Interiors

1978's "Interiors" marked writer/director Woody Allen's first venture into fully dramatic territory, and it's a work that invokes both Bergman in its compositions and Shakespeare in its barefaced ancestral tragedy.

Three sisters,Joey (Mary Beth Hurt), Renata (Diane Keaton) and Flyn (Kristin Griffith),find their daily lives and routines interrupted by their parents' divorce. The majority of this disruption arrives from the negative and narcissistic output of the family's matriarch, Eve (Geraldine Page), who channels her frustration with the separation into her daughters via anal-retentiveness, passive aggression and words that slice like razor blades.

The film's quartet of lead actresses all deliver stellar performances, the standouts being Page and Hurt who, as Eve and Joey, highlight the perils of a corrosive co-dependence. Keaton is marvelous in her melancholy and Griffith wonderful in her blissful ignorance, and collaboratively the cast weaves together some impressive scenes and powerful moments.

At times haunting, the look and sound palette of the film accompanies these performances with a presence all its own. At times, it's shot and sound-designed to feel like a waking nightmare ... which, to these characters, the plot most certainly is.

Twilight Time has released Allen's work on a Blu-ray edition that looks and sounds magnificent. For many, watching "Interiors" will be the first time to truly recognize Allen for his directorial abilities, as the writing always seemed to take the front seat in the filmmaker's classic comedies and romances. For bonus features, there is just the original theatrical feature included, but the film pays dividends all on its own.

"Interiors" Twilight Time
Blu-ray
$24.95
https://www.twilighttimemovies.com/interiors-blu-ray/