Medium Cruel: Reflections on Videodrome
By August 30, 2004
In 1981, it seemed to me that a new era of the fantastic cinema was upon us. With this in mind, I persuaded an editor at Heavy Metal to accept an essay Read more »
- Canada
- 1983
- 87 minutes
- Color
- 1.85:1
- English
- Spine #248
SYNOPSIS: When Max Renn goes looking for edgy new shows for his sleazy cable TV station, he stumbles across the pirate broadcast of a hyperviolent torture show called Videodrome. As he struggles to unearth the origins of the program, he embarks on a hallucinatory journey into a shadow world of right-wing conspiracies, sadomasochistic sex games, and bodily transformation. Starring James Woods and Deborah Harry in one of her first film roles, Videodrome is one of writer/director David Cronenberg’s most original and provocative works, fusing social commentary with shocking elements of sex and violence. With groundbreaking special effects makeup by Academy Award®-winner Rick Baker, Videodrome has come to be regarded as one of the most influential and mind-bending science fiction films of the 1980s.
Cast & CreditsOpen
Cast
| Max Renn | James Woods |
| Bianca O’Blivion | Sonja Smits |
| Nicki Brand | Deborah Harry |
| Harlan | Peter Dvorsky |
| Barry Convex | Les Carlson |
| Brian O’Blivion | Jack Creley |
| Masha | Lynne Gorman |
Credits
| Director | David Cronenberg |
| Screenplay | David Cronenberg |
| Producer | Claude Héroux |
| Cinematography | Mark Irwin |
| Executive producers | Pierre David and Victor Solnicki |
| Associate producer | Lawrence Nesis |
| Music | Howard Shore |
| Editing | Ronald Sanders |
| Art director | Carol Spier |
| Special makeup designed and created by | Rick Baker |
| Special video effects | Michael Lennick |
| Production manager | Gwen Iveson |
| First assistant director | John Board |
| Creative consultant | Denise Di Novi |
Disc Features
DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DISC SET:
- New high-definition digital transfer of the unrated version, with restored image and sound and enhanced for widescreen televisions
- Two audio commentaries: David Cronenberg and director of photography Mark Irwin, and actors James Woods and Deborah Harry
- Camera (2000), a short film starring Videodrome’s Les Carlson, written and directed by Cronenberg
- Forging the New Flesh, a new half-hour documentary featurette by filmmaker Michael Lennick about the creation of Videodrome’s video and prosthetic makeup effects
- Effects Men, a new audio interview with special makeup effects creator Baker and video effects supervisor Lennick
- Bootleg Video: the complete footage of Samurai Dreams and seven minutes of transmissions from “Videodrome,” presented in their original, unedited form with filmmaker commentary
- Fear on Film, a 26-minute roundtable discussion from 1982 between filmmakers Cronenberg, John Carpenter, John Landis, and Mick Garris
- Original theatrical trailers and promotional featurette
- Stills galleries featuring hundreds of rare behind-the-scenes production photos, special effects makeup tests, and publicity photos
- English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired
- A booklet featuring essays by critics Carrie Rickey, Tim Lucas, and Gary Indiana
From the CurrentView the Current »
Film Essays
Videodrome: Make Mine Cronenberg
By August 30, 2004
Although it wasn’t obvious upon its release in 1983, Videodrome is a key work in the Cronenberg oeuvre. For this Virgil among filmmakers, our personable guide Read more »
News
Aces in the Hole
June 23, 2010
Two of our favorite artists, filmmaker David Cronenberg (Naked Lunch, Videodrome) and novelist Jonathan Lethem (who’s written liner notes for us and even set the opening scene Read more »
Clippings
LUNCH AT MIDNIGHT
February 22, 2009
“If there’s such a thing as an ideal time of day to expose yourself to the deranging, hallucinatory visions of the Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg, midnight might well Read more »
