5.8 | / 10 |
Users | 3.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
A grieving man receives a mysterious, personal invitation to meet with God at a place called "The Shack."
Starring: Sam Worthington, Octavia Spencer, Tim McGraw, Radha Mitchell, Alice BragaFantasy | 100% |
Adventure | 76% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Call me a curmudgeon (and be prepared to get in a very long line to do so), but I chafe at times with regard to films that take some kind of personal tragedy and then attempt to give it “meaning” by having the victim of said tragedy undergo some kind of life altering perspective change due to Divine meddling. This kind of plot setup tends to ignore a salient element of the tragedy itself: if some Divine being is “in charge”, why did He (or She—given one of this film’s conceits) allow the tragedy to happen in the first place? There’s a certain sanguine aspect to some of these films that asks the viewer to simply leap over this hurdle to get to the “real” message, which is basically “put on your big boy pants, deal with bad things that happen, and rejoice in the beauty of life.” Now, don’t get me wrong—that’s a perfectly worthwhile message, and one that is perhaps needed now and again, especially for those wallowing in some long ago trauma who might admittedly need a bit of a metaphysical kick in the keister. But it also seems downright churlish, especially in the context of something like The Shack, where a guy named Mack Phillips (Sam Worthington) has already suffered through a roiling childhood with an abusive parent and who then has to deal with the horrifying death of one of his own children. The Shack is so fraught with melodramatic elements that once the calm and nurturing presence of Olivia Spencer as a deity (the Deity?) named Papa shows up, it’s like trying to smear some healing salve on a fatal wound caused by an assault rifle. Kind of interestingly (and for some folks, probably amusingly), the source novel on which the film is based came under some withering attacks not for the basic plot but instead for supposedly “heretical” presentations of Christian doctrine, perhaps due at least in part to the concept that the Holy Trinity may in fact have a female element that is not the Holy Spirit.
The Shack is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The Shack's closing credits kindly list the Alexa as the camera utilized to capture the imagery, and with superb cinematographer Declan Quinn managing the lensing, the results are often quite sumptuous. The palette varies from the wintry blues and whites of the opening scenes to the much warmer tones once Mack makes it to his own private Shangri-La. The forest and cabin scenes in these sequences are filled with an array of appealing colors and the brightly lit outdoor environments support excellent levels of fine detail, especially in the many close-ups. FX work is woven into things artfully, adding to the slightly dreamlike feel of much of the film.
Perhaps because so much of the film takes place outside, The Shack's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track offers near constant immersion in terms of ambient environmental noises, from the rustle of breezes, to the quiet sounds of water lapping on the shores of a lake, to lots of birdsong. The surround channels are also filled regularly with Aaron Zigman's sympathetic but probably cloying score. Dialogue is delivered cleanly and clearly on this problem free track.
If there was ever a film which preached to the choir, The Shack is it. If you're a member of that choir, and if you can handle its New Age updates on Christian theology and swallow some of its overly convenient homilies, the film may well provide substantial (transsubstantial?) uplift. Others will probably want to avoid this outing like it's the third ring of Hell. Technical merits are generally strong and the supplemental package above average for those considering a purchase.
2007
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1995
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