Fear and Desire is the ambitious first feature film by legendary filmmaker Stanley Kubrick (Paths of Glory, Full Metal Jacket). In this existential drama—which has the feeling of a waking dream rather than a conventional war film—four soldiers return to their senses after crash-landing in a forest behind enemy lines. Blindly navigating their way back to their unit, they attack an isolated cabin occupied by enemy soldiers, then apprehend a peasant woman who is tormented by the deranged young soldier assigned to guard her. On the verge of freedom, they discover an outpost of enemy officers and must decide whether to slip silently past or stage a violent confrontation with their doppelgängers. Upon its initial release, Kubrick was stung by negative audience reactions and immediately decided to tone down the philosophical aspects of the film. These edits made the film less of a metaphysical experience and more of a conventional war film. For decades, this 62-minute version was all that existed of Fear and Desire, until the Library of Congress came into possession of a 35mm element of the original 70-minute premiere cut, which has not been seen since its interrupted theatrical run in 1953. Now, we can finally see Fear and Desire as it was first released, and witness the blossoming of a 23-year-old cinematic genius.
For thoughts on Fear and Desire, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Fear and Desire debuts on 4K UHD Blu-Ray courtesy of Kino Classics via a sumptuous new 4K restoration of the Original 35mm Camera Negative and Fine Grain in 2160p/Dolby Vision that delivers an unforgettable experience. The label previously released this effort on Blu-Ray restored in HD from a 35mm print in 2012, but the difference between the two could not be more apparent. Kino provides this feature with its due respect by giving it a chance to shine with a stellar transfer. Even though this film is an early work from the legendary filmmaker without his usual standard for production, the 4K presentation works wonders and brings out a new dimension to the filmmaking. It is not the most aesthetically pristine film we have ever seen given the age and condition of the source material, but it represents the best the film will probably ever look.
This picture showcases some wonderful depth to the image which gives way to a robust sense of scale within the frame. Black levels are deep without any unsightly nuisances such as crush or banding. This transfer impresses when it comes to textural details in the costumes and production design. The lovely black-and-white cinematography is striking with resolute gradients and subtle textures. This transfer maintains the filmic quality of the picture with textured film grain giving way to rich details. It may lean on the heavy side, but it always looks natural with nothing changing into noise or compression artifacts. The transfer eliminates most of the dust specks and print damage that saturated previous releases. This film looks better than you would hope even after knowing how much benefit a 4K UHD Blu-Ray can provide. Kino Classics continues to treat their Kubrick films with respect.
Audio Quality
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray comes with a very good DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track that represents this movie favorably when keeping in mind its age and source limitations. It is worth pointing out up top that the dialogue and effects were looped during post-production. While this can be somewhat distracting, it is not something you dwell on for too long. You will notice some loose sync and other slightly odd sound anomalies that emerge from a low-budget feature. The music mostly avoids instances of distortion along the way. Dialogue holds up fairly alongside background noises and all competing elements. The effects are quite formidable and crisp due to being manufactured after the fact and not captured on location. There are still traces of age-related wear and tear, but nothing that completely ruins the experience. This track holds up as well as you could hope. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.
Special Features
- Premiere Cut (1:10:19) and Theatrical Cut (1:00:56)
- Audio Commentary (Premiere Cut): Film Historian Eddy Von Mueller provides a deeply informative commentary track in which he discusses how this film fits into the career of Stanley Kubrick, how this film showcases some of his early style, the construction and themes of the narrative, the music of the film, and so much more that provides some great context to the feature.
- Audio Commentary (Theatrical Cut): Film Historian/Screenwriter Gary Gerani provides another great commentary track over another cut of the film that explores similar aspects of the production and legacy of the feature.
- Flying Padre (1951): A nine-minute short film from Stanley Kubrick presented in 4K UHD/Dolby Vision which follows a priest who executes his duties by traveling around by plane.
- Day of the Fight (1951): A 16-minute short film from Stanley Kubrick presented in 4K UHD/Dolby Vision which explores the day in the life of an Irish boxer.
- The Seafarers (1953): A 29-minute short film from Stanley Kubrick presented in 4K UHD/Dolby Vision which takes at the Seafarers International Union.
- Trailers: The 2023 Re-Release Trailer (1:18) and 2012 Re-Release Trailer (1:26) are provided for Fear and Desire. There are also trailers provided for Killer’s Kiss, The Killing, and Paths Of Glory.
Final Thoughts
Fear and Desire is not up to the level of quality that you expect from “Stanley Kubrick” the iconic filmmaker, but it stands as an interesting debut that shows the ingenuity that would lead to some of his future masterpieces. While Kubrick originally chose to cut down his version of the film to suit audiences of the time, you can see in the Premiere Cut that the director had the right idea to make things a bit less straightforward. We are glad both cuts are available on this disc, as they each inform something about his legacy and vision. Kino Classics has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray featuring an impressive A/V presentation and a terrific selection of additional features. If you are a Kubrick fan, this is the ideal way to round out your collection. Recommended
Fear and Desire is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD and Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD 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.