Lulu on the Bridge (Blu-ray Review)
Director
Paul AusterRelease Date(s)
1998 (October 25, 2025)Studio(s)
Capitol Films/Trimark Pictures (Imprint Films/Via Vision Entertainment)- Film/Program Grade: C
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B
Review
[Editor’s Note: This is a Region-Free Australian Blu-ray import.]
Lulu on the Bridge is a film that creates more questions than it answers in a dramatic fantasy with a stellar cast and a troublesome plot.
Izzy Maurer (Harvey Keitel) is a jazz saxophonist working in a New York City nightclub when he’s hit by a stray bullet. The injury prevents him from playing the sax again. Since music is his life, he’s in a state of depression. Izzy’s ex-wife, Hannah (Gina Gershon), concerned about his state of mind, visits and encourages him. She invites him to dinner at her apartment with her boyfriend, producer Philip Kleinman (Mandy Patinkin), and their guest, retired actress Catherine Moore (Vanessa Redgrave). Catherine is directing a production of Pandora’s Box, an updated remake of the silent film by G.W. Pabst in which Louise Brooks played the sexually liberated Lulu, and Catherine is seeking the right actress to play that role.
On his way home from dinner, Izzy comes across a dead man and finds a napkin in his briefcase with a telephone number and a stone that magically glows in the dark with a blue light. Curious, he calls the number and reaches Celia Burns (Mira Sorvino). Coincidentally, she admires Izzy’s music and happens to be listening to one of his albums at the time. So when he asks to visit her, she agrees.
At her apartment, he shows her the unusual stone and she’s transfixed as it glows, levitates, and spreads a luminous blue light throughout the darkened room, creating a connection between Celia and the much older Izzy.
An aspiring actress, Celia works at a restaurant by night and seeks out auditions by day, and happens to be trying out for the part of Lulu. Izzy doesn’t want to be apart from Celia, so she persuades her boss to hire him as a busboy. When Izzy finds out that Celia is auditioning for the role of Lulu, he tells her he’ll speak to Phil.
Complications ensue when thugs looking for the stone ransack Izzy’s apartment unsuccessfully, and beat him unconscious. He wakes up imprisoned in an empty warehouse where he’s repeatedly interviewed by a mysterious Dr. Van Horn (Willem Dafoe). Claiming to be a psychologist, Van Horn delves into Izzy’s childhood, discovering that they both have a fondness for Gene Kelly’s movies. With a ponderous amount of dialogue, Van Horn talks about the precious stone and how much good it can do in the world, though its mystery is never explained. We never know whether Van Horn works for the bad guys, the government, or himself.
The directorial debut of Paul Auster, who also wrote the screenplay, Lulu on the Bridge is a collection of interesting scenes that fail to gel. The excellent cast keeps our attention as we wait for disparate elements to come together, but they never do. Keitel, so fine in other films, appears to sleepwalk through much of the film with little variation in his performance. Mira Sorvino comes off best. Conveying intelligence, fascination, and infatuation, she makes Celia believable, and we find her endearing. But even a stand-out performance like hers can’t elevate the film from being a confusing, pretentious misfire.
Redgrave brings glamour to the role of Catherine, a regal presence comfortable in the world of filmmaking. A former actress, Catherine has an excellent rapport with actors and knows exactly what she wants from them and gently provides input. The role is small, but Redgrave gives it stature. Mandy Patinkin’s Kleinman and Gina Gershon’s Hannah are the awkward means of linking Izzy with Celia and Catherine. The dinner is one of the film’s better scenes, mostly because four top-tier actors are performing naturally. Auster may have been intimidated as a first-time director to guide the actors, especially Keitel, in later scenes where they appear rudderless.
Once the fantasy element is introduced, the film veers into risky territory as it now has to balance a recognizable reality with a parallel world of a highly prized amulet and either good or bad guys (we’re never sure which) determined to get it. Paul Auster relies too much on dialogue, and too little on cinematic technique. The scene in which Izzy first removes the stone from a series of boxes placed like Russian nesting dolls conveys a good deal of suspense, but he dilutes the moment by including a variation of it later on when Izzy shows it to Celia. The script revels in its surrealism but lacks a definitive resolution, while Paul Auster’s direction is sluggish and uninspired.
Lulu on the Bridge was shot by director of photography Alik Sakharov on 35mm film with spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The Imprint Blu-ray features an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. Clarity is sharp, with details nicely delineated. Complexions are rendered naturally. The transformation from indoor lighting to the strange blue emanation from the stone provides an eerie aura and moves the plot into fantasy. The color palette varies from the bold primary hues during the dining room scene and on the Pandora’s Box set to the darker, noir look with deep shadows, rain-soaked streets and steam billowing as Izzy discovers a dead body at night. Camera work is fairly standard and unimaginative, particularly detrimental to a film with surrealistic touches.
The soundtrack is English 2.0 LPCM. Optional English SDH subtitles are available. Dialogue is clear and distinct, but the film is overly talky. Sound effects aren’t used to the film’s advantage. We hear the door imprisoning Izzy close, but it sounds like an ordinary door, not the heavy, barred structure shown. When Izzy is beaten, the scene is very brief and not convincing. Some choreographed fight moves would have enhanced the action element. The score by John Curie and Graeme Revell does little to give scenes some punch, but Lena Horne’s rendition of Singin’ in the Rain under the end credits is a treat.
Bonus materials on the Region-Free Blu-ray release from Imprint Films include the following:
- Audio Commentary by Paul Auster, Peter Newman, Tim Squyres and Ali Sakharov
- Deleted Scenes (21:05)
- Theatrical Trailer (1:54)
Audio Commentary – This commentary features director Paul Auster, producer Peter Newman, editor Tim Squyres, and cinematographer Ali Sakharov. In the opening scene, Mira Sorvino is heard singing Close Your Eyes, written for the film. In Harvey Keitel’s walk, Auster tried to capture the anger in Izzy. The film crew worked in a dance club in New York City for two days. The scene was edited many times in many ways to get the right feel. The gun kept misfiring, leading to eleven takes. The image of Izzy in the hospital was meant to suggest him floating in limbo. Izzy’s world is the past. Celia’s world is the future. They meet in the present. The filmmakers identify locations in Manhattan where various scenes were shot. The film “really begins” when Izzy comes across the dead body and takes the suitcase. Izzy and Philip discuss moral dilemmas. Auster changed his thinking about what the stone represents. When the box is opened, the strips of newspaper are in different languages and an assortment of voices speaking in many languages is heard. Izzy and Celia’s first meeting is a key scene that took two days to film and was complicated by its special effects. Auster points out articles of set decor, mentioning that they were all carefully considered. The director believes the composer did a good job creating an emotional theme for the stone. Auster likens the scene to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Harvey Keitel was often difficult about deciding what films he would do. When he learned that screenwriter Paul Auster would direct, he agreed to star. That got the project rolling. The film takes a turn after the last time Izzy and Celia see each other. The scenes between Keitel and Dafoe are more theatrical than the rest of the picture. In the warehouse scenes, the time spent moving lights was minimized so most of the time could be devoted to working with the actors. Auster explains much of the film’s symbolism that’s not immediately apparent. Mira Sorvino shot one part of a scene in New York, the second part two months later in Dublin, yet she retains a consistent emotion. At 81, Lena Horn recorded Singin’ in the Rain expressly for Lulu on the Bridge.
Deleted Scenes – Cut scenes are shown, one after another, without identification or commentary.
Lulu on the Bridge promises but doesn’t deliver. The film has a slow, listless pace that dilutes suspense and impairs viewer attentiveness. Writer/director Auster must have talked a good talk to get so many A-class actors on board. His script has an air of mystery and danger, but it’s ultimately a series of intriguing moments that, when added together, result in a cinematic hodgepodge.
- Dennis Seuling