Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

The Square Blu-ray Movie Review

The moral of the story: don't have an affair. It'll just end badly.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 25, 2010

It's not like we'd be hurting anybody.

Australian stuntman-turned-director Nash Edgerton's first feature film, The Square, is a formulaic twist-and-turn genre picture that's done exceptionally well. Gritty, well-acted, nicely filmed, and thoroughly entertaining, The Square overcomes something of a trite "affair turns ugly" story line with a convoluted but precisely-defined and enthralling series of events that's like a snowball tumbling downhill, accumulating more and more energy and mass until it meets its inescapable demise. The Square is ugly -- both thematically and stylistically -- but it's that ugliness that makes the movie so effective. A Thriller with bite, passion, violence, and emotion; a story that's about regrets, remorse, bad choices, and consequences; and a film that's hard to watch but impossible to resist; The Square delivers on all fronts. Even through its "been there, done that" veneer, Edgerton's picture manages to rise above others of its kind by making an old tale all too personal; The Square drags audiences along, involves them in the story, and heaps on the negative emotions all the way through to the unthinkable finale.

It's not worth it.

Ray (David Roberts) and Carla (Claire van der Boom) are married, but not to one another. They're engaged in a secret affair behind their spouse's backs; David's cheating on a dull housewife (Lucy Bell) while Carla's breaking the vows she made to a local criminal known as "Smithy" (Anthony Hayes). Ray and Carla dream of escaping the doldrums of their lives and no longer seeing one another in secret. There's one problem, though: they need money, but their solution seems simple enough. Smithy's got a large sum of cash hidden in the house, and Carla knows right where to find it. She plans on stealing the money when Smithy's not home, and Ray hires the unscrupulous Billy (Joel Edgerton) to set the house ablaze after the fact in hopes that Smithy will believe the money to have been lost to the fire. Of course, things don't go according to plan. A death in the fire and Ray's dishonesty at work complicate matters, leading to a tragic display of violence that threatens to ruin everyone touched by Ray's and Carla's secret affair and greed.

The Square yields a convoluted mess of pain and tragedy that prove costly for its characters and make for an unsettling and unpleasant but nevertheless wholly enthralling experience for its viewers. The Square isn't a bright, shiny, feel-good happy movie; quite the opposite, it's a train wreck where lust, greed, hate, mistrust, and violence collide and explode into an unimaginable world of suffering for its characters. It's a film where hatred grows out of forbidden love, where sins of the flesh go severely punished, where greed is the destroyer of the last remnants of safety and happiness both financially and personally for the film's characters. It's a film of consequences, of pain, of lives torn asunder, of wrong begetting wrong, and something of a cautionary tale that speaks on the dangers of lust, lies, and avarice. If the film has a problem, though, it's that it loses plausibility as the consequences of Ray's and Carla's actions manifest themselves into an out-of-control cacophony of violence that, by film's end, seems completely unrealistic, but then again, without conflict there's no story. Edgerton balances the story's far-fetched events with precise filmmaking that absorbs the audience into the experience; even though there's no single character worth rooting for, viewers may very well find themselves looking past the manufactured plot devices and, if nothing else, cheering on a good story and better filmmaking thanks to Edgerton's strong direction and the cast's superb performances.

Indeed, it's Edgerton's first-rate direction that gives The Square such a marvelous look and feel. His work masks and supersedes something of a tired -- and definitely implausible -- plot. Edgerton gives the movie an understated tone, directing the picture steadily and without much, if any, pizzazz, while underscoring the picture's emotional currents, brutality, gloominess, and his own quiet direction with a muted color palette and a somewhat gritty and worn texture. The Square's visuals tell the story as much as its characters and their actions, but the film certainly rises another level thanks to several captivating performances. David Roberts channels Sean Bean in his effort as Ray in both approach and delivery, while Claire van der Boom turns in an understated performances that gives her character Carla a sweet innocence that shines through even alongside the hard choices she makes, the sins she commits, and the affair in which she's engaged. The supporting players, too, are excellent, with Anthony Hayes turning in a memorable effort as Carla's husband, Smithy.

The Square Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sony's 1080p presentation of The Square is reflective of Nash Edgerton's intended visuals; the transfer yields a bleak appearance but captures the film's essence nicely. The Square's palette is dulled and devoid of anything resembling eye-popping colors, though the primary hues -- tans and grays in particular -- are nicely resolved. The image captures something of a soft texture that lessens the finest of details; nothing's particularly sharp or eye-catching, but as with the colors, Sony's Blu-ray disc handles what's asked of it nicely and reveals everything available to it. Shadow detail is strong, however, with blacks appearing natural and intimidating but not overbearing. The image is slathered in a moderately thick layer of grain, though some speckles and debris may be seen over segments of the film. The Square isn't a prototypical good-looking Blu-ray, but this transfer is handsome in its own right and in its reflection of the film's original elements. That's high praise for another well-done transfer from Sony.

The Square Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Square surrounds listeners with a good DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track hits all the right notes, even if it is, like its video counterpart, somewhat more reserved than a typically overhyped Thriller soundtrack. This mix delivers fine imaging that allows sounds to effortlessly traverse the listening area, while also precisely situating distinctive effects and environmental nuances to create a strong atmosphere within the listening area. The surround channels are used extensively but not unnecessarily; chirping insects, light background music, driving rain, distant thunder, and other supportive elements consistently find their way into the track and seamlessly blend with the primary front-channel information. Bass is tight and potent but not overly aggressive; rumbling engines and rolling vehicles over dirt and gravel roads are nicely captured, though a few elements around the low end do come across as a bit too harsh. Music is spacious and clean, while dialogue is consistently focused and clear. The Square makes for another top-quality lossless soundtrack from Sony.

The Square Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Square boxes in a few extras for its Blu-ray release. Inside 'The Square' (480p, 29:36) is a raw but fascinating piece that takes viewers inside the production of the film. Production meetings, discussions revolving around sets and shooting locales, the picture's aspect ratio, casting sessions, and the day-to-day rigors of the shoot are all explored in this strong piece. Pre-Visualization (480p, 5:09) briefly looks at the process of preparing to film action scenes and contrasting prep footage with the final film. Scene Deconstruction (480p) takes viewers through the process of adding visual effects into several scenes: Billy Watches the Fire (1:00), House Fire (2:04), and Falling Dream (2:11). The Square also features a collection of 14 deleted scenes (480p, 24:57); the "Sand" music video by Jessica Chapnik (480p, 3:58); the excellent short film Spider (1080p, 9:34) directed by Nash Edgerton; BD-Live functionality; and 1080p trailers for Harry Brown, Fireflies in the Garden, The Pillars of the Earth, The Runaways, A Single Man, and Chloe.

The Square Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Nash Edgerton's The Square tells the emotionally disheartening but visually and psychologically satisfying story of an affair gone horribly wrong. In lesser hands, the picture would suffer from its rehashed plot line and force-fed contrivances, but Edgerton manages to move The Square well beyond those negatives through his ability to absorb his audience into the story and build a tight, energetic, and visually gritty picture that masks what could very well have been deal-breaking elements. Supported by a good cast and a fine score, The Square is a picture well worth watching. Sony's Blu-ray release delivers a high quality technical presentation and a nice assortment of extras. Recommended.