Anguish

An interesting oddity dating back to 1987, and shot in Barcelona, Anguish (or Angustia, or Im Augenblick der Angst) begins with an uncomfortable depiction of a grown man's homicidal tendencies combined with his close, possibly psychic relationship with his creepy mother, before revealing that this is a film playing in an American cinema.  Some of the viewers become increasingly disturbed by what they're watching on screen, before events in 'real' life begin to imitate those of the celluloid they're experiencing.

What I particularly liked about Anguish is the manner in which it blurs the lines between reality and cinematic fiction, crossing over the events of the two worlds with gradually heightening frequency and intensity.  Whilst it can be uncomfortable viewing at time, with some particularly gruesome sequences spattered throughout (and a little unnecessary animal cruelty in my opinion), the film's fascinating tightrope walk between supposed realities, combined with occasional surrealism, result in an original piece of work, that is often bizarre, captivating, and will beg to be watched repeatedly, until you yourself succumb to its spell of demented hypnosis...

The Germans, as usual edging ahead of many other countries in their selection of enticing catalogue titles for Blu-ray, have put out Anguish (as Im Augenblick...) with an excellent 2.35:1 full HD transfer, and a choice between English (naturally, as shot) DTS HD MA 5.1 or German in the same mode.  German subtitles are there of course, but thankfully they are removable.  At 24 frames per second it runs about 85 minutes.  At times boasting the feel of a classic Dario Argento exercise, the sound mix of this film is really important, reminding me in some ways of the direction they took with Berberian Sound Studio, entwining intricate sound patterns with a deliberately confused transition between realities for both the protagonist and the viewer, and headphone-use or surround listening is encouraged.  The cover is reversible - effectively the same artwork but without the red banner at the top, and missing the huge age restriction that seems to emblazon all German disc releases.  Needless to say it was turned around instantly upon opening...  The disc also comes with an interview and trailers - not exactly padded extras-wise but the very fact that something like this appears on Blu in such an attractive audio-visual presentation is to be rejoiced.