Survivor, The (Blu-ray Review)
Director
David HemmingsRelease Date(s)
1981 (March 24, 2026)Studio(s)
Tuesday Films/Riaci Investments/Pact Productions (Indicator/Powerhouse Films)- Film/Program Grade: B
- Video Grade: A+
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: A+
Review
[Editor’s Note: This is a Region-Free British Blu-ray release.]
Based on a novel by James Herbert (the Rats series), the less you know going into The Survivor, the better. It’s a somewhat failed adaptation and the twists scream in your face, but it’s a very well-done film and a shining example of the so-called “Ozploitation” genre. Loosely, it follows a major airline plane crash where the only survivor is the pilot (Robert Powell). During the investigation, he is approached by a medium (a pre-American Werewolf Jenny Agutter) who is being contacted by the souls of the dead, insisting she works with the pilot to find the reason for the crash. Together, they join up with a mild-mannered priest (Joseph Cotton) to help save the tormented souls and get God on their side.
Video quality on this edition is phenomenal. The liner notes state that it “was scanned in 4K by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), using the original 35mm negative which it preserves. Picture restoration and colour correction work were carried out in 4K HDR by Renasci Films in the UK.” and the added care shows. Presented in 1080p24 at 2:39:1, there are three cuts of the film via seamless branching: a 99-minute extended edition, the 98-minute Australian theatrical cut and an 81-minute US distributed cut. Apparently the lost less-than-a-minute-of footage between the extended and original Aussie cut is all during the climax to lessen the violence of it. The quality of the transfer is stellar; the colors are very natural with strong detail and great color balance throughout. Sound is a straight mono in DTS-HD Master Audio. It supports the film well and uses its limited dynamism well. English subs are also on board. (Note that Indicator has also released this on 4K Ultra HD.)
What I wasn’t expecting was all the extras crammed into this little disc. Good Lord. There are two audio commentary tracks (both on the Australian edition) and both with the producer Antony I. Ginnane. The first is with film critic and archivist Jaimie Leonarder and from the previous Region B Umbrella/Glass Doll release from 2018. The other is with actress/wrestler Katarina Leigh Waters from the Scorpion DVD release in 2012. The track with Waters is more conversational and touches upon just about every aspect of the film from origins, the book, changes made, film styles, etc. The Leonarder track is a bit more focused and zeroes in on technical and filmmaking techniques, but both are quite informative and Ginnane is a good storyteller. Another audio option is, the extended edition has the isolated score by Brian May—a fun inclusion for fans for film scores. Additionally, there is a collection of extended interviews from the Not Quite Hollywood documentary with Anthony I. Ginnane and cinematographer John Seale as well as vintage and archival interviews packaged as featurettes—Brace for Impact: Anthony I. Ginnane on The Survivor; Robert Powell on James Herbert and a 1981 television interview with actor Peter Sumner from the Australian program Touch of Elegance. Collectively these are all informative—Ginnane continues to give great insight into the film, Powell, who was a friend and fan of Herbert (performing the audiobook version of The Survivor) and the Sumner interview is a cool look at how TV looked back in the day. Speaking of, included is an excerpt from an Australian TV show that looked at the making of various films/TV shows called Clapperboard filled with behind the scenes and interviews with cast and crew.
If you think that’s it, nope—there’s more. There’s a Promotional Film specifically made for finance drumming in Cannes from 1980, edited together before filming was complete so it includes alternate shots and filler pulled from other Ginnane produced films. Interestingly enough, there’s also a Trailers from Hell webisode with the editor Brian Trenchard-Smith where he discusses all the hows and whys of the promo. It’s really cool to see. There’s also an archival Super 8 Behind the Scenes showing home video quality footage from the production with commentary by the videographer Dean Bennet, who worked on the film. The last bigger elements are a featurette on The Legacy of James Herbert where experts on Herbert’s work discuss he legacy and what he thought of the film, and a new interview with Australian film historian Stephen Morgan entitled Elevated Horror: Stephen Morgan on The Survivor which puts a cherry on all the other information discussed over the course of these special features. Rounding things out is a trailer, TV spot and an image and script gallery section full of promo material, BTS images, the screenplay, continuity script and a spotting list (used for subtitles, so a more exact listing of dialogue). I’m not overly familiar with Indicator releases (look, I’ve been away from the physical media community for a while) so if this is how they treat films, I’m looking forward to my next opportunity to dive in—this is a great release of a very watchable movie.
- Todd Doogan