A Primetime Saturday Night Network Television Spectacular starring Sissy St. Claire! Sissy St. Claire graces the small screen for her first ever television special, an evening full of music and laughter, glamour and entertainment! But Sissy’s live event quickly begins to curdle into a psychedelic nightmare of vanity, insecurity and delusional ambition, provoked by the glowering presence of a mysterious masked man.

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[youtube https://youtu.be/1D3SR_N-57U?t=3179]

Video Quality

Give Me Pity comes to Blu-Ray in a 1080p presentation that captures the intended aesthetic wonderfully. This is a visually distinct throwback to the ‘80s which recreates the budget television special look with a dreamy filter that still allows an incredible amount of detail to shine through. The transfer maintains the intended heightened look that showcases subtle elements of the inventive costumes and the charming production design. The skin tones and makeup look very textured and detailed all around.

The film is replete with splashy colors in the outfits and the lighting choices that really radiate off the screen. This film uses lighting to set the scene as it plays with the complementary production elements that make this experience feel so alive. The highlights are handled capably, along with the solid blacks that do not appear to suffer from any compression artifacts. This presentation represents this film in an ideal fashion.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that artfully translates the distinct artistic drive of the narrative. The film uses musical numbers in fun and fanciful ways that fill the room with grand fidelity. Dialogue comes through clearly without ever being overwhelmed by the sound effects or the score. The environmental effects create a rich soundscape that realizes the world in a believable manner. This is not a hugely kinetic film, but activity in the low end adds some texture that is appreciated. The sound design is precisely rendered with all of the sounds positioned just right in the mix. This is a lovely sounding release that brings the unique movie to life in an unbelievable way. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director Amanda Kramer and star Sophie Von Haselberg provide an entertaining commentary track in which they give background details on how they pulled off some of the film’s more ambitious sequences, memories from the production, the makeup and hairstyling choices, the crafting of certain bits of production design, fun moments on set and more.

Costume Fitting Polaroids: Various stills that show some of the looks of the film.

Behind The Scenes Photos: A six-minute collection of moments from the production is provided.

Dance Rehearsal Videos: A 22-minute look at the rehearsals for the various dance sequences.

Original Trailer: The nearly two-minute trailer is provided here.

Final Thoughts

Give Me Pity is a hypnotic viewing endeavor which might not make a grand impression upon your first watch, but it is an experience that lingers in your mind long afterwards. The jokes are not exactly hilarious, but the almost tragic nature of the character is dementedly amusing. The unique perspective of director Amanda Kremer keeps the viewer off kilter and unsure of what might possibly transpire. At just under 80 minutes, the film does not waste your time with unnecessary detours, and it stands out as something distinct in a crowded cinematic landscape. Utopia has released a Blu-Ray featuring a really good A/V presentation and a decent assortment of special features. While this movie will not be for all, it is worth a watch if you like “weird” cinema.

Give Me Pity 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: Utopia 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.