7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.4 |
Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified ad seeking a companion for time travel.
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Jake Johnson, Mark Duplass, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Jeff GarlinSci-Fi | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
UV digital copy
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
I just expect the worst and try not to get my hopes up.
It's easy -- and justifiable -- to approach movies with a dismissive attitude these days. Many are predictably similar and to some degree disappointing,
big budget
behemoths in particular that might dazzle the senses but leave audiences' inner workings craving something with a little more heart and honesty.
Film
aficionados often turn to smaller, independent sorts of films for a fix of filmmaking with a purpose other than amassing box office returns. Safety
Not
Guaranteed is one of those little pictures, and it just so happens to be one of the best films of the year, a truly heartwarming movie that's
everything the bigger Romantic Comedies and humorous
dramas should aspire to duplicate. It's the sort of movie that restores one's hope in the medium as it is across the modern landscape, a small film to
be sure but one that's so sincere in
purpose and made with an obvious love of craft and story that it rolls over the competition from the size of its heart, not the mass of its budget.
Intense low-speed suburban car chase!
Safety Not Guaranteed's video presentation often yields good results, but below the surface -- and often on the surface -- is a rather rickety and highly problematic 1080p transfer sourced from a digital shoot. Generally, the digital photography yields impressive results. There's some high quality detail work within, the transfer presenting Kenneth's textured denim jacket, the brick walls within the magazine headquarters, facial lines, and gorgeous northwestern exteriors with ease. Colors are generally pleasing and accurate as well. However, there are some scenes that look as if they're on the verge of absolute collapse. Darius' first interview is home to enormous amounts of blocking and jittering, traits which carry on through the movie in various parts, both front-and-center as well as off in background corners. Heavy noise invades lower-light scenes, jagged edges are fairly commonplace, false colors wrap around a few objects, heavy banding interferes with color transitions, and blacks are often overwhelming, swallowing up details like a monster. The transfer's quite messy in spots yet often pleasing in others. This is a small-budget production and most problems are likely limitations of the lower end photographic equipment, but eye candy this most certainly is not.
Safety Not Guaranteed ensures listeners will receive a fine audio experience via a quality DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is certainly nothing spectacular, but it serves the movie well enough and remains far more stable than the wishy-washy 1080p video transfer. The track generally offers fair clarity and good front-end spacing, whether musical or ambient. The rear speakers remain not silent but fairly reserved for the bulk of the film, only picking up considerably in the final minutes. The track truly excels in its delivery of ambient effects, however. It does a very good job of placing the listening audience in the middle of the busy magazine office where chatter and ringing phones are regular sonic guests. A high school football game mid-film offers the sounds of the marching band, whistles, and chatty and cheering crowds in a convincing collection of authentic sound effects. The track even incorporates a few good quality rumbles from the subwoofer, again notably near film's end. Dialogue is even and plays with faultless clarity through the center speaker. All around, this is a rather good track, nothing at all memorable but a fine companion to a great film.
Unfortunately, Safety Not Guaranteed contains only two film-related supplements, previews, and a UV digital copy.
Safety Not Guaranteed is a splendid little movie that lights up the darkened theater with an abundance of charm, heart, and cinematic sincerity. It's built on a wonderful script and great acting, both of which contribute to a movie that makes quirky cool all over again and puts the big boys on notice that it's not what's on the outside but rather the inside that counts. This is one of the year's finest pictures and it's most certainly not to be overlooked. Sony's Blu-ray release of Safety Not Guaranteed features low-end video intermixed with high yield visuals, a solid lossless soundtrack, and too few supplements. Nevertheless, this release comes strongly recommended on the quality of the film.
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