Mammoth Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Mammoth Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 30, 2023

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Arrow Video's The Lukas Moodysson Collection.

When The New York Times is touting someone as "Sweden's most praised filmmaker since Ingmar Bergman", attention should probably be paid, even if some reading that description and then looking at the name of its referent might still be asking, "Lukas who?" Lukas Moodysson achieved a fair degree of success right out of the gate with his first feature Show Me Love (which had a somewhat more visceral original title, as can be seen on the poster I've included as the "cover image" for that individual listing), but unlike some "overnight successes", he has never seemed content to rest on his laurels, and has frequently thrown caution at least partially to the wind, resulting in a rather audacious array of films that vary from bright and breezy to decidedly dark, dour and depressing (maybe that's where the Bergman angle might be most relevant, and, yes, that's said in jest, at least kind of). Arrow Video has now aggregated a really appealing collection of seven Moodysson films, along with the label's usual penchant for some outstanding supplemental material, handsome packaging and non disc swag.

Mammoth may be an intentionally ironic title for a film that Lukas Moodysson is on record as stating resulted from his wish to do something "bigger", with marquee stars and ostensibly more mainstream appeal. It's perhaps surprising, then, to hear Moodysson kind of casually dismiss the film in his conversation with Sarah Lutton included on this disc as a supplement, mentioning how he's actually kind of embarrassed by it now, and that it's one of the more problematic films (at least in his own perception) of his still evolving oeuvre. This is another 180 degree turn for Moodysson after the extremely provocative and weird double whammy of A Hole in My Heart and Container .

Mammoth was evidently met with considerable umbrage at the time of its release for the perception that Moodysson was critiquing the lives of parents, and perhaps especially mothers, who have to put careers ahead of child rearing just to put food on the table for the children. I found the story to actually be a bit more universal in a depiction of fraught individuals trying to achieve that "home work balance", but failing miserably for the most part. There is some potentially troubling material here revolving around rather sanguine reactions to marital infidelity as well as the stories involving at least two women who aren't able to really mother their children the way even they feel they should be doing.

Leo (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Ellen (Michelle Williams) are a seemingly happily married and very successful couple with a little girl named Jackie (Sophie Nyweide). That said, Jackie is often shunted off with nanny Gloria (Marife Necesito) due to how busy her parents are, and it's also shown that Gloria herself is in absentia with her two young sons, who live in Gloria's native Philippines. When Leo is sent overseas on a business trip, things devolve even further into soap operatic territory.

This is an interesting film that probably fails to really hits its perceived bullseye, but which still offers Williams in particular a really nicely developed role. Moodysson also was able to shoot in some really beautiful locations, which helps to give a different kind of "globalization" aspect to the production than the more traditional understanding of that term which may provide a bit of sociopolitical subtext for the story.

Mammoth Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Show Me Love is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow lumps all of the films together on their page devoted to the transfers in the hardcover book included with this set, as follows:

All seven films in this collection are presented in their original aspect ratios (1.85:1 for Fucking Åmål, Lilya 4-Ever, Container, and We Are the Best!; 1.66:1 for Together; 1.78:1 for A Hole in My Heart; and 2.35:1 for Mammoth) with their original 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo audio mixes. Container is presented with both Swedish and English narration options in both 5.1 and 2.0.

Fucking Åmål was restored in 2K by the Swedish Film Institute and approved by director Lukas Moodysson and cinematographer Ulf Brantås. The appearance of the film is the result of an unusual production process. It was shot on 16mm film prior to cutting and then to 35mm duplicate negative which was lit for the final screening copy. For the digital restoration, the original camera negative has been used as source material; this also meant that the optical printer work had to be cut and recreated.

Together was restored in 4K from the original camera negative by the Swedish Film Institute and approved by director Lukas Moodysson and cinematographer Ulf Brantås.

The high definition video masters for the other five films were supplied to Arrow Films by TrustNordisk in association with Memfis Film. Additional restoration work on the digital video master for Container was carried out by R3Store Studios, London.

As the one "big budget" (or at least bigger budget) film in this set, it's unsurprising that Mammoth offers one of the more burnished presentations. Detail levels are routinely excellent throughout the transfer, especially in some of the many close-ups, where fine details are precise and inviting on everything from facial features to elements like fabrics on outfits or even props. The shoot took Moodysson to several exotic locations, and some of the Thailand and Philippines material in particular offers a really robust palette that is almost always beautifully saturated. Grain is tightly resolved throughout the presentation.

Mammoth Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mammoth features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 audio options. Perhaps surprisingly given this film's "bigger is better" status, the soundtrack is not stuffed to the gills with source music underscoring, though there are still several offerings in that regard. The most fulsome surround activity tends to come from a wealth of ambient environmental sounds which can vary from the urban clamor of New York to more "rural" if still kind of cacophonous surroundings in the Philippines and Thailand. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Mammoth Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Lukas Moodysson on Mammoth (HD; 13:43) continues Moodysson's conversation with Sarah Lutton.


• Not Being Mr. No with Malte Forssell (HD; 24:11) again features Sarah Lutton, this time interviewing the production manager and line producer on various Moodysson films.


• Promotional Interviews

  Gael Garcia Bernal (HD; 5:50)

  
  

  Lukas Moodysson (HD; 4:02)

• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:19)


• Image Gallery (HD)

Mammoth Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mammoth certainly provides ample proof that Moodysson is able to helm a putatively more "mainstream" effort, though this film probably could have used a bit of shaping in the screenplay to help overcome some of the generalizing that seems to be on tap with regard to the challenges faced by mothers in particular. Technical merits are solid and the supplements very enjoyable. With caveats noted, Recommended.