A BOY AND HIS DOG

The folks at Lumivision have followed their Laserdisc release of the early seventies cult favorite A BOY AND HIS DOG ($30) with a special edition DVD release. Both the Laserdisc and the DVD use the same Letterboxed transfer which restores the film to its original 2.35:1 Techniscope aspect ratio. Based upon the famous novella by Harlan Ellison, A BOY AND HIS DOG is the tale of survival in a post nuclear apocalypse America. Don Johnson stars in this tale as the "boy" trying to find both food and women with the help of his telepathic dog named Blood. Their journey across the wasteland takes a side trip into the pickled underground world of Topeka, where the "boy" finds the lure of sex irresistible. A BOY AND HIS DOG has earned its cult status because it is an ultra-black comedy in the guise of a science fiction film. In addition to the impossibly young Don Johnson, the cast of A BOY AND HIS DOG also includes Susanne Benton, Alvy Moore, Helene Winston and Jason Robards. By the way, the dog starring as Blood is the very same pooch who appeared as Tiger on THE BRADY BUNCH; the dog upstages Johnson every chance he gets. This feat isn’t too terribly hard since Cheech Marin does it every week on NASH BRIDGES.

The Letterboxed transfer of A BOY AND HIS DOG is an absolute necessity for one’s enjoyment of this film. Without the Letterboxing, its a complete waste of time. The transfer was supervised by both the film’s director L.Q. Jones and cinematographer John Morrill. The colors look very good and the image is nicely detailed. The film element used for the transfer has a number of markings scattered throughout, but none become too bothersome. Digital artifacts were virtually absent from this DVD. The monaural soundtrack is presented in two channel Dolby Digital. The soundtrack is roughly equivalent to the track on the Laserdisc, which was clear and well focused. Supplements include an audio commentary with the film’s director L.Q. Jones as well as cinematographer John Morrill and film critic Charles Champlin. The commentary gives a great deal of background on the production. Unlike most commentaries, this one doesn’t pull any punches and doesn’t gloss over the problems with the film. Lumivision has included an original theatrical trailer and a re-issue trailer as additional supplement.