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Burn After Reading
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - Universal Pictures Review written by and copyright: Andreas Petersen (4th January 2009). |
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The Film
 One of the true tests of a great writer/director, I believe, is versatility. A decent filmmaker can find their niche and stay in a comfort zone, churning out a very similar movie over and over again. A great filmmaker should be able to dabble in different types of films, and still retain their overall quality of work. The director here, or rather directors, are the Coen brothers (Ethan and Joel), and the film is "Burn After reading." Released less than a year after the Academy Award winning "No Country for Old Men" (2007), "Burn After Reading" may be the most drastically different film from its predecessor. While "No Country for Old Men" was one of the most intense films I may have ever seen, "Burn After Reading" is an incredibly silly follow up, and I loved it. The film follows the assorted tales of numerous adults encountering a mid-life crisis. While this may sound simple, the film’s plot is actually quite complicated and twisty, so I’ll give you the most basic of run downs. Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) is fired from his job at the CIA, and decides to write a memoir. His wife (Tilda Swinton) accidentally steals his draft while downloading their assets in preparation for a divorce, leaving her husband for treasury agent Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney). The CD in question is lost at a gym and picked up by Linda (Frances McDormand) and Chad (Brad Pitt), who attempt to blackmail Osbourne Cox with the “sensitive” information on the disk. All the while, Linda and Harry begin a relationship, people get killed, nothing goes according to plan, and the audience laughs. In the end, "Burn After Reading" is about idiotic middle-aged people who get way in over their heads, and don’t know when to stop. This film shows what happens when you mash five particularly stupid people together, and the outcome is ingenious. Everything about this film, in my eye, is perfect. There is strong direction here, as the Coen brothers are no strangers to shooting an effective comedy, especially coupled with the insanely clever script. The performances are just as perfect, especially coming from Pitt and Clooney. Pitt is the perfect amount of “over-the-top” with his stupidity that his character is endearing. Clooney’s acting choices concerning mannerisms in the film are incredible, down to his odd twitch and movement of his hands. In the end, this movie has been compared to the Coen brothers’ previous film "The Big Lebowski" (1998). While this comparison isn’t entirely unfair, I’d attribute the film to be more on the side of "Fargo" (1996), with its moments of comedy coupled with incredibly graphic violence. But really, any comparison is unfair. "Burn After Reading" stands brilliantly on its own, as when you get down to it, the movie is unlike any of the Coen’s other films, but at the same time, just as good. And that’s the mark of truly great directors.
Video
"Burn After Reading" is presented in a 1080p 24/fps High-Definition 1.85:1 transfer mastered with AVC MPEG-4 compression, and the result is astounding. While the film itself isn’t as colorful, saturated, artistic-looking movie, the quality of the picture is near perfect. I was happy to see the care taken with a movie that at first thought wouldn’t benefit from the format. There isn’t a shot in the movie that isn’t clear as day, and there is barely any sort of noise or grain to speak of. This is how current movies should look on Blu-ray, and the transfer completely nails it.
Audio
"Burn After Reading" is offered in an English DTS-HD Lossless Master Audio 5.1 surround sound track mixed at 48kHz/24-bit, as well as a French and Spanish DTS 5.1 audio track. The sound here, like the picture, is truly exceptional. Again, this movie doesn’t rely on action, but more on the dialogue, and it was refreshing to see the care taken to deliver the dialogue and music of the movie as clear as possible. Watching the movie on my set-up was reminiscent of watching the film in theaters with the best digital sound in my city, and I think that has more to do with the disc’s audio than my surround sound. Optional subtitles are included in either English for the hearing impaired, French or Spanish.
Extras
Universal has released "Burn After Reading" with three featurettes and BD-Live connectivity, and they are explained further below. First up is "Finding The Burn" featurette, which runs for 5 minutes and 31 seconds. This acts as a brief making-of for the film, with cast and crew interviewed. I always love to see the Coen brothers in interviews, even if they always seem uncomfortable to be talking in front of a camera, and this is no different here. While entertaining, this feature was incredibly short, and doesn’t do the movie justice. Next is "D.C. Insiders Run Amuck" featurette, which runs for 12 minutes and 24 seconds, and examines the ensemble cast assembled for the film. The Coen’s explain that they wrote the movie with all the actors in mind, and tailor mad the characters to suit the actors. It was really fun to see the actors of the film talk about working with the Coen brothers, as they are always so reluctant to talk about themselves. Last is "Welcome Back George" featurette, which runs for 2 minutes and 51 seconds, and is a short feature explaining Clooney’s relationship with the Coen brothers. This segment was particularly funny, as the always candid Clooney explains deeper why the Coen brothers like working with him, and why he likes working with them. The disc also features the "My Scenes" bookmarks, which allows you to save your favorite scenes so you can jump to them. Finally the disc also includes DB-Live content for Profile 2.0 players only, here you can connect online and take part in the "My Scenes" sharing with other fans.
Overall
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