Review of Repo Man

Introduction

Otto, a nihilistic young punk (played by Emilio Estevez) wakes up to one hell of a day: he loses his dead-end job at the supermarket for swearing at the manager, finds his girlfriend cheating on him with his friend and discovers his parents have donated all of his graduation money to a television evangelist. Walking along the street kicking a tin can and generally feeling sorry for himself, he is unwittingly recruited into helping Bud (Harry Dean Stanton) repossess a car – and soon finds himself as part of the mercenary band of legitimate thieves called repo men. Not only that, but again by chance Otto finds himself caught up in a conspiracy plot come true when he crosses paths with a Chevy Malibu carrying materials of an extra-terrestrial origin. Although he’s only after the car for the $20,000 award offered for it, what its boot contains may well be the solution to Otto’s generic life.

Video

Surprisingly for a film made on a tight budget, it seems the picture has been made from good source materials. The print is free from specks and dust, and only in a few scenes is there film grain. Not only that, but the image is sharp and the colours strong, making for a very good visual experience. The presentation is in the original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and is anamorphically enhanced.

Audio

The track included is in Dolby 2.0 surround, and in general is very good with excellent clarity of dialogue and some decent surround effects. However, Anchor Bay’s Region 1 disc not only contains this soundtrack but also a 5.1 DD remix, so we miss out a little on the sound.

Features

Unfortunately, Anchor Bay’s version remains the version to get on the extras front too. Whilst North America are treated to a supposedly hilarious commentary by director and crew and cast biographies etc., there’s not even a trailer included on this disc. Deserves a big fat 0 for this section.

Conclusion

Repo Man is not a cult hit for nothing: everything about Repo Man shouts ‘unconventional’. The characters are undeniably wacky, the plot is suitably non-linear and the main character has a fittingly offensive sense of humour. Though the film loses steam after a frenetic first half-hour, by very definition cult films can bypass this kind of criticism and still retain a unique appeal. The Region 2 version has good picture quality and decent sound, but if you’re a true fan of Repo Man you’ll go for Anchor Bay’s version, which comes with a THX-certified picture, 5.1 sound and substantially more extras.