6.8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.8 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.3 |
A veterinary student abandons his studies after his parents are killed and joins a traveling circus as their vet.
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz, James Frain, Hal HolbrookRomance | 100% |
Period | 26% |
Melodrama | 19% |
Drama | 11% |
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
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy (on disc)
BD-Live
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The circus has been the setting for scores of films from the silent era onward, perhaps because it serves as a rather potent metaphor for the filmmaking process itself. When Water for Elephants’ leading character Jacob Jankowski (Robert Pattinson) waxes rhapsodic about working with dirty guys he wouldn’t want to be seen out in public with in order to create magic under the big tent every night, untold masses of film crews are probably nodding in agreement and understanding. But the fact remains that circus stories have had a curiously spotty history on film. For every outright classic like Fellini’s La Strada or Charlie Chaplin’s The Circus, there are handfuls of less stellar properties, including everything from the enjoyable if silly and melodramatic Best Picture winner The Greatest Show on Earth to the Samuel Bronston behemoth Circus World to potboilers like Trapeze or even the Grand Guignol shenanigans of the late career Joan Crawford starrer Berserk!. Where does Water for Elephants land in this rather peculiar hierarchy? Based on a surprise bestseller by Sara Gruen, the film doesn’t really ply the “circus as metaphor” motif, which may or may not be a good thing, and instead just plops Jankowski down in this literally larger than life setting evidently for little more than the color it provides. While the setting may be relatively unique, the story itself is old hat, a young man finding himself in an unfamiliar environment whilst also falling in love with a woman already involved in a less than wonderful relationship. (In fact an at least somewhat similar love triangle exists in several other circus-carnival films, including Carol Reed’s Trapeze, and the use of a circus-carnival brute is central to Fellini's La Strada). That translates into this film being a lot to look at, but very little to actually actively engage. Water for Elephants also suffers from some odd telescoping of the original source novel’s events, so that sudden character motivations and/or mood swings seem to come out of nowhere and the overall story arc lurches along in fits and starts like a circus train with engine problems.
Whatever Water for Elephants's failings are as a drama, there's very little to complain about with regard to the gorgeous imagery presented on this AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Director Francis Lawrence and cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto bathe this film in the amber glow of memory, infusing shot after shot with a golden hued ambience that is really beautifully presented in high definition. Fine detail is outstanding throughout the film and in fact some may be slightly astounded at the level of detail in some of the close-ups featuring Tai (the elephant portraying Rosie). The film is not overly grainy (perhaps having been scrubbed slightly at the DI stage) but still retains a very filmic appearance. The CGI elements are remarkably well done and look fantastic (take a look at the Visual Effects featurette mentioned in the Supplements section of the review to see just how seamlessly and artfully they've been blended into the film's practical elements). There is some very moderate crush in a couple of dark scenes, but otherwise this is a solid, just downright pretty looking film that manages to provide some allure on the visual side of things that the film itself is noticeably lacking in other ways.
Water for Elephants' lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is extremely well rendered on this Blu-ray, with some very nicely done surround content, especially with regard to some of the circus scenes. Crowd noises, the roars and grunts of the animals, and just the general hubbub of the acts and the audience all create a very lifelike and enjoyably immersive experience. But the track is filled with a number of other great effects, including everything from nice panning when the circus train chugs across the frame to quieter dialogue moments, which still retain a vibrancy and immediacy within much reduced volume. James Newton Howard's score is quite enjoyable, if a bit treacly at times (that slow motion dance between Witherspoon and Pattinson accompanied by piano and strings could have come right out of West Side Story's iconic meeting between Tony and Maria). Dynamic range is superb on this track, fidelity is strong and the riotous conclusion featuring some errant animals provides some great, raucous LFE.
Perhaps the best way to sum up the problems with Water for Elephants is to state that the chemistry and emotional pull between Pattinson and Tai, the elephant portraying Rosie, is far more visceral than that between Pattinson and Witherspoon. Water for Elephants assumes that the novelty of a circus setting will be enough to distract viewers from the tired story at the center of this piece, but that assumption is only partially true. The film would have done better to have concentrated more on some of the intriguing supporting characters in Gruen's novel, characters who actually gave the property some enticement, as well as to have done a more artful job of creating arcs for those characters it does deign to spend some time with. Still, the film is inordinately beautiful, has an intriguing (if smarmy) performance from Waltz, and boasts some great supplements (including probably the best ever featurette on Visual Effects I've personally seen), so overall this release comes Recommended.
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