for the feature film.
Special Features
The Limited Edition version of Swimming to Cambodia comes beautifully packaged in a hard outer slipcase that opens up to a MediaBook that includes a bound booklet featuring new essays by film critics Marya E. Gates, Chris Shields, Keith Uhlich and David M. Stewart, author of There's No Going Back: The Life and Work of Jonathan Demme, plus select archival photo reproductions. These essays delve into the film from multiple angles and provide a great analysis in a thoughtfully written style. The on-disc special features are as follows:
Audio Commentary:
Film critic Scout Tafoya provides a commentary track that in no way comments directly on the film as it plays and instead gives a thorough cradle-to-grave overview of the life of Spalding Gray.
Interview with Director Jonathan Demme:
A nearly 17-minute archival interview with the iconic filmmaker in which he discusses Spalding Gray, his reasons for wanting to direct the film, developing the style for the film, collaborating with Gray, opening up the subject, and more.
Interview with Director of The Killing Fields Roland Joffé:
A new 21-minute interview with the filmmaker who directed Gray in the film featured in
Swimming to Cambodia
in which he discusses
The Killing Fields
, how he got involved with the film, shooting in Thailand, pushing his performers, and more.
Interview with Executive Producer Ira Deutchman:
A new nearly 13-minute interview with the producer in which he discusses the murky role of a producing credit, working with Demme, the competition for the rights to film the production, distributing the film, and more.
Interview with Producer Edward Saxon:
A new nearly 14-minute interview with the associate producer in which he discusses his partnership with Jonathan Demme, his thoughts on Spalding Gray, and more.
Pure Nonfiction Podcast:
Two episodes of the podcast that interviews documentary filmmakers featuring conversations with Jonathan Demme.
Jonathan Demme's Characters (1:04:20)
Jonathan Demme and Renée Shafransky on Spalding Gray (29:08)
Theatrical Trailer (0:50)
Final Thoughts
Swimming to Cambodia is not the first movie you consider when evaluating the career of Jonathan Demme, yet it stands as a strong example of his uncanny command over the camera. The impassioned performance from Spalding Gray is captivating in its own right, but it is how it is captured by Demme that gives it a degree of execution suitable for the big screen experience. Even if you have never seen The Killing Fields, this one-man show will stir something in you with the intrigue and wit of the stories. The art of storytelling has rarely been so deftly translated to screen. Cinématographe has provided a Blu-Ray that features a spectacular A/V presentation and a great assortment of supplemental features. Recommended
Swimming to Cambodia is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Cinématographe has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
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