In Skinamarink, two children wake up in the middle of the night to find their father is missing, and all the windows and doors in their home have vanished. To cope with the strange situation, the two bring pillows and blankets to the living room and settle into a quiet slumber party situation. They play well worn videotapes of cartoons to fill the silence of the house and distract from the frightening and inexplicable situation. All the while in the hopes that eventually some grown-ups will come to rescue them. However, after a while it becomes clear that something is watching over them.

For in-depth thoughts on Skinamarink, please see my colleague Lee Vaughn’s review from its Fantasia Fest debut here.

Video Quality

Skinamarink comes to Blu-Ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in its original aspect ratio which does not look “gorgeous” in the traditional sense, but it captures the artistic intention well. Director Kyle Edward Ball and director of photography Jamie McRae have crafted a ‘90s-era nightmare which takes the high definition footage that was originally shot and has been processed to look like the terrible quality VHS of the past.

The picture does not go overboard trying to replicate the look of that format with loads of artificial tracking lines, but the grainy, blob-heavy look of VHS is in full effect with undefined murkiness constantly present. This aids a bit in the unsettling aspect of the darkness, as fine detail is virtually nonexistent with very little in the way of depth to the image. The cinematography of the film is very intentional, and, while it may not be the most beautiful presentation, this disc captures it as well as you would want. There is very little color in this film outside of the various hues of the darkness and cartoon on the television, but nothing stands out as particularly saturated. Overall, this transfer represents what the film is supposed to look like to its highest quality.

Audio Quality

Skinamarink comes to Blu-Ray with an effective DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track. The movie somewhat eschews the vintage experience on the audio side, but there are still intentional limitations put in place to replicate the time period. Environmental sounds are key to this experience with an immersive atmosphere that is supposed to create a horrific reality for these children. Dialogue and sound effects are oftentimes intentionally distorted or provided at an extreme level.

There is an option to view with English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles, but there are also burned-in subtitles to make the dialogue known for the audience in spots. Surround channels are typically engaged in some form, even if it is just the sounds of the cartoons coming from another room. The low end of the track is only engaged when it makes sense, and it is not a standout. This track is intentionally a bit ruddy, but it suits this film.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director/writer/editor Kyle Edward Ball and cinematographer Jamie McRae provide a pretty fun audio commentary track in which they analyze the film, discuss what they were trying to accomplish, shooting in different areas of the house, working with the young performers, moments they are not completely happy with and more.

Final Thoughts

Skinamarink is the definition of a love it or hate it movie. The very deliberate pacing is a strain on the patience of even the most welcoming audience, and if you are not bought into the experience the situation is unpleasant. Even those who do like what is being served up can probably admit that this could have been more effective with a shorter runtime. Kyle Edward Ball gets a lot of credit for attempting a big swing that has obviously made an impact on many audience members, but for this particular reviewer this was not unnerving in the slightest until we were closing in on the conclusion. RLJE Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray featuring an A/V presentation that suits the material and a welcome commentary track. If you are a fan of the film, this is a pretty solid release.

Skinamarink will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD on June 20, 2023.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: RLJE Films 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.