Spider (Ralph Fiennes) is in a constant struggle to overcome a traumatic event early in his life. He has been allowed a second chance at life after a long stay in a mental institution and returns to the streets where he grew up; sent to a halfway house under the stern but unsupervised watch of Mrs.Wilkenson (Lynn Redgrave). The sights, sounds and smells of revisiting the familiar streets of his old neighborhood send Spider further down a shadowy path that reawakens memories of his where his mother (Miranda Richardson) and his father (Gabriel Byrne) raised him. He soon begins to uncover the real truth shifting seamlessly back and forth between the tragic events that polarized a boy’s adolescence to the shell of a man enduring the surreal plausible reality of today.

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[youtube https://youtu.be/UbusyprQuNI?si=KNPtrIgIsWZrGrC4&t=2959]

Video Quality

Spider debuts on Blu-Ray in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio from a master that looks excellent. Sony is responsible for the remastering of all of their titles, and given the quality, it would not shock us to learn that this was remastered in the past few years. For Cronenberg fans, this upgrade is very welcome and serves this movie perfectly well. The fine film grain present resolves pleasantly and looks natural while allowing subtle details to shine through. Every distinct element comes through with great clarity, especially in the varied clothing and production design. Facial features are robust with makeup finely textured alongside natural skin tones. This is not the most vibrant film, but certain pops of color in clothing make an impression with the hues naturally saturating the frame. Highlights stand firm, and black levels are pretty deep without any significant blocking or compression artifacts. This Blu-Ray is a good presentation from Sony.

Audio Quality

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment brings us this Blu-Ray with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that deftly handles this material. The environmental effects are subtlely defined and given a thoughtful placement throughout the speakers. This is a very low-key track, but the nuances keep things sonically engaging. Dialogue emanates clearly without being drowned by the score from Howard Shore or any environmental effects. The sounds in the rear speakers are not showy, but they provide a reasonable expansion of the area. Sony has done a great job with this one. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director David Cronenberg provides a steady commentary track that is very informative in which he discusses the themes of the film, the larger idea behind certain scenes, how the film differs from the source material, the performance from Ralph Fiennes, the score from Howard Shore, and more that is well worth a listen.

In The Beginning – How Spider Came To Be: An eight-minute featurette is provided in which the cast and creative team discuss how Cronenberg came to receive the script, his initial reaction to the material, what his sensibility brought to the material, the casting of the ensemble, and more.

Weaving The Web – The Making of Spider: A nine-minute look at the crafting of various moments with insights from the cast and creative team, how the intentions of the narrative shifted, the portrayal of the main character, the questions that the film leaves the audience, and more.

Caught In Spider’s Web – The Cast: A nearly 13-minute piece that explores the collaborative process that helped bring the performances to the screen, the nuances in the movements, and more.

Theatrical Trailer: A two-minute trailer is provided.

Final Thoughts

Spider is a somewhat atypical effort from David Cronenberg, at least it was when it was released in the early 2000s. The overall aesthetic of the marketing would lead you to believe this might be an intense psychological thriller, but the film he delivered is closer to a dramatic exploration of repressed trauma. It is never quite thrilling or scary, but it is engaging throughout. Ralph Fiennes puts forth a brilliant, subtle lead performance as he taps into the physicality of the character rather than leaning on anything verbal. The ensemble matches him in their turns, especially the dual role from Miranda Richardson. The pacing will test some audiences, but this is a really good film from the director. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray with a really good A/V presentation and a few good special features. Fans of the film will be thrilled to finally have this available in high definition. Recommended

Spider can be purchased directly through MovieZyng or various other online retailers.

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

Disclaimer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment 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.