Disc Reviews

The Woman/Offsping Review

• 26th Aug 2024

Pollyanna McIntosh gives her career best playing the feral woman in this series of films. The films are presented in the reverse order.  The Woman is actually the sequel to Offspring, but it is the more lauded film, so fine, have it their way I guess.

Lucky Mckee’s The Woman made a huge impact on horror audiences when it hit festivals back in 2011. McIntosh’s feral woman is caught and imprisoned by a local nutjob (Sean Bridgers). The film details the effect she has on him and his immediate family (including two daughters and a son). The film takes an interesting view of the all-American family and the lies hidden behind their walls, juxtaposed with the more honest and yet brutal savagery of the Woman herself.

Offspring came in way under the radar from director (and series producer) Andrew Van Den Houten. It’s a bit messier than The Woman but no less interesting.

Strangely, there is a third film in the series (Darlin’, Which MacIntosh herself directed) which is not included in this set.  Strange to break up a trilogy, but que sera. We will have to settle for this nicely packed duo and Arrow have packed together some very juicy extras with them:

For The Woman there are 4 (count them) Commentaries!

Lauren Ashley Carter delivers a decent interview – Herself becoming a known genre actress – a shame she was left out of the Darlin’ story.

The director’s father Mike Mckee put together over an hour of behind-the-scenes footage illuminating the shoot of the film.

There is an interesting (but horrendously shot) interview panel that took place at Frightfest UK where the film made its UK debut which includes some of the younger American filmmakers of today having a say.

The extras on Offspring has plenty of new interviews with the filmmakers and star, and also some more playful extras including behind-the-scenes video footage, including an amusing piece where one of the actors had to be bailed out of jail causing another member of the crew to have to step into their role briefly while this was sorted out.

A decent duo package from Arrow then, worth every penny.

Steven Hurst

Full contents:

• 4K restorations of The Woman and Offspring, supervised and approved by Lucky McKee and Andrew van den Houten
• Reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork for both films by Vanessa McKee
• Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring writing by Michael Blyth, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Kevin Kovelant

DISC ONE – THE WOMAN (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)

• 4K restoration supervised and approved by Lucky McKee
• 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Audio commentary with director Lucky McKee, editor Zach Passero, sound designer Andrew Smetek and composer Sean Spillane
• Audio commentary with star Pollyanna McIntosh
• Audio commentary with critic Scott Weinberg
• Archive commentary with director Lucky McKee
• Dad on the Wall, a 75-minute fly-on-the-wall behind-the-scenes documentary filmed by the director’s father Mike McKee
• Being Peggy Cleek, an interview with star Lauren Ashley Carter
• Malam Domesticam, an archive making-of featurette
• Meet the Makers, a short featurette on the making of the film
• Deleted scenes
• ¡Mi Burro!, a short film by editor Zach Passero
• “Distracted” music video by Sean Spillane
• Frightfest Total Film Panel Discussion, a 2011 onstage chat about the future of American indie horror at the popular horror film festival, featuring Lucky McKee, Andrew van den Houten, Larry Fessenden, Adam Green, Joe Lynch and Ti West
• Theatrical trailers
• Image galleries

DISC TWO – OFFSPRING (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)

• 4K restoration supervised and approved by Andrew van den Houten
• 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Audio commentary with director/producer Andrew van den Houten and digital colorist Matt McClain
• Archive commentary with writer Jack Ketchum, director/producer Andrew van den Houten and producer/cinematographer William M. Miller
• Interview with Pollyanna McIntosh and Andrew van den Houten
• Fly on the Wall, a behind-the-scenes documentary
• Extended interview with Jack Ketchum
• Restoration comparison
• Audition comparison
• Progeny: The Birth of Offspring, an archive behind-the-scenes featurette including interviews with cast and crew
• First Stolen’s Bailout, an archive behind-the-scenes featurette
• Webisodes, short featurettes used to promote the film online
• Archive Easter Eggs
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery

The Woman and Offspring are out on 26^th August