My long-suffering dad is probably still haunted by our trip to the cinema those many years ago, with me a wee lad and my sister — a naïve young fan of the musician David Bowie — eager to see what we thought would be perhaps a slightly offbeat sci-fi movie, The Man who Fell to Earth. After two hours of nudity we learned that we had been wrong. Thomas Newton, an interplanetary traveler (Bowie) is a brilliant entrepreneur who has a wealth of advanced technology. He’s also quite thirsty, a clue to his secret intentions which become more difficult to bring to fruition as he is increasingly sidetracked by the new vice and excess of his wealthy American lifestyle.
The greater significance of director Nicolas Roeg’s arty, stylized film of Walter Tevis’ novel is subject to interpretation but it’s certainly a tale of loneliness, of misunderstanding and ultimately of loss. At present, Best Buy’s exclusive steelbook edition is the only way to procure the movie on a 4K disc. Lionsgate has given us the R-rated version, different from the Criterion Collection unrated director’s cut and with an alternate complement of bonus…
