Seeing as how Naked Lunch (the novel) is a totally free form work that really hasn't got much of an actual narrative, Cronenberg made the artistic decision to base his film of the same name on parts of the titular novel and the rest on actual events from Burroughs' life and other parts on aspects of his other books (it's not hard to see parts of Junkie and Exterminator in the film).

A perfectly cast Peter Weller (probably best known as Robocop) plays William Lee (a pseudonym that Burroughs used quite often - Lee was his mothers maiden name). A down on his luck exterminator who lives in a ramshackle apartment with his wife, Joan (Judy Davis).

Joan has a bad habit of heating up the bug powder that Lee uses in his job as an exterminator and shooting it into her veins much like a heroin addict would do. If a needle isn't available, she's more than willing to make do by simply rubbing some of the powder on her lips and ingesting it orally.

She slowly pulls Lee into her world of addiction and gets him into the powder as well. The two of them fall into a drugged out state and when Lee decides it's time for the 'William Tell' trick, he ends up shooting her in the head (an event that actually occurred when Burroughs shot his wife, Joan Vollmer Burroughs, in the head while performing the same stunt one night during a bender).

After this happens, Lee becomes more and more dependant on the bug powder he uses and slowly but surely begins to spiral into the throws of addiction while the line between hallucination and reality becomes very, very blurred.

When Lee's typewriter turns into a twitching, talking cockroach that also ingests the powder (through a twitching, sphincter-like orifice on its back) and he begins to receive visits from some man-sized insect like creatures that sprout some very unsubtle sexual organs, Lee begins to spend more and more time in 'The Interzone.' 

'The Interzone' is a middle eastern realm that resembles a Turkey or Morocco of the period. It's inhabited by these strange insects that Lee has been seeing and communicating with, as well as a rash of bizarre characters more human in appearance, such as a mysterious man named Tom Frost (Ian Holm), a homosexual with an abhorrent lust for young men that teeters on the pedophilic named Yves Cloquet (Julian Sands of Dario Argento's The Phantom Of The Opera), and a doctor named Benway (played by Roy Scheder of Jaws) who is only too happy to help Lee with his chemical dependency but may have some other more sinister motives at hand that Lee is unaware of.

Cronenberg's envisioning of Burroughs' work and his life results in a film that is simultaneously beautiful and repugnant. It looks absolutely amazing. His use of shadows and colors results in a noirish look and feel that, when combined with some of the grotesque imagery courtesy of the insect effects, really throws the viewer for a loop.

The tagline for the film was 'Exterminate all rational thought.' If you take that advice literally and throw essential filmic and literary conventions out the window, then Naked Lunch succeeds in that it tells a rational story of a mans struggle with addiction and perversion in an irrational manner.

Cronenbergs treatment of Burroughs' well documented and admitted homosexuality and drug addiction is handled in a classy and thought provoking manner when, in all likelihood,  it probably would have been far easier from a narrative standard to just show it in a more blatant, exploitative display rather than the quiet and deliberate manner in which it's portrayed in the film.

The special effects used for the insect creatures are thoroughly disgusting and despite some obvious prosthetics in a few scenes, are very effective. When the bug jumps on top of Lee while he's having sex with a woman and joins in on the act, the viewer is quite taken aback by it while all the while the characters involved in the scene certainly are not. The entire idea of bugs growing and using some very human looking sexual organs is pretty bizarre in its own right and fits right in with Cronenberg's notorious 'body horror' motif and Burroughs' penchant for describing the sex act in his novels in a way that manages more to repluse than to titillate (anyone who has read The Soft Machine will likely have come away with the same impression). 

The real star of the show though is Weller. His performance as William Lee is dead on and anyone who has ever heard Burroughs speak or seen him, be it in any of the short films he was involved with by the likes of Conrad Rooks and Anthony Bach or in something like the documentary presented on the second disc in this set, while have to admire just how well Weller nailed him for this part. The consistently monotone voice, the deadpan reactions to what is going on around him, and the sarcastic nature with which he treats those he comes into contact with are all characteristics that are brought to life in Weller's performance.

An expertly directed film with a strong sense of very black humor running through it, Naked Lunch is an engrossing and challenging movie that stands as a testament to Cronenberg's ability to make films that are unique, disturbing, and always interesting. His take on Burroughs' life and work is impressive and almost definitive in the way that it brings together so many of the themes for which he is known for.

Naked Lunch is given the Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Sound treatment on this release. The track is crystal clear without any distortion or hiss present in the mix. Weller's monotone dialogue is always easy to understand, even when he's mumbling his way through something he shouldn't be. Bass response is solid when it needs to be and subtle the rest of the time. There could have been a little more distinction in some of the surround effects but other than that, there's really nothing to complain about on this mix. Nicely done.

I'd have never have guessed in a million years that Naked Lunch would get the two disc special edition treatment, but here it is. Criterion has done an exceptional job compiling and producing extra features for this release.

Before we even get to what's on the discs, special attention must be made to the excellent booklet that is included inside the keepcase. Not only does it include the cast and crew information as well as the chapter stop list, but it also has a three page essay entitled Drifting In And Out Of A Kafkaesque Reality by Janet Maslin. Maslin touches on some of the literary aspects that Cronenberg deliberately brought across in his adaptation of Burroughs' work. Gary Indiana supplies a six page essay entitled simply Burroughs, which delves into some biographical information and places it in the context of the author's work. The third essay is So Deep In My Hear That You're Really A Part Of Me by Chris Rodley. This six page piece looks at Burroughs' influence on Cronenberg's work and how it finally manifests itself on screen with this adaptation. The last essay in the booklet is by William S. Burroughs himself and is called On David Cronenberg And Naked Lunch. Over three pages, he discusses the difficulty that he had writing the novel in the first place and how he became aware of Cronenberg's desire to adapt the novel for the big screen. 

On the first disc of the set, the only extra to be found is the feature length commentary from director David Cronenberg and lead actor Peter Weller. The two of them relate their experiences making the movie and their thoughts on the end result and the entire process that they went through bringing this most difficult novel to life on the screen. Those who have problems resolving what the film is actually about would do well to listen the track as it does go a long way towards explaining a few of the more bizarre aspects of the film.

The second disc is where the bulk of the supplements lay. The best of the features on this disc is an almost hour long documentary from a London Weekend Television broadcast called Naked Making Lunch, directed by Chris Rodley. It's a pretty comprehensive piece that takes a look at all aspects of the film from pre to post production and all parts in between. Cronenberg, Weller and Burroughs are all on hand and all have something to say about the film and about getting it off the ground. A lot of good behind the scenes footage is also to be found in this piece and it's very much worth watching.

The editor of Cinefex Magazine, Jody Duncan, provides an illustrated essay explaining the special effects used in the film which uses a lot of pieces from Cronenberg's personal collection of memorabilia. 

There is also an audio track which features Burroughs reading selected passages from his novel, a gallery of promotional and marketing material, and a great selection of archival stills of William S. Burroughs that were taken from the Allen Ginsberg Trust.

The heavy involvement of Cronenberg and Weller in the extra features result in a lot of interesting material for fans to delve into and it's all wrapped up in some very stylish looking animated menus.