Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired (2008/Image DVD)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: B- Documentary: B-
When he
first arrived on the scene, Roman Polanski was one of the most important
directors in the world with films like Knife
In The Water, Repulsion, Rosemary’s Baby and Chinatown. The latter happened after the horrible murder
of Sharon Tate by real-life maniac Charles Manson and his brood, but Polanski
had been through hell before as a Holocaust survivor and in the Nazi’s brutal
invasion of Poland. So it is with dark
irony that his own misdeed became his undoing; having sex with a 13-year-old
girl. It has obscured his life and
legacy, which is examined in Marina Zenovich’s fascinating new documentary Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired.
As you
may know, Polanski eventually fled the U.S. never to return as of this posting
and we learn how an out of control judge who was even asking others for advice
on how to rule (!!!!) eventually deciding to throw the book at Polanski for ego
reasons. To the documentary’s credit, it
never glorifies Polanski, but definitely shows how the system failed and how it
still fails as this case is still not resolved over a quarter-century
later. This release has caused the case to
be reopened, but it is such a mess, Polanski is never coming back, the
13-year-old (hunted by the European press as a seductress who was asking for
it!!!) is an adult sick of the case and wants it closed and until works like Death & The Maiden and hit The Pianist, Polanski was in creative
hell. No matter what you eventually
conclude, this is a very thorough look at the case without focusing on the
total significance of Polanski’s career.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 is not bad in its collage of old and new
footage, ranging from film to analog video to current digital formats. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is just fine,
offering everything from very good stereo to old monophonic sound. The combination is what you would expect from
a documentary and well edited at that. Extras
include extended interviews, deleted scenes and a very good audio commentary by
Zenovich and Editor Joe Bini. Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired is
a must-see about justice and injustice in America, as well as how power can get
so easily twisted.
- Nicholas Sheffo
