For a long time, physical media fans had to deal with the fact that two classics from James Cameron were unavailable. The movies were The Abyss and True Lies, both of which Cameron said needed restoration work. Then, two years ago, we finally got them (although the restoration work was controversial to say the least). However, many of us also assumed that Strange Days, a movie he produced and co-wrote, but was directed by his ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow, would also see the light of day. As it turns out, we were wrong, as there’s still no official region one Blu-ray or digital release, much less the 4K restoration it’s begging for.
For those of you who may not know, Strange Days is a cyberpunk noir from 1995 (and Best Movie You Never Saw fave) which took place over a hellish New Year’s Eve, as 1999 turned into 2000. It starred Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Lewis and Angela Bassett, but it laid an egg at the box office despite largely positive reviews. It cost $42 million but only made $8 million domestically. However, once it hit VHS and Laserdisc, it developed a cult following and is widely considered one of the best films of its era.
Yet, its home video history is frustrating. Like The Abyss and True Lies, it received a non-anamorphic DVD release in the format’s early days. A Blu-ray does exist in some markets, but only on Region 2, meaning you need an R2 player. Its fate isn’t unlike another 20th Century Fox classic, Cocoon, which is still languishing in a vault somewhere. It’s also not available digitally, although it has been known to occasionally pop up on The Criterion Channel, so it’s not like a great HD master doesn’t exist.
Part of me thinks its the kind of movie the rights holders want to do something big with, but they’ve waited so long that it feels like it will never come out. This was be a good time to release it, with Kathryn Bigelow having just made A House of Dynamite for Netflix, with it putting her back in the news in a pretty big way. Not having one of her classics out there to be seen and appreciated seems like a huge waste.
Why do you think Strange Days is unavailable? Let us know in the comments.
