John Cassavetes: Five Films

Although initially making a name for himself as an actor, John Cassavetes is best known today as a director. In fact, he has been called “the father of contemporary American independent filmmaking,” and this fine boxed set from Criterion amply demonstrates why. Beginning with 1959's Shadows, Cassavetes went outside the studio system to make movies, financing them himself and recruiting actors who enjoyed varying degrees of success in Hollywood films. Groundbreaking, experimental, improvisational, and even visionary to a degree, his features eschewed the “accepted” form of mainstream fare; they didn't hew to formulaic stories or rely on hackneyed narrative devices. Character, rather than plot, drove most of Cassavetes' directorial efforts, and his devoted stock company (headed by wife Gena Rowlands) played businessmen, gangsters, nightclub owners, housewives, strippers, hippies, and even actors, with the filmmaker's humanist strain always coming to the fore, especially with regard to the compassion he showed to his flawed protagonists. Shadows, shot in New York City, is the gritty tale of a light-skinned black woman (Lelia Goldoni) involved with a white man (Anthony Ray). Faces (1968), one of the most powerful films in the director's oeuvre, stars Rowlands in an exploration of infidelity. A Woman Under the Influence (1974), in some ways overlong and unnecessarily indulgent, teams Rowlands with Peter Falk in a story about a wife suffering a protracted nervous breakdown. Even some of Cassavetes' staunchest proponents have problems with The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)--presented here in both its theatrical version and the half-hour-longer director's cut--but this strip-club melodrama is bizarrely compelling and features extraordinary performances by Ben Gazzara, Seymour Cassel, and Timothy Carey. The director appears onscreen with wife Rowlands and real-life pal Gazzara in Opening Night (1977), which examines the crisis faced by a middle-aged actress when her most ardent longtime fan suddenly dies, just as she is about to open in a new play. All five films look stunning in newly remastered digital transfers, and the folks at Criterion have supplemented them with a plethora of extra features, including Charles Kiselyak's three-hour-plus tribute A Constant Forge: The Life and Art of John Cassavetes, new documentaries and newly shot interviews with Rowlands and other stock-company members, archival behind-the-scenes footage, a 17-minute alternate opening to Faces, and a 70-page booklet full of essays. Recommended. (E. Hulse)[Blu-ray Review—Oct. 22, 2013—Criterion, 5 discs, 746 min., not rated, $124.95—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, John Cassavetes: Five Films compiles five of the director's titles, all of which feature great transfers and uncompressed mono soundtracks. Extras for Shadows include Charles Kiselyak's 2000 documentary “A Constant Forge: The Life and Art of John Cassavetes” (201 min.), 2004 interviews with costar Lelia Goldoni (12 min.) and associate producer Seymour Cassel (5 min.), a restoration demo (11 min.), workshop footage (4 min.), stills and poster galleries, and trailers. Extras for Faces include a 1968 episode of the French TV series Cinéastes de notre temps on Cassavetes (48 min.), a 2004 “making-of” featurette (42 min.), an alternate opening sequence (18 min.), and a production featurette with cinematographer and editor Al Ruban (12 min.). Extras for A Woman Under the Influence include audio commentary by composer Bo Harwood and camera operator Mike Ferris, a 1975 audio interview with Cassavetes (75 min.), a conversation between costars Gena Rowlands and Peter Falk (17 min.), stills galleries, and a trailer. Extras for The Killing of a Chinese Bookie—both the original 1976 and the re-cut 1978 version—include an interview with star Ben Gazzara and Ruban (18 min.), an audio interview with Cassavetes from the 1970s (16 min.), a stills gallery, and a trailer. Extras for Opening Night include an audio interview with Cassavetes (29 min.), a conversation between costars Rowlands and Gazzara (23 min.), and a 2004 interview with Ruban (8 min.). Also included is a booklet featuring various essays, writings, and tributes. Bottom line: a fine set highlighting the work of one of the fathers of independent cinema makes a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]