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W.
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Lions Gate Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (21st March 2009). |
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The Film
 "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it" - George Santayana. Leave it to Oliver Stone to make a film about one of the worst Presidents of recent history, the controversial director has a history of activism, conspiracy theories and isn't afraid to criticize regimes. Who better than Stone to make a film about George W. Bush, his life and Presidential times that has seen his government enter the U.S. into two wars they can't seem to finish, massive national debt (that's now skyrocketing past the $11 trillion mark) and the lowest approval ratings going out of his second term than any previous President. The last eight years has been such a traumatic time for America, the effects of which are being felt now. And now that there is a clear change of direction with Barack Obama in office, before watching this film you have to ask yourself - "do I really want to relive the last eight years all over again?" Stone seems to think so, and he's crafted an interesting portrayal of the flawed Texan man that rose to power. "W." came about rather quickly in the grand scheme of things, it was rushed into production last year after Stone shelved work on his film "Pinkville" stalled due to the writer's strike. In order to make it into theaters around the time of the elections the film was completed in just 6 months. In some ways the rushed natured of the production is evident, such as the made-for-TV feel of the overall production. I couldn't help but think this would have made a better mini-series rather than a feature film released theatrically. This is not entirely a reflection of the photography, which was excellently crafted by Phedon Papamichael, but rather the subject itself just didn't seem grand enough for the big screen, additionally there were no surprises, no revelations or moments that uplift the film from being anything other than a fairly straightforward biopic. I actually expected Stone to push the envelope but I guess those days are behind him. For the most part the casting is solid, Josh Brolin as the title character is exceptional in the role and manages to capture the man who has become a punchline in recent years. The true revelation is that the performance never feels like a caricature, never once does seem like a character out of an "SNL" (1975-Present) skit. Impressively enough Brolin managed to capture the character in a short space of time, before production started Christian Bale was originally cast as the title character but dropped out. Brolin was a quick replacement but managed to exceed expectations. Other members of the supporting cast do an admirable job, Richard Dreyfuss, Elizabeth Banks, Toby Jones and James Cromwell all bring their excellent talent into the mix and thus elevates the scenes and performances of those around them... all but Thandie Newton who actually does seem like a caricature of Condoleezza Rice, I'm glad she doesn't have many lines in the film. Easily she's the weakest link in this ensemble cast. "W." will not likely become a political classic in the years to come, but it does provide some fine performances in an otherwise fairly rudimentary biopic. You're viewership will largely be determined by whether you want to relive these last eight years looking back at the worst President in recent history... otherwise the curiosity of Brolin's performance will likely be another reason.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 2.35:1 in high-definition 1080p 24/fps and mastered using AVC MPEG-4 compression. This is Stone's first independently financed feature film (not counting the documentaries he's made) since "Salvador" (1986), every film since has been a studio picture. Being an independent film the budget is much lower than his previous films and thus the photography tends to take on a more naturalistic look than any of his previous films. There's nothing flashy in terms of the look like with "JFK" (1991) or "Any Given Sunday" (1999). The image is however, is sharp, crisp and detailed. There's some grain (heavier than most) but this doesn't distract, if anything it adds texture and depth to the picture. Colors are all natural and look good, especially skin tones. Blacks are deep and shadow detail is consistently good throughout. Some shots look a little flat but overall the image is solid.
Audio
Two audio tracks are present on this disc in English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround mixed at 48kHz/24-bit and French Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. For the purposes of this review I chose to view the film with its English DTS-Hd audio. The result is very good considering there isn't much in terms of active surrounds. The mix tends to focus more on the naturalistic sounds, ambient sounds and music as well as dialogue. The sound seems to handle these elements quite well. Optional subtitles are also included in English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
Lionsgate has released this film a collection of extras that include an audio commentary, two featurettes, a series of deleted scenes, an annotations guide, the film's theatrical trailer plus a collection of bonus trailers. Below is a closer look at these supplements. First up we've got a feature-length audio commentary by the film's director Oliver Stone. Stone is certainly one of the more outspoken and lively filmmakers out there and this is accurately reflected in this track. He takes the entire duration to comment on the production starting off with praising Lionsgate for taking a risk on distributing the film, casting the various roles and accurately portraying the President's life (to best of their abilities) and comments on the dramatized moments. He manages to stay screen-specific in his comments and takes us through the filming of the scenes, location and also story elements. Fascinatingly he talks about the decision process as to what would be covered in the film and as a result provides a terrific track that features a vast amount of information and the director certainly manages to capture the viewer. “Dangerous Dynasty: The Bush Presidency” is the first featurette which runs for 17 minutes 48 seconds. This clip takes a look at the Bush legacy from the perspective of historians and political experts. This feature probably points more fingers than the film itself and provides a well researched background including some of the more controversial bills and policy that passed during his government among other things. I doubt anyone that supports Bush will like this clip, but then again I doubt anyone that supports him will buy this movie anyway. The next featurette is “No Stranger to Controversy: Oliver Stone's George W. Bush” featurette which runs for 16 minutes 34 seconds. This clip takes a look why the story interested Stone and why he was compelled to make this film. The clip covers Brolin's casting and what made him a good choice for the role, on the script and the research process among other things including the themes of the film. There are ample amounts of interviews with key crew and Brolin as well as behind-the-scenes footage. It's an EPK clip but one that has a little more substance than most. Next up is a collection of 6 deleted scenes, which can be viewed with optional audio commentary by the film's director Oliver Stone where he comments on the scenes and on why they didn't make the cut. The scenes included are: - "Cessna" which runs for 2 minutes 1 second, in this scene Bush flies a cessna plane with Don Evans (Noah Wyle). - "Arthur Blessitt" which runs for 4 minutes 4 seconds, Bush meets Arthur (Michael Shannon) for the first time and talk about his relationship with Jesus. - "Tony Blair" which runs for 6 minutes 44 seconds, in this scene Condoleezza sings a prayer for the President and Prime Minister Blair, Blair talks about converting to being a devout Catholic and leads into an extension to a scene already in the film. - "Pool/Aircraft Carrier" which runs for 1 minute 36 seconds, Bush undergoes a training exercise in a pool, later the President lands on the aircraft carrier. - "Pretzel (Fantasy)" which runs for 1 minute 29 seconds, Bush fantasizes about watching a football game with Saddam Hussein (Sayed Badreya). - "Hussein (Fantasy)" which runs for 1 minute 1 second, another scene in which Bush dreams he sees Saddam Hussein taunting him for being a loser and is flying on a magic carpet over Baghdad. Also on the disc is "W." Filmmakers' research and annotations guide, this interactive features allows viewers to search through the various articles, biographical and historical content used by the filmmakers to make this film. These articles are arranged according to the order in which they take place in the film and provides a neat look at the depth of the research underwent during the pre-production period. The film's original theatrical trailer is also included and runs for 1 minute 15 seconds. Rounding out the extras are a series of start-up bonus trailers for: - "The Haunting in Connecticut" which runs for 2 minutes 28 seconds. - "New in Town" which runs for 2 minutes 33 seconds. - "The Bank Job" which runs for 2 minutes 31 seconds. - "The Doors" which runs for 1 minute 26 seconds. - "Rambo" which runs for 1 minute 1 second. - "Lord of War" which runs for 2 minutes 12 seconds.
Overall
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