The following show critique portion of this review was written by my colleague AJ Fairnot.
Based on the 2016 novel by Matt Ruff, Lovecraft Country follows Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors) as he joins up with his childhood friend Leti Lewis (Jurnee Smollett) and his Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) to embark on a road trip from Chicago across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father, Montrose Freeman (Michael K. Williams). Their search-and-rescue turns into a struggle to survive and overcome both the racist terrors of white America and monstrous creatures that could be ripped from an H.P. Lovecraft paperback.
With a stellar cast including Jurnee Smollett, Jonathan Majors, and Michael K. Williams, Lovecraft Country is one of the best HBO series to date. It may be a simple thing, but one of the early things that stood out is when the show destroyed one of the most annoying basic tropes of any horror film – tripping on air. The moment when Jurnee Smollett’s character was running away from the monsters (Shoggoths) and not tripping or looking back; everyone fell in love with Lovecraft Country.
But that is not the only reason why the show is so good. The chemistry between Leti and Atticus is beautiful and the relationship between Atticus and Montrose is fascinating on so many levels. Ruby’s (Wunmi Mosaku) storyline was intriguing, fun, sexy and weird all at the same time.
One of my favorite episodes from Lovecraft Country was the sixth episode, “Meet Me in Daegu.” Ji-Ah (Jamie Chung) is a loveable character, but what she did is unforgettable. She should have told Atticus the truth and maybe he would have stayed with her.
Lovecraft Country has so many genres in the one show, it will be hard not to recommend this to a film or TV fan. If you are into romance, they have a ton of that, and it is not cringe romance like in most films or television. If you are into action, there are a lot of great action moments. If you are into mystery or horror, then you will love this show. But especially horror in a late-season episode: Jig-a-Bobo – I guarantee you that you will freak out!
Lovecraft Country is brilliant for many different reasons. Still, the main reason I think Lovecraft Country is brilliant is how they use horror, mystery, romance to talk about racism not only for blacks, but they touch on it with Asian culture as well. If we do get more seasons, I hope they can expand on this with other cultures too.
For additional thoughts, you can read episode reviews of episode one and episode two.
Video Quality
Lovecraft Country: The Complete First Season comes to Blu-Ray with an eye-popping 1080p presentation in 1.78:1 that pushes the format to its limit. The series is filled with intricately detailed settings and gorgeous cinematography from Michael Watson that is presented with perfect clarity on this disc. From the more brightly lit scenes to the numerous darker, shadowy sequences, the skin tones and facial details are incredibly rendered in a way you could almost mistake this for a 4K disc. The way the show blends the CGI creatures with the natural world is frankly quite startling in its seamlessness. Colors from the blood and costumes pop off the screen alongside the varied lush landscapes. Black levels are very deep and never betray the objects on screen. No instances of compression artifacts crept up during the viewing. This is an immaculate presentation that perfectly showcases a beautifully shot series that deserves such treatment.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 track that is quite lively. This kinetic series engages in some truly immersive environmental effects that keep the surround speaker filled with unsettling sounds.. There is some nice ambient activity in the rear channels, especially during moments where tension is building to a nice scary payoff. The dialogue primarily stays in front center channels and is reproduced clearly. The track does a good job of making sure neither sound effects nor the score ever overpowers dialogue. The series music from Laura Karpman and Raphael Saadiq brings an essential element to the series that fills up the room on this track. When the thrills kick in, there is some heft to the low end that is appreciated in a series such as this one. This track has a substantial dynamic range that should please fans of the series.
Special Features
- Orithyia Blue and the Imagination of Diana Freeman: An eleven-minute exploration of some of the genres the show wanted to tackle and how they used the comics to blend with the real world. This piece offers a great look at the underrepresentation of people of color in mainstream comics and how the show wanted to help fight against this through inventive uses of the medium.
- Lovecraft Country – Compendium of Horrors: A twelve-minute look at the more monstrous, fantastical elements in the show and how they are used to tell a more grounded, important story about race and society. This offers brief examinations of some of the individual monsters and horrific elements we see throughout the season with interviews from the cast and crew.
- Crafting Lovecraft Country: A 28-minute in-depth look at the genre-breaking show that delves more heavily into the production of the show. The cast and crew offer invaluable insights into what went into adapting the book, finding layers within the story, bringing the vision to life on screen and much more. This is by far the most involved supplement of the disc.
- Exploring Lovecraft Country: Eight minutes of interviews with the cast members including Aunjanue Ellis, Abbey Lee, Courtney B. Vance, Jada Harris, Jonathan Majors, Jurnee Smollett, Michael Kenneth Willams and Wunmi Mosaku. These are all brief, but offer a quick burst of information.
- Lovecraft Country – The Craft: Seven minutes of interviews with various crew members including Afua Richardson, Eric Yamamoto, Carey Jones and JP Jones.
Final Thoughts
The first season of Lovecraft Country shows how endlessly versatile the horror genre can be when it comes to telling meaningful stories about the disenfranchised. The show offers plenty of thrills along with some very pointed commentary on society at large. The creative team have assembled one of the strongest ensemble casts working on television today, which makes every episode a true joy to watch. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray set that sports a magnificent A/V presentation and some really cool special features. Even if you caught this show on HBO, this is a show you are going to want to own and watch on repeat. Highly Recommended
Lovecraft Country: The Complete First Season will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital on February 16, 2021.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this set 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.
