PITTSBURGH — Elegant Angel has released the 20th-anniversary director's cut of Axel Braun's feature "Compulsion."
"This is the movie that took my career to a whole other level," said Braun. "Being able to recover the original 16mm reels, thanks to the folks at Elegant Angel, and having the opportunity to revisit a project to which I am so emotionally attached, was truly an amazing experience. For eight months, I remastered and color-graded the 16mm footage in 4K, made over 250 changes to the edit, replaced or re-recorded most of the music, cleaned up the audio, redesigned all the artwork, and even filmed some additional establishing shots.
"It was just as much a labor of love today as it was 20 years ago, but the real treat was scanning through the endless hours of BTS and seeing the cast and crew who helped bring my vision to the screen," he added. "I am so beyond thankful to all of them, from Kurt Lockwood and Ashley Long, who embodied so perfectly the characters I created and brought so much passion, professionalism, and dedication to the set, to Eli Cross, Ren Savant, Dr. Philgood and Hank Hoffman, all friends with whom I went on to collaborate for many years, and especially my mentor Patrick Collins, who not only believed in my crazy idea of having a gonzo company shoot a feature on film but also turned in a powerhouse, unforgettable acting performance. I am just incredibly proud of this movie, and I hope that this new release will make it enjoyable for a new generation."
Elegant Angel VP of Production Daniel Chura enthused about the new cut.
"It was a pleasure to help Axel pursue this project," he said. "When I heard of Axel's intense passion for 'Compulsion,' I promised I’d do my best to make this restoration a reality. We had a tractor-trailer full of archival materials, and as luck would have it, I quickly located some footage and sent Axel a photo. ‘Well Dan, those are the tapes, but where are the reels?’ Axel responded. The second search took much longer, but I was able to find about a good amount of the 16mm reels, and to everyone's surprise, they were salvageable."
"Compulsion" is available on VOD and DVD from ElegantAngel.
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