Origin Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Origin Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 11, 2024

“Origin” is a giant swing from writer/director Ava DuVernay, who hasn’t made a screen offering since the financial and creative failure of “A Wrinkle in Time,” a production meant to bring the helmer to the big leagues of event moviemaking. DuVernay is back with a much smaller film about an expansive topic, adapting the 2020 best-seller, “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” which takes a hard look at the source of prejudice as people experience it in several parts of the world and different moments in time. It’s 496 pages of journalism transformed into a 140-minute-long feature, and DuVernay doesn’t always appear to have a game plan for the endeavor. She uses a scattergun approach to “Origin,” which wants to say so much about the state of emergency numerous societies are experiencing, but DuVernay is overwhelmed by the task. It’s obviously an ambitious picture with important ideas to share, but it doesn’t take long to realize that reading “Caste” is likely more rewarding then sitting through this cluttered effort.

Isabel (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) is a former journalist who’s released her first novel, receiving enough accolades to inspire her publisher, Kate (Vera Farmiga), to request a new literary offering. Learning more about the details involved in the murder of Trayvon Martin, Isabel begins to formulate ideas, repeatedly returning to levels of racism as a kneejerk reaction to the nuanced displays of hate that’ve permeated cultures around the globe. While brainstorming her thesis, Isabel’s world is rocked by the deaths of her elderly mother Ruby (Emily Yancy), and Brett (Jon Bernthal), her loving husband, putting her in a state of shock, seeking out the comfort of her cousin, Marion (Niecy Nash-Betts), who’s going through a health crisis. Seeking to understand the ways of caste, Isabel goes on a journey, researching experiences in Nazi Germany and India, receiving an education in the details of discrimination and how it’s been shaped over the centuries.

Guilt plays an important part in “Origin,” beginning with the saga of Ruby, a once vibrant mother who’s now in need of senior care, with Isabel and Brett preparing to send her to a home. Isabel doesn’t like the idea, feeling awful about such a separation, but her life carries on, also managing her book experience, which requires her to attend functions and meet important people, clinging to Brett and his habitual ways with spousal support. “Origin” creates an understanding of Isabel’s life as she deals with success and perceived failures, and DuVernay opens the picture with a brief recreation of Trayvon Martin’s final moments, setting an ominous tone that carries throughout the viewing experience. This murder is meant to inspire a fresh book from Isabel, but the case and accompanying audio rattles her instead, putting the writer on a different path, seeking to understand the meaning of caste, investigating use throughout history.

Ruby and Brett quickly pass away, putting Isabel into an emotional tailspin, using the creation of the book to provide an escape. “Origin” begins a fractured examination of stories and experiences, with DuVernay jumping around in time to keep viewers involved in the surge of information. Dialogue is limited in the feature, with the screenplay favoring monologues concerning Isabel’s findings, learning more about August (Finn Wittrock), a German man in the 1930s falling in love with Irma (Victoria Pedretti), a Jewish resident. There’s the journalistic drive of Allison (Isha Blaaker) and Elizabeth Davis (Jasmine Cephas Jones), a black couple escaping Nazi Germany, soon out to research prejudice in the American south. And Isabel visits India, chasing the history of B.R. Ambedkar and his work to better the lives of the Dalits, the lowest caste of the region.

Origin Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

"Origin" was shot in Super 16, and the softness such cinematography is preserved during the AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation. Detail goes about as far as possible here, exploring the time changes in the film, dealing with a wide range of textured costuming and skin particulars. Location changes are also examined, securing a decent feel for dimension around living spaces and educational buildings. Exteriors retain some depth, taking in the expanse of bustling communities and different architectural achievements. Color is rich, with a deep sense of primary power, bringing style and decorative additions to life. Earth tones are equally appreciable, and greenery is distinct. Skin tones are natural. Delineation is acceptable, with some heaviness at times. Grain is decently resolved.

Origin Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 7.1 Dolby TrueHD mix strives to create an immersive listening experience for a movie that's largely focused on monologues, research, and conversation. It's not an incredibly active track, but it works for the picture's intent, dealing with sharp dialogue exchanges from a variety of performance choices and accents. Argumentative events are nicely balanced with hushed encounters. Music carries with fullness and accuracy, delivering crisp instrumentation. Scoring cues explore surrounds with power at times, and while this isn't a film with major bass-y moments, low-end does register with heavier beats on soundtrack selections. Sound effects are crisp. Atmospherics are active, with pronounced room activity during parties and gatherings, providing circular engagement.

Subtitles are included, but act a little odd at times, with some scenes set in Germany and India skipping lines in English, while Spanish subtitles offer some translation.

Origin Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Behind the Scenes (15:08, HD) is a look at the creation of "Origin," featuring interviews with writer/director Ava DuVernay and actors Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Jon Bernthal, Niecy Nash, Myles Frost, Emily Yancy, Blair Underwood, Finn Wittrock, Victoria Pedretti, Isha Blaaker, and Gaurav J. Panthania. The discussion follows DuVernay's initial interest in Isabel Wilkerson's book, "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent," developing a passion to bring the pages, but also parts of the author's life, to the screen. The cast celebrates the helmer's on-set presence and attention to detail, also sharing love for Ellis-Taylor and her commitment to the material. Characterization is examined. BTS footage is included as well, watching the production in motion.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included on this release.

Origin Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Theres's a lot of information to process in the effort, but DuVernay doesn't trust the power of a purely journalistic endeavor. She makes many attempts to soften the material for a wide audience, which borders on cartoonishness at times, eliminating intended shock value. There's Isabel's interaction with a MAGA plumber (Nick Offerman), who shows up wearing a red hat and obvious disdain for his customer. Law enforcement during the Davis sequence is turned into a puppet show as cops happily wave at white residents and scowl at black ones. DuVernay isn't one to value subtlety, and her drive to reach the back row dilutes the insidiousness of the material (a metaphor involving Isabel's rejuvenation of Ruby's old home is also too on the nose). The helmer doesn't trust her audience to understand the complex feelings and relationships in play, limiting the value of "Origin" as a movie, which offers a critical interpretation of dehumanization and injustice that everyone should comprehend. "Origin" hopes to be sprawling, jumping around history and perspectives, but it doesn't gel as one woman's journey, with the viewing experience more about DuVernay's clumsy determination than true enlightenment.