6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 3.9 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.7 |
Clare has been in love with Henry her entire life. She believes they are destined to be together, even though she never knows when they will be separated: Henry is a time traveler--cursed with a rare genetic anomaly that causes him to live his life on a shifting timeline, skipping back and forth through his lifespan with no control. Despite the fact that Henry's travels force them apart with no warning, Clare desperately tries to build a life with her one true love.
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Eric Bana, Arliss Howard, Ron Livingston, Stephen TobolowskyRomance | 100% |
Sci-Fi | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
German: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Japanese: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, German, German SDH, Japanese, Spanish, Dutch
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Every time I see a phrase like "based on the bestselling novel," "from the author who brought you..." or "from the acclaimed bestseller," I cringe. Not to plant my intellectual flag in frequently trampled soil, but bestsellers are rarely the best books. Crowd pleasers with mass-market charm, they're literary popcorn; good for a quick snack, but a poor choice for a meal. Me? I can always be found rummaging the shelves at Borders, pouring through pages bound by unassuming covers; ever in search of a voice, a distinct point of view, an intriguing concept worth pursuing. Even so, director Robert Schwentke's The Time Traveler's Wife, despite having those four dreaded words plastered neatly beneath its title, piqued my interest. I'm an absolute sucker when it comes to time travel tales, and the idea of a man desperately fighting to maintain a romantic relationship while being yanked through the time stream struck me as one teeming with promise. Sadly, the end result failed to win me over. Though Scwentke's film succeeds on its own terms, and will certainly worm its way into many a feminine heart this Valentine's Day, it squanders its potential and, more often than not, reduces its central conceit to a gimmick.
Not a day goes by, not a day, that Eric Bana doesn't wonder what went wrong with 'The Hulk.'
The Time Traveler's Wife features a sumptuous 1080p/VC-1 transfer brimming with rich colors and dramatic primaries. Despite some over-saturation, skintones are gorgeous; while sullied by crush, blacks are incredibly inky; though nearly impenetrable, delineation is faithful to cinematographer Florian Ballhaus' painterly vision. Henry's visits to Clare's childhood home are steeped in lush fields and blazing skies. His tenuous trip down a night-clad alleyway is dotted with warm golden hues and seedy greens. His dash through a snow-swept forest exposes him to a stormy bed of chilly grays and blues. Contrast remains strong and stable regardless of the scenario, and the film's jarring palette shifts are strangely consistent even in their inconsistency. Moreover, fine textures stake a claim on every surface, depth is convincing, and detail is exceedingly sharp. Arguably too sharp. Edge enhancement takes a slight toll on the image, occasionally disconnecting foreground objects from their backgrounds. Likewise, faces framed by bright skies suffer from brittle definition and minor ringing. It never becomes a major distraction, but it's an unnecessary hindrance that lessens the impact of the transfer. Be that as it may, The Time Traveler's Wife has been properly primed and polished for mass consumption. Fans of the film will be ecstatic.
Warner's able-bodied DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is just as impressive. The Time Traveler's Wife doesn't offer a bombastic sonic experience by any means -- whispers and sighs frequent Henry and Clare's conversations, Mychael Danna's score is one of the more engaging elements of the mix, and snazzy directional effects are few and far between -- but it does handle the film's quiet exchanges and more sobering scenes with poise and confidence. LFE support is ever-present and ever-ready, and rear speaker activity enhances interior acoustics and exterior ambience. Bustling city streets immerse the listener in crowd chatter and dense traffic, Clare's lonely home sounds as empty as it should, and Henry's sudden arrival in another time period carries with it the weight of whatever situation he finds himself in. To that end, pans are transparent and dynamics prove to be quite arresting. Granted, a first-act tragedy and a third-act mishap are two of the only standout sequences, but the rest of the mix is so proficient that it hardly matters. Dialogue is crisp and intelligible (regardless of the locale), lines are never buried in the mix, and prioritization is spot on. The track wouldn't turn many heads in the middle of Best Buy, but it is another solid offering from Warner Brothers.
The Time Traveler's Wife materializes on Blu-ray with a slim supplemental package comprised of a pair of semi-decent production documentaries: "An Unconventional Love Story" (HD, 26 minutes) and "Love Beyond Words" (HD, 21 minutes). The former gives Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams the opportunity to discuss their characters, the nuances of the tale's fractured timeline, and the relationship that unfolds on screen. The latter looks at the adaptation of Audrey Niffenegger's novel and the challenges the filmmakers faced in translating her ideas for the screen. Both are solid, but both are tainted by the qualities of a studio EPK.
The Time Traveler's Wife may appeal to those longing for romance in the vein of The Notebook, but others -- particularly time-travel genre junkies -- will be left with heavy-handed melodramatics that overpower Niffenegger's intriguing ideas. Setting aside its lackluster supplemental package, the Blu-ray edition is much better. Its video transfer is quite striking (artificial sharpening notwithstanding) and its DTS-HD Master Audio track is fit and faithful. I can't guarantee you'll enjoy the film itself, but anyone who does will be more than pleased with Warner's AV presentation.
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