For 17 years, director Marie Losier has followed the trailblazing, provocative, and taboo-shattering career of artist and musician Peaches. From her early life, to her ascent towards becoming a queer feminist icon, her story is one that has defied expectations and exemplified fearless exploration and rebellion.
PEACHES GOES BANANAS is an intimate portrait of this singular artist. Capturing her thrilling live shows, artistic process, close relationships with her family, and her rise to fame, the film is a “poetic… two-decade long conversation between two artists,” (The Upcoming).
For in-depth thoughts on Peaches Goes Bananas, please see my colleague Dave Giannini’s review from its theatrical debut here.
Video Quality
Peaches Goes Bananas comes to Blu-Ray courtesy of Film Movement with a rewarding high definition master that translates this material accurately. With so much footage captured over several decades, the feature combines a variety of sources of variable quality to showcase the history of this singular artist. All of the material looks great within the context of the source and filming conditions. At its best, moments largely look clear and natural with some detailed features brought out with the film grain. The material exhibits only minor source deficiencies, and the transfer does not succumb to anything in the way of compression artifacts or digital anomalies. The contrast is dialed in perfectly throughout with no crushed blacks or blown highlights. This footage is not always the most colorful, but it is saturated appropriately. There are limitations to how good things can look, but this Blu-Ray disc achieves the best possible outcome.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray disc comes with a solid Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track that is a winner. Music is forefront in the channels with many fan-favorite tunes permeating heroically to transfix enthusiasts and newcomers alike. The dialogue that is captured is at the mercy of the source, but most exchanges come through well enough to discern everything. The surround sound presentation makes the overview more lively with certain performance moments dazzling. The film balances the interviews with a good amount of footage from the past, all of which is represented to the best of their abilities. There are no age-related weaknesses or other issues observed. Film Movement has done a swell job with this disc. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided.
Special Features
- Director Marie Losier Interview: A 13-minute interview with the filmmaker is provided in which she speaks about first meeting and learning about Peaches, the inspiration for making the film, getting footage from Peaches, the process of analyzing what was important in the edit, and so much more.
- Trailer (1:52)
- Booklet: A 16-page booklet from author and film critic Payton McCarty-Simas is provided that looks at the creative figures at the center of this feature.
Final Thoughts
Peaches Goes Bananas is a decently layered portrait of an artist who is largely unknown by the mainstream, yet very important to the community she connects with. Director Marie Losier has the unenviable task of trying to contextualize such a complex figure in the span of a single feature film, so it becomes a bit frustrating when said film is so brief. You do get a nice sense of who Peaches is as an artist and a person, yet either she or the film often pulls back or switches topics when on the precipice of something truly revealing. You will still walk away intrigued by and endeared to its subject, but you will also probably wish you could know a bit more, Film Movement has released a Blu-Ray featuring a sturdy A/V presentation and a couple special features. If you are a fan of the artist, you will enjoy it. Recommended
Peaches Goes Bananas 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: Film Movement 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.
