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For Ellen
R2 - United Kingdom - Soda Pictures Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (14th June 2013). |
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The Film
 ***This is a technical review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** Aspiring rock star Joby Taylor (Paul Dano; Little Miss Sunshine, There Will Be Blood) finally agrees to sign divorce papers with his estranged wife but discovers he is about to forfeit all custody of his six-year-old daugher Ellen. Even though he has never been in his daughter's life, Joby suddenly realises he's not ready to give up his right to fatherhood and aided by his good natured lawyer (Jon Heder; Napoleon Dynamite) sets across a wintry U.S landscape to try and see her before it is too late.
Video
Soda Pictures presents So Yong Kim's "For Ellen" in the original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 which has been anamorphically enhanced. As should be expected for a new film, the picture quality is very good - in fact, the overall transfer is better than many other recent low budget indie projects (albeit with a known cast). Shot digitally using an Arricam LT with Zeiss Super Speed Lenses, the movie looks very crisp all round and although the lighting felt a little awkward during some scenes, this appears to have been a creative decision and is therefor replicated exceptionally well. Details are sharp, especially during the many close-ups of Paul Dano's face, though occasionally whites and blacks struggle to maintain detail and definition during long distance and panning shots. There is no noise present in the picture, or any damage/blemishes of note, but there is some minor edge enhancement throughout which is barely noticeable. The disc is PAL format and the feature runs 89:45.
Audio
There are two audio tracks present here: - English Dolby Digital 5.1 - English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo For my viewing, I opted for the 5.1 option which is more than adequate for a feature which is very-much dialogue driven. The film is actually quite uneventful when it comes to audio. There are no 'big' audio scenes and there are extended periods where there is no instrumentation or score, allowing the track to have an altogether natural and realistic feel. There was no damage to the track to my ears, with no scratches, kinks or dropouts. I also noticed no background hiss. Although it may be a quiet track, the surround use is subtle and directionality good. No subtitles have been included.
Extras
Start-up Trailers: - "Everyday" (1:52) - "Meek's Cutoff" (1:42) - "Treeless Mountain" (1:35) Theatrical Trailer (2:01)
Overall
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