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I'm Not Scared
R1 - America - Buena Vista Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak and Tom Williams (10th July 2006). |
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The Film
 One of the most successful elements of Gabriele Salvatores‘ excellent I’m Not Scared is the contrast and gradual shift between its idyllic opening mood and the mysterious thriller that the film eventually becomes. Seeing Michele, played with enormous talent by Giuseppe Cristano, play in the fields of his village in southern Italy evokes an almost universal memory of the freedom of childhood, yet the conclusion of the film has seen Michele challenge this coming-of-age genre and transform it into something that is more mature, more sophisticated and more sinister. This tone is exemplified by the opening scenes, in which we see Michele exploring and playing in the fields drenched in bright Italian sunlight. As he looks for his sister’s glasses, he unearths a hidden well- at the bottom of which he can see a child’s foot. Just as this scene disrupts our sense of innocent childhood, it disrupts Michele’s, who runs home immediately in search of the comfort and order of his house. The film progresses by revealing the loss of innocence Michele undergoes as he searches for answers, and in doing so discovers that home can be a bad place too. Who the child is, and what this means to Michele and his family are sophisticated issues that are outside a child’s understanding- and so it is in its way a tragedy that Michele eventually unravels the mystery. Michele is at once a remarkable and ordinary boy. He plays with the other children of the village and looks after his sister, returning to his beautiful mother for dinner. However he also protects the girl being picked on by other children, diverting their attention by offering to perform a dare. Michele’s natural talent for being a storyteller allows him to overcome his fears in crossing an exposed beam, but also prevent him from truly understanding the situation he has found a young boy in- he instinctively imagines a fantasy world more palatable than the reality. This tendency to create stories is echoed in the mind of his imprisoned friend, who initially believes he is dead, and has been sent somewhere supernatural. I’m Not Scared is beautifully shot, supporting its subject matter with such strength that this film becomes nearly unmissable. The golden fields of grain, unmarked like a child’s soul, are a real and yet idealised world. The sharp cuts between Michele’s eyes and feet as he speeds away from his first glimpse of the prisoner highlight his fear- the totally consuming fear of childhood. Salvatores’ visual cues, which are many and varied, weave into Michele’s life effortlessly, without becoming mere pathetic fallacy. Although the natural world comes close to becoming a character in its own right, the predators and prey, domesticated animals that are real and not fantastic, and the human inability to change the course of nature mirror the experiences Michele goes through. The children themselves seem deeply in tune with nature, sometimes revelling gloriously in the natural world and yet sometimes quickly turning almost sadistic- or at least uncivilised. I’m Not Scared seems to be about the fringes and boundaries of life, as Michele goes from being a child- somewhere between an animal and a human- and an adolescent, something between a child and an adult. The interaction between crime or mystery and the understanding and expression of a child’s mind makes for very interesting viewing, and the compelling nature of the plot is supported wonderfully by very able acting and wonderful direction. This is a film nobody could regret seeing and few could regret owning.
Video
Presented in 2.13:1 anamorphic widescreen, (the package states 2.35:1 but it is in fact 2.13:1) which as far as I can make out is not the correct ratio of this film, it doesn’t appear as if the image is zoomed in, however it is fairly easy to tell that this transfer has been cropped slightly from its original 2.35:1 image. Despite this cropping, the transfer is quite good, sharpness is consistent, colors are well rendered and robust, especially the golden countryside captured in the wide shots. Skin tones are spot on and very natural, black detail is bold and deep. I spotted no real problems with this transfer, aside from the minor cropping, which could very well what elements Miramax were given to work with rather than their fault.
Audio
The film includes Italian Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track, it’s not an overly active track but ambience is nicely represented in the rear speakers, the dialogue is clear and distortion free, however the majority of the track is rather quite. Surrounds kick in during suspenseful scenes, especially the helicopter landing in the field near the end of the film. Optional subtitles are also included in both English and Spanish, the English subtitles are easy to read and I found no spelling or grammatical mistakes.
Extras
Miramax has only 2 start-up trailers (which can be skipped by pressing Menu on your remote): - Miramax 25th Anniversary which runs for 2 minutes 3 seconds. - Finding Neverland which runs for 2 minutes 13 seconds.
Overall
I suspect the most compelling special feature a film like this could have is a commentary, which would likely have to be subtitled itself. Nonetheless, this film is well worth a look.
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