Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Bad Boy Bubby Blu-ray Movie Review

A fascinating and disturbing slice of obscure cinema debuts on Blu-ray with adequate results.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 27, 2009

The kid's completely crackers!

There are some films that defy logic and stray so far from the mainstream that it's hard for a casual -- or even in some cases hardcore -- movie watcher to realize that something so radically different from the usual deluge of material released on a weekly basis both to theaters and on home video even exists on some back, dusty shelf of a small independent video store. It's a shame that most audiences are never exposed to, and in many cases painfully unaware of, some of the wonders of cinema that go unnoticed because they don't have a major studio backing them; a Brad Pitt or Julia Roberts to slap on a poster, marquee, or video box to sell tickets or discs; or cross-promotions with a fast-food joint to make sure everyone and their cat sees the movie at the local multiplex. Bad Boy Bubby is one such film, an obscure little title that's quite unlike anything that passes for mainstream moviemaking, whether second-rate direct-to-video rubbish or the finalists for the Best Picture Oscar. In this case, though, it's something that's definitely not for everyone. Obscure, yes; offensive, absolutely; wondrous, no doubt; Bad Boy Bubby is the very definition of esoteric cinema, a film likely to divide even those viewers that dare explore the twisted world that defines its very existence.

That's one way to keep the cat from scratching the furniture.

Bubby (Nicholas Hope) is a 35 year old man that has never seen the outside of the small, run-down, monochromatic, roach-infested dungeon of an apartment he and his mother Flo (Claire Benito) call home. He's almost completely helpless, relying on his mother to shave him, bathe him, and feed him, among other things. When she leaves the apartment for whatever reason, she dons a gas mask to keep him frightened of the outside world and its supposedly poisonous atmosphere and instructs Bubby to remain seated and still while she is away, lest he face Jesus' wrath. Bubby's limited mental acuity leaves him practically incapable of complex thought processes; he seems only able to imitate whatever he sees and hears, be it his mother's scorns or a cat's hiss. When his father (Ralph Cotterill) suddenly reappears after a decades-long absence, Bubby begins to piece together the fact that he comes and goes without a mask of his own. Eventually, Bubby finds himself in a position to leave the apartment and explore the world outside where it becomes apparent that neither is ready for the other.

To divulge any aspect of the plot past the point of Bubby's foray into the world would be to sacrifice the film's integrity and purpose. Bubby's journey is one that each individual viewer must experience firsthand alongside him, to witness his actions and reactions towards the world and the reciprocal attitude the world shows him as he attempts to sort out its many wonders -- people, places, things, and ideas -- as best he can with his extremely limited experiences and inability to communicate with purpose, intelligence, and proper meaning. While audiences are able to grasp the basics of the story, the very essence of the experience demands a performance from the lead actor that pushes the envelop of what an audience expects from a gifted performer, and Nicholas Hope never falters as he explores the hardships, delights, and everything in between most take for granted on a daily basis. Perfectly combining a rough instability with a personable yet absolutely confused countenance, Hope manages to bring the character to life in a way that leaves the audience awed at the experience. A wholly convincing performance that's always enthralling, sometimes humorous, and occasionally depressing, Hope creates in Bubby a sense of awe of the world around him that should be the envy of any performer that's ever attempted to capture the feel of a character suddenly thrust into a world they know nothing about, whether any number of films that see a child suddenly occupying an adult's body or simply an everyday person placed in an alien environment (for instance something like New in Town). In that light, however, it's important to stress that Bad Boy Bubby is no Big or happy-go-lucky Romantic Comedy; this is an explicit, blasphemous, grungy picture that demands its viewer be absolutely prepared for all that awaits Bubby on his journey into life.

Bad Boy Bubby's upsetting tone is what lends weight to the experience and fleshes out the film's purpose. Anything less than the dank, depressing visual style; the explicit imagery; or the offbeat humor that's sometimes hilarious and at other times insulting; is meant to leave the viewer feeling uncomfortable, uncomfortable with the notion of a man secluded from the world and a world that cannot seem to figure out what to do with a man so long secluded from all that it has to offer, whether good, bad, or indifferent. Bad Boy Bubby plays out with a deliberately slow pace that sinks its claws into the viewer and never lets go until the final frame, all the time digging deeper and deeper through the entirety of the production, as the film see-saws from revolting to fascinating and to everything in between. It often seems to want to appear as a first-person perspective film; no doubt this is Bubby's story and Bubby's story alone, and the film uniquely shoots its middle segment with an array of cinematographers that lend to every new experience a unique appearance that's meant to at least partially replicate the novelty of each new encounter in Bubby's life. The film also employs a unique audio recording system meant to capture the sounds of the world as Bubby would hear them, that effect reproduced with sound traveling around the soundstage and distinctly off to one side or the other so as to recreate another of Bubby's senses. Truly a film about exploration -- both of the world and of the individual -- Bad Boy Bubby is the sort of experience that's required viewing for audiences yearning for something different and with the fortitude to handle with maturity all it has to show.

Bad Boy Bubby Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Bad Boy Bubby explores on Blu-ray with a 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. Never once offering the sort of pristine and eye-catching imagery used to demonstrate the power of the format, Bad Boy Bubby instead revels in its darkness and grit. The opening act of the film inside the worn down apartment features plenty of heavy grain, the effect adding a worn, grimy, and disturbed look to the image. Bubby's jaunt into the outside world allows the transfer to liven up, but just a bit. Grain remains, but there is more in the way of bright colors and detail to be seen on the city streets than in the incredibly pedestrian apartment. Still, the movie, and by extension the transfer, never revels in eye-catching colors or fine details. It's all merely adequate, and no one object, even the old standbys that tend to look great on Blu-ray -- clothing and building façades, for instance -- look flat and lifeless. It's all part of the film's intended appearance, however, and this Blue Underground transfer satisfies in context.

Bad Boy Bubby Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Bad Boy Bubby lets loose on Blu-ray with a pair of 5.1. lossless soundtracks, one each of the DTS-HD MA and Dolby TrueHD variety. Unfortunately, a production error has rendered parts of the Dolby TrueHD track defective on the promotional copies received by reviewers. As a result, only the DTS track will be discussed in this review. Blue Underground has assured that this problem will be eliminated from retail copies for listeners who prefer, or can only access, the Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. All things being equal, however, there should be no discernible differences between the two. The DTS track recreates the film's unique sound field heretofore described well and makes criticism somewhat difficult given the uniqueness of the experience. Sound doesn't literally fly around the soundstage as one might expect it to; in fact, the back channels don't deliver a deluge of discrete or supportive effects as most of the presentation meanders across the front. Sound is generally clear when focused; music in particular sounds quite good, whether the gentle playing of a violin in chapter 16 or an onslaught of bagpipes that play with incredible volume at reference levels in chapter 19. Sound effects, such as screaming emergency vehicle sirens, flow across the soundstage nicely. Dialogue often remains focused up the middle but does branch out to other parts of the soundstage when the visuals call for a more spacious presentation. A unique experience but nothing particularly earth-shattering, Bad Boy Bubby sounds fine on Blu-ray, all things considered.

Bad Boy Bubby Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Bad Boy Bubby wanders onto Bu-ray with a few supplements. Christ Kid, You're a Weirdo (480p, 23:56) offers an interview with Director Rolf de Heer who discusses the origins of the project and the development of all the ideas that made their way into the final product. He also speaks on the performances, shooting the film and abandoned filmmaking techniques that would have made the film too unbearable, the use of multiple cinematographers, the unique method of sound recording used in the film, ideas for different endings, and more. Being Bubby -- Interview with Star Nicholas Hope (480p, 14:18) features the actor recalling how he landed the part and his work on the picture, including its experimental nature, themes, his preparations for the performance, shooting some of the more explicit scenes, audience and critical reaction to the picture, and more. Also included is the Bad Boy Bubby theatrical trailer (480p, 1:51) and the short film Confessor Caressor (480p, 19:37) that propelled star Nicholas Hope to Bad Boy Bubby.

Bad Boy Bubby Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sometimes disturbing, sometimes repulsive, but always fascinating, Rolf de Heer's Bad Boy Bubby represents one of cinema's obscure treasures that drifts about as far from the mainstream as any film can go. Not for all audiences but a spectacle to behold for those that can stomach its many explicit visuals and blasphemous dialogue, Bad Boy Bubby features one of the medium's finest acting performances to go along with one of its quirkiest but most curious pieces. Blue Underground's Blu-ray disc offers a faithful-to-the-source presentation. Neither video nor audio are liable to impress audiences hoping for a glossy and pristine fit-and-finish but they do make for a pleasant combination that recreate the intended experience. Meanwhile, the disc serves up a few quality extras. Cautiously recommended.