River's Edge

One of the most controversial films to be released this year, River's Edge opens with a teenager named John, standing beside his dead girlfriend, whom he strangled, at the edge of a river. At school, John tells his friends, and disbelieving (but not terribly concerned), they follow him to the river's edge. Their reaction ? Not shock, not sorrow, not...anything. Except for John's friend, Lane (Crispin Glover, last seen as Marty's father in Back to the Future) who becomes maniacally seized with a purpose: to protect his friend. Lane carts him off to a deranged murderer's (Dennis Hopper) hovel. Hopper, at his most charismatic, questions John about how he killed his girl friend, commenting that he himself had shot his. Crazy as Hopper is, he feels remorse for killing the woman he loved. John feels nothing: no remorse, no love, not even a sense of his own personal danger. When one of the boys, Mike, tells the police that John killed his girlfriend, the policeman asks him what he felt when he saw the dead body. Mike shrugs. Director Tim Hunter, who wrote the powerful little 1979 sleeper about bored suburban youth, Over the Edge, has delivered an even more memorable look at disaffected youth. Horrifying, clever, walking--successfully--a very fine line between drama and comedy, River's Edge is unique. (One small caveat: Crispin Glover's exaggerated act ing--the ostensible excuse is that Lane is a speed freak--detracts from an otherwise near flawless piece of filmmaking). Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)[DVD/Blu-ray Review—Dec. 30, 2014— Kino Lorber, 99 min., R, DVD: $19.95, Blu-ray: $29.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD and debut on Blu-ray, 1987's River's Edge features a nice transfer and a DTS-HD stereo soundtrack on Blu-ray. Extras include audio commentary by director Tim Hunter, and a trailer. Bottom line: a haunting indie favorite makes a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]