Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 20, 2010

Alexandre Arcady's "Comme les 5 doigts de la main" a.k.a "Like Five Fingers" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-France. The supplemental features on the disc include making of featurette; gallery of deleted scenes; video interview with actor Patrick Bruel; and the film's original soundtrack. In French, with optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

You know I still love you...

Gallic director Alexandre Arcady's Comme les 5 doigts de la main (which literally translates into English as Like the Five Fingers of the Hand) is about a large Jewish family from Marseilles with a dark secret. Before we learn what the secret is, we are introduced to the members of the family - five brothers whose lives are slowly getting out of control and their sick mother.

Dan (Patrick Bruel, Le jaguar, Le code a change), the eldest one, is a restaurant owner who is madly in love with his wife Amel (Lubna Azabal, Exils, Paradise Now). Their marriage, however, isn’t perfect. Years ago, Amel was in a relationship with David (Vincent Elbaz, Ni pour, ni contre...), Dan’s youngest brother and a notorious troublemaker, who has disappeared. Dan senses that Amel is still in love with David and even suspects that she might be secretly talking to him. But Amel insists that she does not keep in touch with David.

Jonathan (Pascal Elbe, Gamblers) is a pharmacy owner in the middle of a very serious crisis. He needs a very large amount of money very soon if he is to keep his business. Because he can no longer borrow money from his bank, Jonathan is considering getting a loan from Kazan (Philippe Nahon, I Stand Alone), a shady character connected to the mafia.

Julien (Eric Caravaca, Officer's Ward) is a school teacher who tries hard to be the type of son his late father wanted him to be. He is in a semi-serious relationship with one of his colleagues, but is unsure if he is ready to have a family. He does not even want to think about being a father.

Michael (Mathieu Delarive) is a compulsive gambler with plenty of girlfriends. He thinks that he is in love with one of them. He spends most of his time in an upscale casino frequented by other wealthy gamblers. Kazan often visits the place to have a quick drink.

David has just been released from prison. No one knows that he is out – but no one actually knows that he was in prison. David has stolen a large amount of money from Boban (Moussa Maaskri, Mondialito), a violent gypsy, who has started looking for him.

Suzie (Françoise Fabian, Happy New Year, Madame Claude) senses that she does not have too much time left to live. She is proud that after her husband died in a car accident she managed to raise their five boys as they had planned and see them become men. She is convinced that with the exception of David, they all have stable lives and careers.

While running away from Boban, David is seriously injured. He ends up staying with Dan, who blames him for breaking the family apart. Jonathan borrows the money he needs from Kazan, who immediately tells Michael. Julien is kidnapped by Boban’s men. Shortly after, Dan is encouraged by his late father’s business partner (Michel Aumont) to tell David to return Boban’s money. When Suzie learns that Julien has been kidnapped she suffers a mild heart attack.

Comme les 5 doigts de la main is a fine film that tiptoes between being a solid drama and violent thriller. Its narrative lacks surprising twists, but one could never quite tell what is going on in the heads of the five brothers. I liked that. Most similarly themed films have protagonists that know exactly how to react in complex situations such as the one chronicled in Comme les 5 doigts de la main, which is why they typically disappoint. Normal people would be clueless, like the five brothers.

I also liked how weak and notably compromised each of the brothers was. With the exception of David, they are all men who have done well, but are constantly consumed by worries about various debts. In a way, it is success that is destroying their family.

Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Alexandre Arcady's Comme les 5 doigts de la main arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-France.

This is an exceptionally strong high-definition transfer. Fine object detail is excellent, clarity very impressive, and contrast levels consistent throughout the entire film. The color-scheme is simply beautiful - yellows, blues, greens, reds, browns, blacks, and whites look exceptionally rich yet natural. Many of the panoramic vistas from the French countryside, for instance, look absolutely stunning. Edge-enhancement and macroblocking are not a serious issue of concern (there were a total of two scenes where I noticed a whiff of extremely mild edge-enhancement, but the overall the image is indeed very impressive). I also did not see any traces of heavy noise reduction. Lastly, there are no serious stability issues to report in this review. I did not see any annoying flecks, scratches, marks, or stains to report in this review. All in all, Comme les 5 doigts de la main looks quite remarkable in 1080p. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. For the record, Universal Studios-France have provided optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is very strong. The bass is potent, the rear channels not overly active but effective, and the high-frequencies not overdone. There is a wide range of dynamics. For example, the final shootout is short but very intense. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and exceptionally easy to follow. There are no balance issues with Camille Adrien and Sylvain Morizet's soundtrack either. I also did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or dropouts to report in this review. Lastly, the English translation is excellent.

Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Making of - this standard featurette contains an abundance of raw footage from the shooting of the film, as well as comments from various cast and crew members. In French, not subtitled. (32 min, PAL).

Scenes inedites - a collection of deleted scenes (19). In French, not subtitled. (46 min, PAL).

Interview de Patrick Bruel - a short interview with the French actor in which he discusses the character he plays as well as the film's narrative. In French, not subtitled. (8 min, 1080i).

Bande originale - the original soundtrack (audio only):

1. Miramar (3:16)
2. Boban (2:50)
3. Les 4 freres (1:46)
4. La famille (3:06)
5. Ils partent (2:44)
6. Dan et Linda (1:44)
7. Camille (3:43)
8. La pharmacie (2:27)
9. L'homme au chapeau (2:47)
10. Jalousie (2:34)
11. Evasion de Julien (3.23)
12. La guerre (5:59)
13. La genese (5.31)
14. Recontre Boban (2:27)
15. Linda et David (1:35)
16. Mort de David (2.46)
17. Le pere (1:43).

Comme les 5 doigts de la main Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Alexandre Arcady's Comme les 5 doigts de la main is a carefully constructed and very well acted film that reminded me about Thierry Klifa's Le heros de la famille. There is hardly any humor in Arcady's film, though. The Blou-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of Universal Studios-France, looks and sounds fantastic. It is English-friendly but Region-B "locked". RECOMMENDED.