breakthrough hit Welcome to the Dollhouse, filmmaker Todd Solondz clearly had no desire to court 
mainstream audiences. For the third time in a row (following Happiness and Storytelling), he courted extreme controversy with his choice of subject matter and tested the limits of the MPAA, eventually going out theatrically from Wellspring Media without a rating due more to the extremely incendiary subject matter than anything actually seen on the screen. The film also earned some degree of attention for its Buñuelian device of using eight actors (all female save one) of varying ages and races to play its main character, something Solondz himself said was inspired by the surreal experience of TV shows swapping out actors for the same role with nobody commenting on it. Still a potent and deeply uncomfortable experience, it's pure Solondz and still squirmingly relevant today. 
started. 
distinct acts complete with cards named after relevant characters, Palindromes inhabits the director's usual space between the callous, empathetic, amusing, and outright horrifying. The presence of multiple hot button issues here will still make it a dicey proposition for many viewers, though moments like a very unforgettable dance number make it easier to take as a dark satire than, say, the paralyzing Happiness. The fact that this takes place within the extended family of Dawn Wiener also makes this part of what you might as well call the Solondz cinematic universe, which also includes the alternate reality Dollhouse sequel Wiener-Dog from 2016 (incredibly still his last film to date) and the actor-shuffling Happiness sequel Life During Wartime. This definitely wasn't the first dark comedy to tackle abortion; at least on a semi-mainstream level, Alexander Payne's Citizen Ruth got there in 1996, and in both cases the didactic nature of the arguments around it gets a thorough skewering. Palindromes isn't really an "issues" film at all though as much as a wry and sad look at modern-day life. 
here and leagues better than the DVDs; the film still has that weirdly comforting '90s grainy indie film aesthetic that spilled over a bit into the early '00s, and that's preserved here quite nicely. 
The DTS-HD MA English 5.1 track (with optional English subtitles) sounds solid for a dialogue-centered films with the restrained music score getting a bit of channel separation at times. The UHD is devoted to the film itself while the Blu-ray has the trailer and three featurettes starting with a new Solondz interview (26m17s) conducted by critic Hannah Strong via video-conference. It's a great chat covering his conception behind the multiple actors, the way it affected his alter films, his struggles getting another film made, his inability to predict how people will receive his work, and the unclear future for Aviva after the film's end. Then an interview with actor Alexander Brickel (14m14s) covers his own experience making the film as a little kid, the Harry Potter craze happening around the time, his own awareness of the darker side of life, his religious experience (or lack thereof) involved in the role, and memories of being directed by Solondz. Finally in the video essay "Todd Solondz and His Cinema of Cruelty" (11m58s), critic Lillian Crawford charts the progression of human cruelty from the character of Dawn and those surrounding her in Dollhouse (Radiance's prior dip into Solondz waters) through her fate in this film and the multi-generational clashes and destructive behavior here. Also included in the limited edition is a booklet with a new essay by Bence Bardos, extracts from the original press book, and archival interviews with Solondz and composer Nathan Larson.