The Day After Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

The Day After Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf April 23, 2019

Writer/director Hong Sang-soo returns to the world of infidelity for 2017’s “The Day After,” which is a common topic for his movies. He has considerable interest in the subject matter, and cuts a little deeper with the picture, endeavoring to make sense of a domestic mess and personal needs of the heart. The material is sold with his traditional dryness and low-tech beauty, giving the endeavor over to his actors, who are tasked with mastering balance on emotional waves as private desires and concerns are suddenly exposed to the light.

“The Day After” doesn’t stray far from conversations, largely taking place in homes and restaurants, where the personalities work on the details of a situation that finds a lonely guy caught up with his lover, his employee, and his wife, struggling to find his footing as his worlds collide. The helmer keeps his camera in one place, using zooms (which do the film no favors, making everything look amateurish) to tighten on the characters as they discuss the future, mourn the past, and struggle with the present, finding ample time for debates on love and reality along the way.

The Day After Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Continuing his exploration of digital filmmaking, Hong Sang-soo goes black and white for "The Day After." The AVC encoded image (1.89:1 aspect ratio) presentation supplies agreeable crispness with what appears to be commercial grade equipment, finding textures on costuming identifying the softness of sweaters and the rigidity of suits. Locations retain depth, adding a sense of cinematic life to a movie that's largely static, with actor profiles its most prized visual. Skin particulars remains on display, preserving age differences and subtle emotions. Interiors are also open for study, with defined decoration. Delineation is strong, supplying reasonably deep blacks, and brighter whites provide balance. Some mild banding is detected.

The Day After Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There's not much to expect from the 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix for "The Day After," which largely takes place in domestic areas focusing on conversations among characters. Dialogue exchanges are crisp and clear, securing the full dramatic range of every actor, with some moving from hushed offerings of distress to a few shouting matches. Music is sparse, but the selections that remain here are defined in full, with ideal instrumentation and volume to achieve the desired emotional response. Surrounds are gentle, mostly used to fill out atmospherics, communicating a sense of interior echo and exterior openness.

The Day After Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Press Conference (16:11, HD) is a conversation with Hong Sang-soo, recorded at the New York Film Festival.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:40, HD) is included.

The Day After Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As with other Hong Sang-soo productions, actors carry the viewing experience, and the cast is excellent here, managing unexpected offerings of humor and dam bursts of feelings, getting the material to the level of heartfelt engagement it needs to succeed. It's certainly a specialized viewing experience, as the director is making these films as some type of therapy, never requiring the participation of an audience. However, those with the ability to find his frequency are rewarded with another chapter in his peculiar investigation of broken hearts.