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Casa de mi Padre
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Lions Gate Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (11th November 2012). |
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The Film
 I'm not ashamed to say it, but I love me some Will Ferrell. I can watch pretty much any one of his films on rotation all the live long day... yes, even "Land of the Lost" (in my opinion a vastly underrated comic gem of a movie). Farrell has been busy, from starring in block buster comedies, to smaller independent productions and also running and contributing to the comedy video site funnyordie.com. Ferrell certainly makes some interesting choices. "Casa de mi Padre" is yet another one of those "interesting" choices. An absurd little comedy, filmed entirely in Spanish. This is the very definition of a high concept comedy. Typically these films are very risky, often feature a small niche audience and unless backed by a major studio with an impressive marketing and distribution budget usually fail theatrically. As you can already estimate, it's because of these factors that major studios rarely finances these types of films. It's smaller independents that usually take the risk, the results can be mixed, but in the case of "Casa de mi Padre" I think the gamble pays off (obviously not the financial one) but the gamble to create a unique, highly interesting and incredibly strange comedy - the filmmakers, in this respect, nailed it. It's just a shame that no one saw it. "Casa de mi Padre" tells the tale of Mexican rancher Armando Alvarez (Will Ferrell) who, for his entire life has lived and worked for his father on their expansive ranch is trying to save the ranch from financial ruin. But plans are pushed aside when Armando's younger brother Raul (Diego Luna) decides to show up unexpectedly with his new fiancé, Sonia (Genesis Rodriguez). Raul has recently seen success as a businessman and their father hopes that Raul can help save the ranch, but what he doesn't know is that Raul is involved with some illicit drug activity with a notorious gangster, Onza (Gael García Bernal). Armando is confronted by his brother's dodgy past, dealing with a notorious gangster, saving the family ranch and all this while falling in love with Sonia. Upon first impression "Casa de mi Padre" comes off as a cheap spoof (dramatic telenovela), filled with stupid plot points and silly comedy gags, and it is exactly that. The only difference is that the filmmaker's are fully aware of this and their self awareness has helped craft a uniquely funny film. It plays on all the elements that make telenovela's trashy and overtly dramatic. Combine this with Ferrell's absurd sense of humor and you have essentially, a stupid movie that really makes you smile... and laugh, there's laughs too (an important element of comedies). "Casa de mi Padre" is a weird film, there's so much going on here that although may appear random it's fully intentional. From the film's telenovela style of performance, to the B-grade look of the photography, the use of painted and fake back drops, the amateurish animatronic animals and a sex scene that's like no other (halfway through the scene the actress is doubled by a mannequin). It's definitely left of center, and therefor instantly reduces the film's audience by a huge chunk. The true majesty (yes, majesty!) of this film is Will Ferrell, who spent a month learning and speaking Spanish with a dialect coach for his role, delivers an understated yet astoundingly nuanced comedic performance. He really does shine in this role, additionally matched with an impressive support cast the comedy is able to hit all the right notes. There's also some funny running gags, one in particular features Ferrell's character's inability to roll a cigarette, which had me in stitches. "Casa de mi Padre" is not for everyone, it's not a mainstream comedy by any stretch of the imagination but it's worth exploring, even though for the most part it's an incredibly silly film, nothing is to be taken seriously. But Ferrell delivers quite possibly his most memorable comedic performance and I hope this film develops a cult following on home video.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 2.35:1 high definition 1080p 24/fps mastered using AVC MPEG- 4 compression. Lionsgate's transfer accurately represents the film's cheap-y telenovela style. The overall image is basked in a rich golden hue, the color palette representing the hot and unforgiving Mexican climate. The overall image is soft, lacking in some detail, however close-ups look good with accurate detail and textures. The characters are caked with make-up, from a slightly heavy hand on the make-up artist's part... again an aesthetic decision that helps define the film's look and tone. The image also feels flat and without any dynamic depth. Again all on purpose. So the transfer's flaws are intended, and thus making it difficult to grade. Upon first impression one might think this was a poorly conceived transfer, however, since it's intentional I suppose one has to give Lionsgate credit for remaining accurate to the filmmaker's vision.
Audio
A single Spanish DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is included mixed at 48kHz/24-bit. Like almost any comedy film, the surround track is mostly serviceable. Dialogue is clean and clear, without any distortion, some minor sound effects by way of gun fire and music makes good use of the surround speakers. The majority of the film's audio is relegated to the front with smatterings using the peripheral channels. Despite being dynamically limited, the audio doesn't offend nor does it impress, it simply sits somewhere in the middle. Optional subtitles are included in English and Spanish.
Extras
Despite having a lukewarm reception at the box office, Lionsgate has released this film on Blu-ray with a decent amount of supplements that includes an audio commentary, two featurettes, a collection of deleted scenes, a music video, commercials and a series of bonus trailers. Below is a closer at these extras. First up is the film's feature-length screen-specific audio commentary with director Matt Piedmont and screenwriter Andrew Steele. Much the same as almost every other commentary you've heard, it's filled with a lot of back-patting and job well done rhetoric. However amongst that are the occasional tidbits relating to the productions, it's genesis and development as well as the various challenges the filmmaker's faced. The track is also funny and offers fans a lighthearted look at the making of the film as the two participants crack jokes and discuss the various ridiculous situations the characters find themselves in. Next up is "The Making of Casa de Mi Padre" (1080p) featurette which runs for 15 minutes 43 seconds, and is the usual EPK piece featuring interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. Nothing groundbreaking here. There are a series of ten deleted scenes (1080p) that can be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option that collectively run for 19 minutes 43 seconds, the scenes included are: - "Raul Study" Raul and Miguel have an argument in the study. - "Raul Slaps Sonia" Raul threatens to kill Sonia as they argue about the the Onza. - "Old Friends Shooting" Miguel and his old friends spend the afternoon clay pigeon shooting. - "Sonia Fountain" Miguel tries to cheer Sonia up. - "Police Station" the D.E.A. agents visit the local police station about the Onza. - "Pants" Armando shares his problems with his friends around a campfire. - "Doctor" Armando asks the doctor and his brother how their father is doing after getting shot. - "Armando Awakes" Manuel wakes Armando after his fever dream from getting shot. - "Manuel Knocked Out" Armando tells Manuel that the fight is not his to fight, then knocks him out to avoid him coming along. - "Esteban and Manuel" Manuel wakes up after being knocked out. "Fight For Love" (1080p) is a music video by Will Ferrell and Genesis Rodriguez which runs for 3 minutes 20 seconds. A clip that's taken from the love scene turned into a music video. A series of three commercials (1080p) are also included which can also be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option. the commercials feature characters from the film pitching the fictional products seen in the film, they include: - "Champion 100's" which runs for 31 seconds. - "Scorpion Beer" which runs for 1 minute 43 seconds. - "Suave Leopard Cigarettes" which runs for 46 seconds. "Pedro Armendáriz, Jr. Final Interview" (1080p) featurette runs for 3 minutes 37 seconds, sadly Armendáriz, Jr. who plays Miguel in the film passed away after the making of this film, this is his final interview presented here. The disc also features a series of bonus trailers (1080p) for: - "Safe" runs for 2 minutes 32 seconds. - "Friends with Kids" runs for 2 minutes 31 seconds. - "Saving Private Perez" runs for 2 minutes 3 seconds. - "Everything must Go" runs for 2 minutes 37 seconds. - "Man on a Ledge" runs for 2 minutes 28 seconds. - "ePix" promo runs for 1 minutes 19 seconds. Rounding out the extras are the standard bookmarks feature.
Packaging
Packaged in a standard Blu-ray case housed in a cardboard slip-case.
Overall
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