Gummo
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Synopsis
Harmony Korine’s debut feature is an audacious, lyrical evocation of America’s rural underbelly, and an elegy in the southern-gothic tradition of William Faulkner and William Eggleston. Shot in Korine’s native Nashville—standing in for the tornado-ravaged Xenia, Ohio—the rough-hewn film follows two young friends, Tummler and Solomon, as they ride around town, huffing glue and hunting stray cats, their every local encounter charged with vaudevillian anarchy as well as deep pathos. At once transgressive and empathetic, disturbing and undeniably beautiful, Gummo is a one-of-a-kind portrait of angelic and devilish souls caught in a cultural void, circumscribed by poverty and the depleted, alienated spiritual life of late-twentieth-century America.
Picture 9/10
Harmony Korine’s debut feature Gummo receives a brand-new 4K restoration and is presented by The Criterion Collection on UHD with Dolby Vision and a 2160p/24hz ultra high-definition encode in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, spread across a triple-layer disc. The restoration is sourced from the 35mm original camera negative. Criterion also includes a standard dual-layer Blu-ray featuring a 1080p presentation of the film along with all the release’s special features.
Despite Gummo’s intentionally "ugly" visual aesthetic, this 4K presentation is surprisingly strong. The restoration work is thorough, cleaning up nearly all visible damage, while the encode does an excellent job of rendering the film’s grain structure naturally and cleanly.
Colors can be somewhat drab and occasionally lean toward yellow or green, but this suits the film’s tone perfectly. That said, saturation levels are impressive, with some nice pops of blue and red. Detail levels are strikingly high, and the presentation retains a wonderfully filmic texture—even during sequences that appear to be filmed off a CRT monitor. Black levels are solid, with clean gradations in the shadows, and HDR adds a noticeable depth to the image, improving shadows, color range, contrast, and overall visual depth.
Again, it’s not a pretty film by any means, making it somewhat surprising to see it receive a 4K release, but it looks incredibly striking.
Audio 8/10
Criterion presents the film’s 2-channel surround soundtrack in DTS-HD MA. While it’s not an overly aggressive mix, it’s effective for what the film requires. Dialogue and most sound effects are centered in the front channels, but music and occasional background effects are subtly integrated into the rear channels, creating an immerssive soundscape. Though dialogue and narration can be hard to understand at times (which feels intentional given the film's style), overall fidelity is strong, and the dynamic range is surprisingly wide.
Ultimately, the audio mix suits the film perfectly.
Extras 6/10
Disappointingly, Criterion includes only a handful of supplements, consisting mostly of interviews with Harmony Korine from various points in his career. The most recent is a newly recorded 11-minute interview where Korine briefly discusses his early life and his introduction to cinema before shifting to Gummo. He shares production photos from his diary and recalls the casting process, which includes hist tracking down Linda Manz, who he really wanted in the film. He also touches on his collaboration with director of photography Jean-Yves Escoffier, crediting him with teaching him a great deal.
While Korine is open about the production, he remains reluctant to discuss the film's meaning outside of just the type of film he wanted to make, keeping his explanations vague—a trait consistent throughout his career about his work. This trend continues in the archival interviews included in the set, such as a 2000 interview for IFC’s Split Screen: Projections. In that segment, Korine talks more about his early work with Larry Clark on Kids and how he secured his own deal for his directorial debut. The program also includes what appears to be footage from a studio-produced production featurette, featuring interviews with cast members like Chloë Sevigny, and touching on the generally polarizing critical reception of Gummo, which ranged from harshly negative to glowing praise.
It's probably the weaker inclusion here, but the true standout is a 55-minute Q&A session between Korine and director Werner Herzog, filmed after the premiere of Gummo at the 1997 Telluride Film Festival. While some background details about Korine and the film's production are revisited, the conversation quickly shifts to the broader subject of filmmaking, particularly the kinds of films they both aspire to create. Herzog, clearly impressed by Gummo, offers his thoughts on the film and gives the young director some memorable advice: “Don’t get scared, just do it.” Despite Korine’s typically disinterested demeanor—something that could be attributed to a mix of nerves and his usual vibe—this exchange stands out as the strongest supplement in the release.
Unfortunately, that’s it for extras, aside from the film’s trailer (cut by Mark Romanek) and an insert featuring a short essay by Carlos Aguilar and a brief appreciation by filmmaker Hype Williams. It’s a shame the release doesn’t delve deeper into the critical backlash or include academic perspectives. Also disappointing is the absence of the episode of Sally Jessy Raphael where Nick Sutton appeared (on a segment about paint and glue sniffing, which made its way into the film) and where Korine discovered him for the role.
Closing
Not a film I would have expected in 4K anytime soon, Criterion’s new special edition offers a stellar presentation and a couple of interesting supplements, though I do wish there was more.
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