Past Midnight Blu-ray Review
“Past Midnight” isn’t exactly thrilling.
1991’s “Past Midnight” was penned by Frank Norwood but is more well known for being rewritten by Quentin Tarantino (who scored his first credit here). The film is a cross between an erotic romance, a thriller, and a horror film and revolves around the characters of Ben and Laura. Ben was accused of murdering his pregnant wife and spent 15 years in prison. He is released on parole and his social worker (Laura) is trying to get him work. Laura is dating a co-worker (Steve), but is intrigued by the smart and mysterious Ben (even though he’s undeniably creepy). Laura investigates Ben’s past both out of curiosity and for due diligence and believes him to be innocent. She also begins to develop a sexual connection with him. As the story progresses, Laura starts to wonder if Ben really is a killer, but it’s possible someone else is trying to make it seem like he was a killer instead.
Director Jan Eliasberg’s “Past Midnight” boasts the tagline “A chilling love story,” but it never comes across like that. The film (which bypassed theaters and went to USA Network before heading to home video) plays like a Lifetime movie that is lacking in thrills and full of puzzling moments. Why is Ben creepy for the majority of the film? How can anyone buy into Laura and Ben’s romance? How is Laura not fired from her job? Why is the killer reveal so anti-climactic? Perhaps the most baffling aspect is that Tarantino wrote portions of this script. You certainly would never know it outside of a few lines here and there.
The only saving grace here is the cast that makes “Past Midnight” watchable. Natasha Richardson delivers the best performance here and manages to sell the ridiculous nature of the story. Rutger Hauer is efficiently creepy although he doesn’t seem as locked in here as say “Blade Runner” or “The Hitcher.” Clancy Brown is memorable in a supporting role and look out for a very young Paul Giamatti in a bit part.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.78:1 1080p. How does it look? This transfer is on par with other Alliance Entertainment catalogue releases. In other words, it’s a solid hi-def upgrade that has some defects.
Audio Track: 2.0 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The audio is a little on the soft side, but it’s decent enough.
No extra features outside of the retro VHS slipcover.
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