Rip Torn gives one of the great screen performances as a psychiatrist secretly filming his own mental breakdown in Milton Moses Ginsberg’s classic exploration of dark eroticism and self-referential cinematic form. Anticipating the camcorder-driven, diary films of today, the entire film is shot into a mirror from a single camera angle in a one-room apartment. Psychoanalyst Joe Glazer, aka Glassman, rents a studio apartment in a towering glass-walled skyscraper, away from his office and his pregnant wife, where he has a variety of sexual encounters with a series of women — all of which he films with a hidden camera. But always looking over his shoulder, Joe becomes a voyeur of his own life, the camera his only mode of communication. Until finally encased in his own reflection, Joe ends up filming his own disintegration.
Although entirely scripted, this fierce, frank and explicit film seems improvised. The acting is so explosive it seems uncontrolled and the sex scenes have been described as real and pornographic. In dramatic opposition to Hollywood’s narrative filmmaking aesthetic, Ginsberg calls attention to the presence of the camera, abandoning cinema’s “omniscient eye” for a deliberately conscious “camera eye.” Truly ahead of its time, Coming Apart remains a visionary and transformative piece of American cinema.
For thoughts on Coming Apart, please check out our previous overview here (around the 4:00 mark).
Video Quality
Coming Apart makes its Blu-Ray debut thanks to Kino Classics with a brand new 1080p master derived from a 2K restoration. This is another instance of a film that has been a bit hard to track down over the years, so to see it looking so strong and stable is a gift for adventurous cinephiles. The gritty black-and-white photography shot by Jack Yager impresses in high definition with natural grain intact. The contrast is well defined, and the track only experiences a slight amount of flicker and density fluctuation in the print.
Despite the logistical limitations to the structural choices, there is a striking amount of detail present with nice textures on the clothing and within the production design. The transfer shows some minor nicks and faint lines, but it is apparent that it has been cleaned up immensely. The new restoration shows off a great amount of depth within the apartment. Black levels are fairly deep with no overwhelming occurrence of black crush or compression artifacts. Kino Classics has given this one a rich second life on Blu-Ray.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a strong LPCM 2.0 track that serves this movie well within its limited sonic ambitions. Diegetic music is not the most robust sounding effort, which makes sense in context, and it never overpowers the dialogue or other important information. Dialogue and environmental noises are represented in harmony with all competing elements. This track shows some instances of age related wear and tear such as hissing and crackles, but like the video there is evidence it has been tightened up immensely. Kino Classics has delivered a fine presentation given what they had to work with. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.
Special Features
- Interviews
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- From The Paris Premiere: A nearly three-minute piece from 2004 with Milton Moses Ginsberg in which the director discusses the development of this film, the diary format of the narrative, and much more.
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- 50th Anniversary Interview: A nearly 32-minute piece from the Metrograph in NYC from 2019 in which Milton Moses Ginsberg discusses his experience as the creator of this work, the initial reaction, the work with the volatile performers, working on a very small budget, the filming process and more.
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- Rip Torn Memorial: A ten-minute piece from The Actors Studio in 2019 in which Milton Moses Ginsberg discusses the powerhouse performer that is Rip Torn and the impact he had on his life.
- KRON – Along The Avenue Of Time: A 45-minute experimental feature by Milton Moses Ginsberg from 2020 which finds a man losing himself within the microscopic universe of the internal mechanism of watches which manifests larger themes of death, age, loss and more.
- Milonga In A Lonely Station: A five-minute short film by Milton Moses Ginsberg from 2020 which is similarly experimental and sentimental.
- Original Theatrical Trailer: A three-minute trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
Coming Apart is certainly not the most pleasant cinematic experience, but it is an endlessly transfixing endeavor thanks to the towering performance from Rip Torn. There are narrative elements which make you want to go take a shower, but the interplay between performers is really something to experience. This is another example of a film you admire for its bravery and expansion of storytelling choices, but it is not one that you can fully commit to loving on almost any level. Kino Classics has delivered a Blu-Ray release that sports a great A/V presentation and a decent assortment of special features. If you want to see a commanding performance from Rip Torn, it is worth checking out for that alone.
Coming Apart is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.