‘Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation’ Blu-Ray Review – Supernatural Crime Thriller Reveals The Anger Of A Country

Set amongst derelict, half-finished apartment complexes of a former regime, the discovery of a mysterious burnt body by two police officers reveals a puzzling repetition of events. As the investigation progresses, a network of violence and corruption is uncovered throughout the city.

For thoughts on Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic: 

[youtube https://youtu.be/8LVGW1SoP0U?si=sv50T0sonaK1fFfb&t=2637]

Video Quality

Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation makes its Blu-Ray debut with a gorgeous 1080p video presentation that captures the cinematography well. The crumbling production design and narratively vital shooting locations provide crystal clear textural details that are a treat to explore. The black levels reveal slight signs of banding in a few scenes with the fire light shining, but largely they maintain their depth. The flesh tones are natural with a magnificent amount of detail present in close-ups. The image is crisp with the nuanced, natural color palette shining off the screen. The film supplies some deep, complex colors within this mixture of urban drought and persistent nature. The presentation shows off an impressive amount of depth, especially when it comes to some of the tracking shots that explore the city. Overall this Blu-Ray is a great representation of this movie that should more than please fans. 

Audio Quality

Yellow Veil Pictures gives this Blu-Ray a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that feels faithfully realized throughout the narrative. The results are readily apparent from the opening moments with the nimble and effective sound design coming alive on the crime scene. Environmental sounds of the world engage the surround speakers in a very immersive way such as the audio from news reports or the murmuring of protests. When the characters are moving through the crumbling city, some distinct ambient details flesh out the setting. 

Dialogue flows through clearly without being overshadowed by any competing sounds. The music is effective and well-balanced while maintaining its fidelity. Truly hard-hitting moments are a rare occurrence with this track, but a few thrilling sequences deliver some nice texture to the proceedings. The audio track captures the nuances that make this narrative a reality. This film is presented in the original mixture of Arabic and French with optional English subtitles. 

Special Features

• Q&A With Youssef Chebbi and Fatma Oussaifi at New Directors/New Films: A nearly 31-minute conversation with the director and star at the Film at Lincoln Center in which they discuss this historical and political background to the story, the significance of the unfinished building of the narrative, mixing genres within this story, the development of the script, what attracted the star to the project, the impact of immolation on society, the music of the film, and much more. 

• Alternate Ending: An 11-minute alternate ending is provided here in an unfinished form and without any English subtitles. This ending conforms to what we get in the final version of the film, but there is a brief extension that somewhat lessens the impact of the final shot. 

• Scouting at Jardin de Carthage: A six-minute piece which shows the location scouting at the Garden of Carthage. 

• Booklet: A multi-page booklet featuring the essay “In Desolate Pockets of the Garden of Carthage” from writer Tyler Wilson is provided here. This piece gives a well-rounded analysis of the themes, historical connections, and plot developments of the film which strengthens your comprehension overall.  

Final Thoughts

Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation is not an impregnable film if you go into it with no real sense of Tunisian history, but it is a narrative that improves the more you understand and engage with it. The social wrestling between the methods of the past and the vision of the future creates a thrilling fulcrum where tensions morph into something unexplainable. Director Youssef Chebbi wields a firm command over this story that is pushed over the edge thanks to the performance of Fatma Oussaifi. There are a few wonky special effects and the deliberate pacing will not work for all, but this is not a film that you should let slip by you. Yellow Veil Pictures has released a Blu-Ray featuring a first-rate A/V presentation and a few welcome special features. Recommended 

Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation is currently available to purchase on Standard Edition Blu-Ray or with a Limited Edition Slipcover exclusively through Vinegar Syndrome. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Yellow Veil Pictures and Vinegar Syndrome have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.