Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Mr. Nobody Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 11, 2011

Screened at the Venice Film Festival, Belgian director Jaco Van Dormael's "Mr. Nobody" (2009) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Entertainment One Films Canada Inc. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; standard making of featurette; behind the scenes featurette; and deleted scenes. In English, with optional English SDH and French subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The Last One - Mr. Nobody

The Future. The scientists have figured out how to regenerate human cells and people are no longer dying of old age. Most are not even sure what dying is - other than it is a thing of the past. This is why the media has become obsessed with Mr. Nemo Nobody (Jared Leto, Requiem for a Dream), the last mortal on Earth. He is 117 and very sick. He is also a man whose death will be one of the greatest news stories the immortals would ever have.

A young journalist (Daniel Mays, Shifty) asks Nemo to tell him about his life and the Old World. Though he can’t remember much, Nemo agrees to do the interview.

Nemo’s parents loved him. He meant everything to them and for a short period of time he felt blessed. Then, one day they decided to part ways and he was asked to choose a side. And he did. He chose his father (Rhys Ifans, Mr. Nice). They struggled but managed. Or did they?

Actually, Nemo chose his mother (Natasha Little, Another Life). They settled in Canada and Nemo's mother fell in love with another man. Then Nemo fell in love with a girl (Juno Temple/Diane Kruger). She was everything he had ever dreamed of - beautiful, smart and funny. Then, one day she left him. Or he lost her. Nemo cannot remember.

Rewind. Actually, this was not the girl Nemo fell in love with. He met a different girl (Clare Stone/Sarah Polley), who was in love with another boy. It took him awhile but he told her how he feels about her and her heart melted. Then she rejected him and something terrible happened. But what? Nemo cannot remember.

Rewind again. Actually, there was a third girl (Audrey Giacomini/Linh Dan Pham). Yes, this is the one Nemo loved. They married and had kids, a beautiful house, a pool, a nice car. She always reminded him how much she loved him, but he did something that hurt her. But what? Nemo cannot remember.

In fact, Nemo cannot remember at all what took place in his life when he was younger, when people were still dying of natural causes. He loved someone, but the past is so blurry, so dark, he can only recall that she was beautiful. The strange thing is…even though Nemo cannot remember the past, he can remember the future.

Mr. Nobody is a brilliant film. It is directed by Belgian helmer Jaco Van Dormael, who gained international recognition with his beautiful Toto le heros (Toto the Hero) back in the early 90s.

Mr. Nobody reminded me about Danish director Christopher Boe’s Reconstruction, which is about a young man who meets and falls in love with a beautiful woman. When he finally approaches her, he falls into a strange time vortex where nothing is what it seems.

In Van Dormael’s film the main protagonist has a similar experience - he tries to reconstruct his life but his brain does not cooperate. He has memories but they are worthless because he is unsure whether they are real.

What separates the two films is their perception of time. In Reconstruction the main protagonist is firmly rooted in the present and there is a certain thread that he could follow to regain his sanity. In Mr. Nobody the main protagonist is caught somewhere between the past, present and future, and left to struggle with countless "what ifs".

Note: In 2009, Mr. Nobody won Biografilm Award (Jaco Van Dormael) and Golden Osella Award for Best Technical Contribution (Sylvie Olivé) at the Venice Film Festival.

Mr. Nobody Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Belgian director Jaco Van Dormael's Mr. Nobody arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Entertainment One Films Canada Inc.

I don't have the French Blu-ray release of Mr. Nobody Pathe produced awhile ago to compare it to this Canadian Blu-ray release, but I am willing to bet that the two are identical (the Pathe logo is on the Canadian release and on the Canadian transfer). Aside from two scenes where I noticed minor banding popping up, the transfer is indeed flawless. Detail is fantastic. The footage from the future, in particular, looks very impressive, boasting fantastic colors and outstanding clarity. Contrast levels are also consistent throughout the entire film. The various segments from the present convey wonderful depth and fluidity. Edge-enhancement is never an issue of concern. I also did not see any traces of heavy noise reduction. Compression artifacts or other anomalies are also not visible. There are absolutely no stability issues to report in this review either. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).

Mr. Nobody Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Entertainment One Films Canada Inc. have provided optional (yellow) English SDH and French subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

Pierre van Dormael's beautiful ambient score has an enormously important role in the film. Fortunately, the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track enhances it exceptionally well -- the segments with the guitar solos where Mr. Nobody remembers, for example, are simply fantastic. Also, there is a wide range of nuanced dynamics, but the music is wonderfully mixed and never interferes with the dialog. The bass is very strong. For the record, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Mr. Nobody Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for Mr. Nobody. In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• Making of - a wonderful, very informative featurette with an abundance of footage from the shooting of the film, as well as various comments by cast and crew members. Please keep in mind that the featurette contains numerous spoilers. In French and English, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (47 min, 1080p).

• Behind the Scenes - a second featurette with plenty of raw footage from the shooting of the film. Actor Rhys Ifans spends a great deal of time introducing, describing and commenting on the various sets used in the film. In English, not subtitled. (18 min, 1080p).

• Deleted Scenes - three deleted scenes. in English, not subtitled. (6 min, 480/60i).

• Trailers - a gallery of trailers for other Entertainment One Films Canada Inc. releases.

Mr. Nobody Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I can honestly say that Jaco Van Dormael's Mr. Nobody is one of the most ambitious and intelligent films that I have seen in a very long time. What I shame that no one bothered to release it on Blu-ray in the United States. If you decide to import this Canadian disc, try to read as little as possible about the film before seeing it. The disc is Region-Free. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.