Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Flashbacks of a Fool Blu-ray Movie Review

Sing it with me in your best Alan Jackson voice: "these are just the flashbacks...of...a...foooool."

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 29, 2010

He lived in the moment like a child.

"Flashbacks of a fool." It sounds kind of like a Country song, and in many ways, Director Baillie Walsh's picture shares some of the basic themes one might expect of a classic genre tune, the picture one that lingers on regrets and mistakes of a life past and the trauma they've wrought on a soul in the present. Of course, there's more here in a nearly two-hour runtime than there is in the usual three or four minute song, and while Flashbacks of a Fool isn't a deep or particularly memorable picture, it's an honest movie about a life, a death, and two stages of existence that come full circle after years of ups and downs that have never delivered an escape from the realities of a time long since abandoned but never forgotten.

Daniel Craig flashes back to his days as a guppy.

Joe Scot (Daniel Craig, Casino Royale) seems to have it all: a hilltop mansion with an ocean view, untold wealth, fame, and all the girls he can squeeze into his schedule. Unfortunately, his acting career is at an impasse; he's no longer considered a top star, and to top it off, he's got a drug problem. Just when it seems that his life couldn't get much worse, he receives news that his longtime childhood friend, "Boots," has passed away. Joe, frustrated with his career and coming to terms with the news, throws himself into the Pacific and recollects on his younger days with Boots and a life-changing series of events that saw him through his first love, his first intimate encounter, and an unspeakable tragedy of which he harbors some personal blame. Will Joe wallow in self-pity, or will the news of his friend's death give him the opportunity to make amends and work to fix his fledgeling life and career?

Where Flashbacks of a Fool succeeds is in its ability to make an adult Joe a slime-ball, but a slime-ball that the audience can, in some way, empathize with. Sure he's rude, self-centered, a womanizer, a drug addict, and an all-around bad guy, but by some sheer force of will there's just enough to make his tale one worth experiencing and, more importantly, one that draws from the audience some sympathy for him, even through the rough exterior that shouts "stay away!" with every move he makes. The picture wisely ignores all but the most crucial points of Joe's life, focusing on the here-and-now that sees him at a low point in both his adult career and personal life, and during an extended flashback middle act that builds the character's background to a point that frames his current actions and state of being to a point where they still may not be acceptable, but they're certainly understood in the context of the ups and downs of his teen years. His friend's death is more of a catalyst than a focal point to get Joe to a place where he can try and set things straight, which keeps the emphasis on him while also slowly but surely constructing a mystique about the character that shows him to be more than the hard-living has-been that defined the character the film's opening act.

Despite some real positives, though, Flashbacks of a Fool never quite captures the imagination the way it should. Though it offers a strong plot and a worthwhile story, neither the structure nor the characters seem as soundly constructed as the story demands. Flashbacks of a Fool builds a series of events -- Joe's friendship with Boots, his first love, his first intimate encounters, and his place in and reaction to a tragedy -- but never seems to capture a true dynamic; the events certainly have a profound effect on Joe and those around him, but the script never digs deep and simply moves from one station to the next with the expected level of character impact but offers nothing beyond the superficial. While it's easy to empathize with Joe, he never feels like a brother, a son, or even a friend; there's a detached feeling throughout the picture, and it never engages the audience to find purpose simply beyond engendering some sympathy towards a character that's lived a tough life but may be on the road to recovery. Indeed, if anything, Flashbacks of a Fool demonstrates that sometimes it takes tragedy to remake a man, but because the film never quite builds anything of substance beyond that, it plays as more of a passive experience rather than an active one which doesn't allow the film to rise above the crowd, despite a good story and the potential for something greater.

Flashbacks of a Fool Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Flashbacks of a Fool makes its Blu-ray debut with a sturdy and proficient 1080p, 2.42:1-framed transfer. The picture is often bright and clear and occasionally takes on a slightly washed-out look, which sometimes carries over to flesh tones. Edges can sometimes appear soft and certain elements a bit smudgy, but these seem attributable to Director Baillie Walsh's visual scheme and not some error in the Blu-ray encode. Otherwise, viewers will enjoy the disc's crisp visuals; detail is generally sharp and colors -- including blacks -- are nicely rendered. Whether some bleaker, colder shades or vibrant outdoor scenes, such as one in the film's final moments that takes place at a cemetery with an abundance of multicolored flowers strewn across the frame, the color palette never fails to impress. The image is as clean as it can be with very little background noise and nary any speckles, pops, or random debris to be seen. A distant shot of an automobile at a cemetery late in the film produces a series of distracting jagged edges, and very slight banding is visible in a few select shots. Fortunately, those are the only two visible blemishes to be seen; despite its status as a budget release from Starz, Flashbacks of a Fool yields a pleasant and high-quality Blu-ray presentation.

Flashbacks of a Fool Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This Blu-ray release of Flashbacks of a Fool contains only a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack; no lossless or uncompressed tracks are available. Unfortunately, it becomes clear from the get-go that the absence of a superior soundtrack hurts the presentation. Though music is suitably clear and comes with a fair sense of space, dialogue often plays as moderately to distractingly shallow; even at reference volume, it's sometimes a strain to make out the spoken word, even during some of the film's most quiet segments. The track does manage to occasionally engage the surround speakers, though most supportive elements are scattered across the front channels. Discrete effects -- a ringing telephone in one scene -- are well-placed around the soundstage, while some other and more engaging and potent effects, such as rolling ocean waters and several elements that bring a haunted house scene to life, are well-integrated into the track and deliver a positive, but not completely seamless, experience. Mostly, Flashbacks of a Fool yields little beyond the basics, and while there's no doubt that a lossless soundtrack would have greatly enhanced the presentation, this Dolby Digital offering gets the job done more often than not.

Flashbacks of a Fool Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Flashbacks of a Fool features no supplements.

Flashbacks of a Fool Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Flashbacks of a Fool is a solid film; it's well-acted, steadily directed, and not at all a chore to watch, but it falls short of delivering a more personable and passionate experience, instead simply regurgitating a series of events -- some happy, some not so much -- that make it a good story but not an exceptional, heartfelt, or altogether moving experience. Daniel Craig and his character's younger self, played by Emile Robert, do well to promote the film's themes on mistakes made, loves lost, and what might have been that was instead replaced by heartache, despair, and lives torn asunder, building a character that's easy to sympathize with, even through character traits that say otherwise. It's all worthy stuff; it's just not quite as fully realized as it otherwise may have been. This Starz/Anchor Bay Blu-ray release sports a quality 1080p transfer and a midrange lossless soundtrack. Unfortunately, no extras are included. Flashbacks of a Fool is definitely worth a rental, and fans should not hesitate to buy considering the disc's aggressive and collection-friendly price.