Blu ray review: Gloria (1980)

Not to be confused with Sidney Lumet’s 1999 remake, this is the original John Cassavetes film from 1980 with his wife Gena Rowlands in the title role. Gloria is a gangster’s girl on the run from the cops with a young boy (John Adames) who is sought for information from both the law and the mob.

This is a straight-ahead action drama with suspense, and is decidedly unlike the usual Cassavates films where he directed and wrote the screenplay. Even the crime drama The Killing of a Chinese Bookie has a decidedly quirkier approach than this crime actioner. Films like Faces and Husbands were less linear are more edgily artful as well.

Yet despite its more conventional approach, Gloria is one of the filmmaker’s overall best. It is filled with excitement and humor, with a powerful performance by Rowlands. Cassavetes takes a commercial product and makes it his own, giving each violent act a specific point and never becoming gratuitous.

Kino Lorber’s blu ray is a bare bones release without audio commentary, its only special feature being two trailers. But it is most highly recommended to libraries, research centers, action film fans, and Cassavetes fans. Trivia: Akira Kurosawa named this among his favorite films.

The Kino blu ray can be purchased at this link: GLORIA