Winter's
Tale
(2013/Warner Blu-ray w/DVD)
Picture:
A/B- Sound: A/B Extras: B- Film: C
I'll
have to admit that Winter's
Tale
(2013) was a lot better
(and darker) than I expected though doesn't remain without its flaws.
Featuring an incredible line up of a cast in Colin Farrell, Russell
Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, William Hurt, and even a clever cameo by
Will Smith as The Judge (aka Lucifer) the film centers around the
waging war between heaven and hell and how over a hundred year span
recorded the life saved of one little girl with the death of another
in the past. The film begs the question: is
one life worth more than another?
Aside
from the stellar cast, the film also has great special effects,
musical score (Hans Zimmer) costuming, and direction by long time
Hollywood screenwriter Akiva Goldsman. Let us not forget that this
is the same man responsible for Batman and Robin's screenplay. Ouch.
I will give him credit for New Line Cinema's 1998 remake Lost
in Space,
which I think is a highly under-rated sci-fi film (also starring
William Hurt). What the film gets right is throwing a classic love
story, a white horse, fantasy elements, religious context, and the
combination of a past and future combined setting. The first two
acts (especially the first) are better entertaining though as the
film shifts a little more than midway through it starts to get a
little too ridiculous and predictable.
Set
in past and modern day New York, the film stars Colin Farrell as a
dashing con artist named Peter Lake who falls in love with a
beautiful young woman named Beverly Penn (Jessica Brown Findley) who
is very ill and isn't expected to live long. (Her caring father is
excellently played by William Hurt ). The scenes between Peter and
Beverly of the two falling in love feel get a little too sappy for my
tastes. I felt like I was watching Twilight
in
terms of the dreaded anticipation of the first kiss. With the help
of a guardian angel in the form of a white horse with super powers he
must escape the evil clutches of the demonic Russell Crowe in an
attempt to stop time and save the one he loves.
There
is a scene halfway through the film with Russell Crowe and Will Smith
really is the best the movie gets. The two play off one another very
well and the dialogue is very theatrical and sharply delivered. It
is also the big reveal that of who Russell Crowe's character really
is that helps in the shifting of the timeline. Jennifer Connelly
adds some weight to the third act where she again plays a mother in
trouble - a role in which I feel she is being typecast in.
The
1080p high definition 2.4:1 transfer is gloriously presented by
Warner Brothers and is accompanied with a powerful DTS-HD Master
Audio (MA) 5.1 lossless track. Also on the disc is an English 5.1
track and optional subtitles in English, French, and Spanish. The
cold winter atmosphere is gloriously displayed with incredible detail
on both fronts. The DVD is as good as it is going to get for that
format, but cannot compete with the Blu-ray by any means.
Extras
include Behind
The Scenes: Winter's Tale: A Timeless Love, Behind The Scenes:
Characters of Good and Evil, and Additional Scenes.
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.vimeo.com/jamielockhart
