‘Daniel Isn’t Real’ Blu-Ray Review – Imaginary Friends Are Meant To Be Forgotten

A troubled college freshman, Luke, suffers a violent family trauma. He then resurrects his charismatic childhood imaginary friend Daniel to help him cope, not realizing how dangerous Daniel is.

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Video Quality

Daniel Isn’t Real makes its domestic Blu-Ray debut with a fetching 1080p video presentation that captures the look of the film without a hiccup. Black levels reveal the slightest signs of banding in a few moments, but they largely maintain their depth even in the most unforgiving environments. The presentation maintains its spatial awareness even when you might expect it to struggle. The image is crisp when it is intended to be and hazy when the characters are indulging in more dreamy activities. 

The complex, natural color palette saturates the screen with an admirable faithfulness. Some lighting setups unlock various unique hues. The film supplies some deep colors in moments that are the most effective. The production design, outfits, makeup effects, and shooting locations provide immaculate textural details that make the experience more memorable. Skin tones are natural with a magnificent amount of detail present in close-ups. This Blu-Ray is a treat for audiences who have been waiting for it in the States. 

Audio Quality

Yellow Veil Pictures gives this Blu-Ray a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that nails the sound design of the film. When the characters are moving through the city or within a bustling space like a party, some stark ambient details flesh out the setting to make things more faithful. The results are impressive with the nimble and dynamic sound design springing to life. Environmental sounds of the world saturate the surround speakers in a way that enhances the viewing experience. Dialogue is rendered clearly without being overshadowed by any competing sounds. The music and score are effective and capably balanced while maintaining its fidelity. There is some prominent texture in the lower registers when it comes to some of the more exciting moments and some of the bass in the music. The audio gives you what you want at every turn. This film is presented with optional English SDH subtitles. 

Special Features

• Introduction: A nearly three-minute optional introduction in which writer/director Adam Egypt Mortimer discusses his excitement over having his film released on Blu-Ray along with everything on the disc. 

• Audio Commentaries: There are three commentary tracks provided that explore the film from equally valuable perspectives. While there is some overlap between the tracks, the solo track acts as somewhat of a filmmaker toolkit, the second track gets into more of the traditional development of the feature, and the final track finds the filmmaker challenged to discuss the film with someone outside of the production. 

• • Audio Commentary #1: Writer/Director Adam Egypt Mortimer

• • Audio Commentary #2: Writer/Director Adam Egypt Mortimer and Co-Writer Brian Deleeuw

• • Audio Commentary #3: Writer/Director Adam Egypt Mortimer and Grant Morrison

• Storyboard to Scenes: Four scenes are provided with a comparison between the finished scene and the storyboard version.

• • Opening (1:22)

• • Scene 11 (0:30)

• • Scene 63 (1:38)

• • Scene 81/82 (2:41)

• Script To Scenes: Five scenes are provided with a comparison between the finished scene and the early script version. These scenes are given context courtesy of co-writer Brian Deleeuw.

• • The Giant Spider (8:40)

• • The Poisoned Dog (8:56)

• • The Train (12:22)

• • The Chase (24:08)

• • The Sword Fight (12:18)

• Deleted Scenes: Four unused scenes totaling eight minutes are provided here with an optional audio commentary track from Adam Egypt Mortimer to give context as to why these sequences were cut. 

• Alternate Ending: A minute-and-a-half-long alternate ending is provided here with optional audio commentary from Adam Egypt Mortimer,

• Behind The Scenes Slideshow (5:16)

• Behind The Scenes Slideshow – Face Flicker (1:45)

• Animation Test of Daniel’s Fortress (0:26)

• Style and Visual Guide Slideshow (24:35)

• Demon Face 3D Model Slideshow (0:57)

• The Abyss – Extended Version with New Original Music: A ten-minute version of the opening cloud swirl is provided. 

• The Abyss – Layers Decomposition (0:45)

• Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided. 

• Booklet: A multi-page booklet featuring an essay from writer Amy Nicholson and a brief message from actor Glenn Howerton is provided here. This gives a well-rounded analysis of the themes and plot developments of the film which strengthens your appreciation overall.

Final Thoughts

Daniel Isn’t Real is one of the better executions of the “imaginary friend” horror trope that often forgets to build up the characters as fully realized individuals. There are some deeply unsettling moments within the narrative, but you are just as engaged in Luke’s well-being whether Daniel is in the picture or not. There are some narrative choices that we do not completely love, but overall this is a really solid thriller that we see growing on us more with future viewings. Yellow Veil Pictures has released a Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation and a significant amount of special features. If you are looking for a horrific tale to burrow itself into your mind, this is more than worth a spin. Recommended 

Daniel Isn’t Real is currently available to purchase on Standard Edition Blu-Ray or with a Limited Edition Slipcover exclusively through Vinegar Syndrome. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Yellow Veil Pictures and OCN Distribution have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.