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| Denzel
Washington, Angelina Jolie, Queen Latifah, Ed O'Neill, Michael Rooker |
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Anamorphic
widescreen |
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Dolby Digital
5.1 |
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DTS |
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Trailer(s) |
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Featurette(s) |
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Documentary |
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Audio commentary
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Deleted scenes
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Concept art
/ storyboards |
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Multi-angle
feature |
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[Denzel
Washington's character to Angelina Jolie's character over the phone:]
'Saw off her hand! SAW OFF HER HAND!!'
A
quadriplegic forensics genius recruits a bright young New York cop to
be his eyes, ears and legs in a serial killer case.
Movies
like The Bone Collector are so depressing. Not because they are
badly made. In fact, they are put together and marketed so well, they
usually make lots of money no matter how derivative, pointless and far-fetched
they might be. And trust me, all of the above applies to The Bone
Collector. In spades.
 The
film is made up of bits and pieces from The
Silence of the Lambs, Se7en
and even My Fair Lady, if you choose to believe director Phillip
Noyce. But at the same time it negates all the ideas that made these
movies interesting. Jolie for instance is nothing more than a physical
extension for Denzel Washington's mind. The idea seems to have been
that he teaches her to be a great forensics detective, and she gives
him back his will to live, but their weird relationship comes off looking
misogynistic and hateful. And the scene where she fondles his finger
is outright laughable. Se7en's presentation of a serial killer
who actually makes some interesting points about the ills of contemporary
society is also set up, then completely thrown out the window when it
turns out his motive for the sadistic killings was to test Washington's
forensic skills. The idiotic finale will either have you in stitches
or completely stunned in disbelief, depending on your mood. It is such
a complete underestimation of any intelligent audience, it's almost
an affront. Avoid like the plague. |
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Identical
Region 1 and Region 2 versions are available.
The
widescreen image is framed at an anamorphic ratio of 2.35:1. The picture
is crisp and clear, with deep blacks and accurate flesh tones, and no
noise or grain.
The Dolby 5.1 soundtrack is likewise well-done, with a deep and wide
surround field.
In
many cases, a director's commentary can make an unsatisfying movie much
more interesting. A director is in the position to reveal his intentions,
provide technical detail, and even sometimes point out aspects in which
he feels the movie has failed. I had hoped that the commentary track
from director Phillip Noyce would add some interest to a film I really
hadn't enjoyed. But he only succeeded in making the movie more annoying.
He seems completely satisfied with the movie and talks about it as if
it had been a runaway critical and commercial success, a kind of modern
classic in its own right whose excellence is beyond dispute. He then
proceeds to explain technical details at a level that might be interesting
to someone who has absolutely _no_ idea how movies are made, but that
most people who occasionally glance at a featurette or 'making of' documentary
will find extremely obvious and boring.
The other extras include a rather obvious 'making of featurette' and
the theatrical trailer.The
animated menus are nicely designed, with quick flashes from the murder
scenes accompanied by cues from the score setting up the main menu,
and subtle background animation in the other screens. Unfortunately,
the animated introduction montage cannot be skipped so you have to sit
through it every time you access the main menu.
Dan Hassler-Forest
Reviewed: 2001
Click
here for IMDB info on The
Bone Collector.
Click here
to return to the front page.
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