Youth
(2015/Fox Blu-ray)
Picture:
A Sound: B Extras: A Film: A-
World
re-known conductor Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine) and his long time
friend and acclaimed filmmaker/director Mick Boyle (Harvey Keitel)
have retired from the world stage and vacationing together in a Swiss
Alps resort for the rich and famous. There among all the wealthy
elite and famous can they only find peace and peers from the madding
adoring crowds, but as they reminisce and live their twilight days
they must come to terms with the life they lived, left behind, and
followed. They come to ponder what the sum of their lives have meant
in Paolo Sorrentino's Youth (2015).
Fred is a world
class savant who has the ability to conduct/turn anything into a
musical masterpiece, but after a giving a lifetime to music, he is
estranged with his daughter and hounded by the Queen's emissary to
play once more. Trapped between senility, fantasy, reality and living
in a paradise (not a bad way to go) he reveals to his daughter while
he hasn't been there for her as her father, he has always expressed
his feelings and emotions through his music. And the reason why he
retired and stopped playing is because his wife can no longer sing
for him. While his feelings have been true, he still regrets the
things he missed and he is reminded of what has made him famous is
just as important as what has made him felt alive.
This film
was a psychological drama about lives of people who the rest of the
world believe that the wealthy, famous and stars are living in a
different world than the rest of us common people. While some of
them DO live in a different world, they are still human and they have
to deal with the ideals and expectations the world has placed on
them. Eccentric not by completely by choice, but by the nature of
their talent(s) and what society has put them through. Rachel Weisz,
Paul Dano, Jane Fonda and Mark Kozelek also star.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digitally-shot digital High Definition image is about
as good as an HD-shot drama of this type can look pushing the RED
Epic Dragon camera to its limits, while the lossless DTS-HD MA
(Master Audio) 7.1 mix mat not impress as much, but has plenty of
ambiance, is warm and is well-recorded. Extras include separate
featurettes with Michael Caine & Paolo Sorrentino, Music and
Sound, The Essence of Youth, Cast, gallery and trailers.
-
Ricky Chiang
