7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Docudrama about the making of the first "reality TV" show, a ten-part PBS documentary offering an inside look at the life of an American family.
Starring: Diane Lane, Thomas Dekker, Tim Robbins, James Gandolfini, Johnny SimmonsDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
Spanish: DTS 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
An introductory title card for the HBO original film Cinema Verite lists three important historical events from 1973, all of which will celebrate their fortieth anniversary next year. Two of them, the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, remain familiar, even if people don't remember the exact year, because their consequences are still being felt. The third event has had an impact of equal magnitude, but its effects have been so thoroughly absorbed into American culture that people are no longer aware of the source. The event was the TV series, An American Family, which aired on PBS in ten parts from January 11 through March 29, 1973. From today's vantage point, it's difficult to convey the shock that An American Family delivered to a nation still trying to regain a sense of equilibrium after the disorientation of the Sixties, with its high-profile political assassinations, bitterly fought civil rights movement and massive antiwar protests that polarized friends, neighbors and family. The Watergate scandal and President Nixon's impeachment and resignation lay just ahead. An American Family took millions of viewers past the front door of a solid middle class family, which many assumed was the last bastion of security in an uncertain world, and showed that it, too, rested on shaky foundations. In what became the first example of "reality TV" (a term that had yet to be coined), viewers watched the fine, upstanding family of Bill and Pat Loud disintegrate before their eyes. They also met the first openly gay character on television in the person of eldest son Lance Loud. The frank homophobia with which Lance was treated in mainstream publications would stun most viewers today, when only extremist elements (and internet posters hiding behind anonymity) are willing to express similar sentiments. An American Family isn't readily available today, and I doubt most viewers would find it interesting, certainly not for ten hours. It's a valuable historical document, but it's tame by present-day standards. Cinema Verite attempts to recreate some of the excitement of discovery that accompanied the series' premiere by telling the story of how it was made, highlighting the tensions between the Louds and the filmmakers who followed them for months. The film thereby raises the inescapable question of how much of An American Family was, if not staged, then at least prompted, by producer Craig Gilbert, who believed his documentary series would only be worth something if the crew captured moments of true drama. Daily life makes for dull TV. Some suspect Gilbert of deliberately choosing a family in which he sensed cracks and then hammering on those cracks until they shattered. It's characteristic of James Gandolfini, in his finely nuanced performance as Gilbert, that you're never quite sure whether or not that's what he's doing. (Maybe Gilbert himself didn't know.)
Bill Loud learns that his marriage is over.
Cinema Verite was shot by Alfonso Beato (The Queen) using several different formats: 35mm film for the "standard" squences" and digital video for the recreated 16mm film being shot for An American Family (at 1.33:1 and centered in the screen), which was then processed in post-production for a pseudo-film-like look. These sources were then combined with 16mm footage from An American Family, and the entire creation was tweaked and harmonized on a digital intermediate. HBO's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray accurately reproduces the sun-drenched glow of the Santa Barbara scenes shot in 35mm (contrasted sharply with the cool, bluish hues of the New York scenes of Lance and of Craig Gilbert and his bosses). It's been too long for my memory to supply an accurate recollection of what An American Family looked like on TV sets of the time, but judging by the clips that have been included, the DV re-creations, with their weaker detail and oversaturated color, are an accurate approximation. The California scenes in 35mm are slightly brighter than the norm, but not at the expense of picture detail. The textures of faces, decor and clothing remain visible and finely etched. (Thankfully, the production design favored an accurate period recreation that doesn't verge into parody or exaggeration, which is all-too-easy to do with Seventies fashion.) Despite the glow that washes over everything, other colors shine through, and the glow recedes in the latter part of the film, as the Loud marriage deteriorates. I did not detect any inappropriate digital manipulation beyond the DI post-production adjustments; no detail stripping or artificial sharpening was evident, nor did I see any compression errors. This is a carefully modulated, film-like transfer, despite being made for a hi-def TV broadcast.
Cinema Verite's DTS-HD MA 5.1 track delivers a serviceable surround experience but not a showy one. The surround activity is limited to general ambiance and to supporting the fine underscoring by Rolfe Kent (Up in the Air). The more significant music, however, is the selection of period pop songs, which have been expertly chosen to complement the story, including the Mama Kass cover of "Dream a Little Dream", Carole King's "So Far Away", "Can't Find My Way Home" by Steve Winwood, Cream's "Tales of Brave Ulysses", "It Don't Come Easy" by Ringo Starr and The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again", which is performed by the Loud sons' garage band.
It is currently so difficult to obtain a complete version of An American Family that Berman and Pulcini had to view the Raymonds' personal copy. This is unfortunate, because the series is a crucial artifact from the history of television and American culture generally. Cinema Verite might provoke interest in a release, but in the meantime it serves as an introduction, abridgement and appraisal of this groundbreaking series. Highly recommended.
Unrated Director’s Cut
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