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[BD Review] ‘The Factory’ is Flawed but Worth a Watch
The Factory was filmed in 2008 and is finally being released on DVD this week. Since it has been five years since filming completed, and the release was delayed since 2011, there has to be obvious reasons why. Upon initial assessment, it’s simple: the set up of The Factory is solid, but the execution is somewhat flawed…until the ending.
Detective Mike Fletcher (John Cusack) and his partner Kelsey Walker (Jennifer Carpenter) have been on the case of a possible serial killer who abducts young prostitutes. Meanwhile, Fletcher’s teenage daughter, Abby, is obsessed with her boyfriend and conveniently sneaks out one night only to be abducted by our serial killer, Gary. The kicker is the fact that this psycho works at the local hospital and has been stealing drugs over the last three years. Mostly supplements and fertility treatments. Yes, Gary is abducting young women to impregnate them. Abby Fletcher is already pregnant.
The delay of the release of The Factory can be immediately indentified if one remembers the current events of the time it could’ve been released. In 2009, Jaycee Dugard was found after having been kept prisoner by convicted sex offender Phillip Garrido since 1991. Also found were her two daughters by Garrido. However, this could merely be coincidence since there is plenty to be said about The Factory that could explain its delay.
The main flaw with the film is that it’s simply not suspenseful enough. There is no sense of dread after an initial set up of Abby’s abduction. From there, we never really fear for her life because we know her father will end up finding her. The relationship between Fletcher and Walker seems to have no substance and it takes the entire movie to find out exactly why. The Factory seems to drudge along never really meandering or taking any unsuspected turns for 90% of the 104 minutes. Even with a snowstorm thrown in to give a sense of doom and one of the abductees going into premature labor with only a cesarean as a means to deliver, there really is no terror involved in the movie. The downfall of Fletcher’s home life is never fully explained. The hint of subplot of Walker’s inability to have children is touched on and looks like it will never be brought to fruition- then POW! The Factory ends with an amazingly hands-on-head/jaw-dropping finish. It’s a shame, too, because Jennifer Carpenter is an amazing actress that deserves more prominent roles to display her abilities.
The movie itself is not shot in any fancy format, nor does the editing or score add anything too exciting. It’s a shame since the basis is something that has happened and been heavily exploited in the media. With that, and a bit more editing, there is a chance it could have had a better release than DVD five years later. It is understandable, though, as for the first 90 minutes I was only mildly entertained, wondering where the film was heading despite the boredom. The DVD offers no perks, either. Just the film in multiple languages. While it has a very great lull for the majority of running time, the ending of The Factory is worth the watch.
Scream Factory brought Frank LaLoggia’s 1988 Halloween movie Lady in White to Blu-ray several years back, and now Vinegar Syndrome gives the film a 4K Ultra HD upgrade.
Vinegar Syndrome’s Lady in White 4K release is available now and shipping now!
Watch the trailer below and grab your copy from Vinegar Syndrome today.
This limited edition 4-disc 4K UHD/Blu-ray x 3 set comes with a spot gloss hard slipcase + slipcover combo (designed by Dylan Haley), includes a 40-page perfect bound book and is limited to 8,000 units. It is only available on their website and at select indie retailers.
The full Special Features package includes…
- 4-disc Set: 1x 4K Ultra HD (High Bitrate BD100) / 3x Region A Blu-ray
- 4K UHD presented in Dolby Vision High-Dynamic-Range
- Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative
- Presented in three versions: 126-min Pre-Release Director’s Cut (UHD+BD), the 118-min Extended Home Video Cut (BD), and the 113-min Theatrical Cut (BD)
- New group commentary track with writer/director Frank LaLoggia, alongside actors Lukas Haas, Joelle Jacobi, and Len Cariou for the Pre-Release Director’s Cut
- New commentary track with Frank LaLoggia, moderated by Scott Neumyer for the Extended Home Video Cut
- New commentary track with authors Emma Westwood and Stephen A. Russell for the Extended Home Video Cut
- Archival commentary track with Frank LaLoggia for the Extended Home Video Cut
- “Learning How to Fly” (10 min) – an interview with actress Karen Powell
- “A Snapshot in Time” (9 min) – an interview with actress Lisa Taylor
- “Human Touches” (6 min) – an interview with actress Lucy Lee Flippin
- “Still Relevant” (16 min) – an interview with actress Rose Weaver
- “75% Listening, 25% Editing” (9 min) – an interview with editor Steve Mann
- “Welcome to Willowpoint Falls” (6 min) – a location featurette hosted by Benjamin Scrivens, founder of Fright-Rags
- “Dream Talking: Looking Back” – a visual group commentary for the Pre-Release Director’s Cut with Frank LaLoggia, and actors Lukas Haas, Joelle Jacobi, and Len Cariou (103 min)
- Deleted Scenes with introduction and optional commentary by writer/director Frank LaLoggia (36 min)
- Behind-the-scenes footage with introduction and optional commentary by writer/director Frank LaLoggia (16 min)
- Extended behind-the-scenes footage (73 min)
- Introduction from the 20th anniversary dvd release
- Promotional ‘industry sales’ trailer (7 min)
- 40-page perfect bound book with essays by film historians Molly Henery, Mark H. Harris, and Heidi Honeycutt (limited edition only)
- Multiple radio spots
- Theatrical trailer
- Multiple TV spots
- Workprint trailers (7 min)
- Still gallery
- Reversible sleeve artwork
- English SDH subtitles
1962. Nine-year-old Frankie Scarlatti enjoys a homespun childhood in a rustic Western New York town. The entire community gets into the spirit of Halloween, but then two bullies prank Frankie by locking him in his school cloakroom, leaving him trapped for the night. Alone and afraid, his slumber is interrupted when the ghost of a little girl appears, and Frankie witnesses the specter of her murder by an unseen assailant. Later, while recovering at home, the girl’s ghost appears to him again. With help from his older brother, Frankie begins investigating the circumstances of her death. He soon discovers that her murder was one of several unsolved crimes connected to a local child-killer. As the town’s bucolic veneer fades and long-buried secrets and tensions bubble to the surface, all of the clues to the mystery seem to point towards a huge mansion inhabited by a reclusive woman known as “The Lady in White.”
A nostalgia-driven ghost story wrapped within an intricate murder mystery and coming-of-age drama, writer-director-composer Frank LaLoggia’s passion project Lady in White remains one of the most beautiful and original American horror films of the 1980s. Featuring acclaimed actors Alex Rocco (The Godfather), Len Cariou (Executive Decision), and Sydney Lassick (Carrie, The Unseen), it boasts the first starring role by Lukas Haas (Mars Attacks, Inception) as well as breathtaking photography by Academy Award® winner Russell Carpenter (True Lies, The Lawnmower Man). Vinegar Syndrome is honored to bring this genre masterpiece to 4K UHD, newly restored from its original 35mm camera negative and presented in three versions: its pre-release director’s cut, its extended home-video version, and its original theatrical version, along with an abundance of both new and archival extras.
Paul Lê wrote here on Bloody Disgusting back in 2023, “Over the years, fans have described this film as gateway horror, but they liken it more to The Watcher in the Woods than, say, Hocus Pocus or Casper. There are chilling moments that warrant its PG-13 rating.”
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