Colors were drab and lifeless - intentionally so, I believe. The setting and the topic don t lend themselves to a Technicolor extravaganza, so the muted and bland palette of RE seemed appropriate. Black levels seemed a bit flat but generally were acceptably deep, while shadow detail looked a little murky. Low light scenes appeared fairly visible, but they seemed a bit muddled at times. As a whole, River s Edge provided a watchable but unspectacular experience.
Similar comments apply to the film s monaural soundtrack.
Yeah, I know it s a low budget affair, but I can t imagine it would have been too costly to provide stereo audio for the songs heard in the film. In any case, although it s a mono track, it s a decent one. Some edginess could be heard during louder speech, but most dialogue sounded acceptably natural and distinct. Effects seemed clean and relatively realistic, while music came across as thin but clear. The majority of the track sounded a little lifeless and lackluster, but it provided few overt flaws not related to its monaural nature.