Paterson Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Paterson Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 7, 2017

It's only April, but it's safe to say that Paterson will be one of the finest movies released to Blu-ray in 2017. The film, from Writer/Director Jim Jarmusch (Only Lovers Left Alive), offers the viewer an incredible amount of depth for such a simplistically presented core narrative. It showers the viewer with a lot of ideas but no real particular order or manner through which to explore them. In fact, it's difficult to even nail down what the movie is about at its core, beyond the basic plot line of a poetic bus driver from a New Jersey town made famous by another poet, William Carlos Williams. The film could be said to be about the ebbs and flows of life, where the title character's past is only a hint in a photograph on the nightstand. It could be said to be about the little moments, coincidences, second chances, chance encounters, good gestures, putting the past behind and starting fresh. The film is deeply metaphoric, many of its metaphors easy to spot but difficult to fully appreciate in the movie's greater storytelling landscape. As the main character is a poet, so too is the film a form a cinematic poetry, an absolutely engrossing, impeccably crafted masterpiece of visual simplicity and contextual complexity, one of the most honest works of art the medium has produced in some time.

The poet.

Paterson (Adam Driver) is a bus driver in the New Jersey town that also bears his name. He's an aspiring poet. His wife Laura (Golshifteh Farahani) encourages him to "share it with the world." But he seems content to simply put pen to paper for his own release and consumption. Laura is herself a creative person. She would like to one day operate a bakery. She's also an aspiring artist who is always redecorating the house. One day, she announces that she would like to be purchase a guitar off of television and become a Country music performer. The guitar costs too much money -- they live very humbly -- but Paterson relents. The film follows the couple along a week of their lives.

Paterson proves captivating from the outset. It exudes a uniqueness of character, setting, and story. It immediately engages the audience with several questions, some of which the film answers, some of which it does not. The film thrives on its unique flavors, its cadence, its comfort in routine, and its surprise in plot development. Its lead characters are very much in love, but their personalities are very disparate. Laura seems to be the much more outgoing character, but she is rarely seen outside the house and never interacting with anyone but Paterson. On the other hand, Paterson finds himself involved in the lives of every passenger on his bus. He does not simply overhear their conversations, he seems to engage himself in them. He chats with a man at the station before he leaves, a man who is always complaining about his life. He befriends a couple of other would-be poets throughout the film. He spends his evenings at a nearby bar where he makes friends with the bartender and becomes involved in the romantic struggles of a fellow patron. He owns no cell phone, but he's always on the move and communicating with others. He finds solace in his poetry, which to him seems to represent his alone time, his creative outlet away from the routine of his day.

Laura, on the other hand, is much more flamboyant. She dreams of opening a cupcake business. She later dreams of becoming a Country music star. She purchases a guitar off of television that Paterson knows they cannot afford. She further fancies herself as an artist. She designs the home's drapes, makes her own clothes, and paints the house. Everything she does is in black-and-white. She paints exclusively in those colors. She decorates her cupcakes in those colors. She wears clothes in those colors. She and Paterson go see an old black-and-white movie. Black and white represents clarity, easy distinction. There is easy distinction in the personalities in the film, but on the other hand there's no easy distinction to the movie's purpose, themes, ideas, or metaphors. Those colors seem to represent the single largest metaphor in the movie. There are others, though. Many of them can be found in Paterson's poems. Twins play a role in the movie: at several key junctures Paterson comes across twins, and Laura dreams that the couple has twins. Even that Laura learns how to play I've Been Working On The Railroad on her black-and-white pattern guitar seems to mean something. Precious little of it is obvious in terms of deeper meaning. But therein lies many of the movie's pleasures. It's absolutely mesmerizing in the way it says so much by saying so little, exploring its characters and its ideas with incredible ease and depth but remaining vague the whole way through. It's wide open for interpretation, and the movie's construction is just as compelling as its purpose.

The movie thrives on its simplicity. It's never flashy, never loud, never anything resembling modern mass cinema. It's not slow, either, never overly contemplative. Jarmusch carefully considers the film's every move, but it never seems considered. It's unusually organic, real...the audience feels like they're on the daily journey with Paterson, not simply witnessing it. That said, it's Adam Driver who makes the film. For those who only know him for his role as Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens, Paterson is the perfect movie through which to discover him. His is an award-worthy performance. It's complex and contemplative without feeling as such. His interactions with others, and with himself, are remarkable. He reads his poetry in a cadence as if he's speaking it to himself as he writes it. It's mesmerizing. He captures its fundamental essence as pen hits paper but also hints at its deeper purpose, too. It's an honest, soulful performance. Even if the film is a bit oblique, his work is anything but. He seems to have a firm grasp on the character and the movie, understanding the outward cadence but also the inward soul. It's a standout performance; Driver has an incredible future in front of him.

Paterson Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Paterson features a quality 1080p transfer. The film was digitally photographed, and while it's clean, it rarely feels smooth or flat. Detailing is quite strong. Paterson's blue work shirt, for example, reveals crisp seams and well defined fabric textures in close-up. Old city bricks and various textures downtown, in a bar, or around Paterson's and Laura's humble home look terrific, clear and sharp and revealing all sorts of fine little details. Facial textures are of a high quality as well. Colors are fine, with that blue work shirt again the standout for pop and saturation. Other colors shine as well, again along various storefronts downtown or the clothes various people wear on the bus. Black levels and shadow details are fine and skin tones are solid. Noise is very minor and very infrequent. It's an unassuming sort of transfer, but it's quite strong throughout.

Paterson Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Paterson's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is front-heavy, but effective. Music comes organically spaced along the front. It's airy, crisp, and well detailed. Mild atmospherics occasionally spill into the stage, again remaining most obvious along the front end. Light city environmental effects or barroom din are most prominent. Engine sounds and little beeps on the bus represent amongst the most prominent sound effects in the film. Dialogue drives the majority of the picture, and it's expectedly strong, with natural front-center positioning and consistent prioritization.

Paterson Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Paterson contains no supplemental content. A UV/iTunes digital copy voucher is included with purchase.

Paterson Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In Paterson, "time" plays prominent a role. Paterson wakes himself every morning, though each morning along the week the film follows he awakens a little later every day. It's another one of those metaphors that populate the film and rise it to such intriguing prominence. The film is completely engrossing, almost soothing, in a way, as it explores relative day-to-day simplicity against incredible, nuanced complexity. Adam Driver is magnificent, one of the finest performances of the past few years across the cinema landscape. Universal's Blu-ray boasts excellent video and audio. No extras are included, but the film seems best left to speak for itself. Paterson earns my highest recommendation.