Duck
(2005/Westlake DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C Extras: B- Main Program: B-
Philip
Baker Hall is an actor who is always willing to try something different and
delivers much more often than not. Nic
Bettauer’s Duck (2005) is no
exception, ass he plays a man who has lost his son too early, is now a widower
and the anti-people social policies of a third Bush Administration have driven
him to homelessness during retirement, only accompanied by a duck named Joe.
This runs
96 minutes and is always interesting to watch, the two walk and drift through a
Los Angeles in decline, with a sad feeling of some kind of slow doom
throughout. The world does not have to
end with a post-apocalyptic nightmare, all you need is just a government who
makes everyone save a tiny elite, disposable.
The script is not deeply political, instead being a comedy with a subtle
sense of sadness it dares to deal with.
Wide exposure for this little indie gem is long overdue and we hope the
DVD gives it a new audience.
The 1.78 X
1 image is a little soft, originating on digital video of some kind, with color
also an issue. This is not from any
intentional stylizing. The Dolby Digital
2.0 sound is barely stereo and a little low in volume, but clean enough for
such a production; just be careful of volume playback. Extras include stills, original trailer, text
cast bios, desktop downloads and a fine audio commentary by Bettauer and Hall.
- Nicholas Sheffo
