 |
| Jim
Carrey, Kate Winslet, Mark Ruffalo, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah
Wood, Tom Wilkinson |
|
 |
Anamorphic
widescreen |
|
Dolby Digital
5.1 |
|
DTS |
|
 |
Trailer(s) |
|
Featurette(s) |
|
Documentary |
|
Audio commentary
|
|
Deleted scenes
|
|
Concept art
/ storyboards |
|
Multi-angle
feature |
|
|
|
|
Joel (Jim Carrey): Is there any
risk of brain damage?
Howard Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson): Well, technically speaking, the
operation is brain damage, but on a par with a night of heavy drinking.
Nothing you'll miss.
A couple
undergoes a procedure to erase each other from their memories when
their relationship turns sour, but it is only through the process
of loss that they discover what they had to begin with.
 Charlie
Kaufman once again proves to be the most fascinating screenwriter
working today, following up his brilliant work in Adaptation. and Confessions
of a Dangerous Mind with yet another masterpiece, this time
in collaboration with French music video whizz kid Michel Gondry.
After their less successful previous effort Human Nature,
the pair simply knocks the ball out of the park in what is without
a doubt the most interesting American film produced in the past
year.
The film features the same sense of formal playfulness that was
evident in Kaufman's earlier screenplays, but soars to previously
unknown heights thanks to the astonishingly successful pairing
of Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet. Their relationship in the film
is natural, compelling and substantial enough to provide the emotional
backbone for the wild experimentalism that runs rampant throughout
the rest of the film, mostly to incredible effect. |
|
 |
 |
|
|
First released for Region 1
as a single-disc release with a fairly generous selection
of extras, the film was then re-released on DVD within months
as a double-disc 'collector's edition'. The first disc in
the set is identical to the initial release, while the second
DVD holds a few more deleted scenes along with some featurettes
on the making of the film. The double-disc set is packaged
in a shiny cardboard digipak that does its utmost to capitalize
on the film's good reviews, which are also quoted freely
in the dispensable 'commemorative booklet' that has also
been included within.
The anamorphic widescreen
image is framed at an aspect ratio of approx. 1.85:1. The
film's rough-hewn, vérité-style cinematography
is faithfully rendered in an excellent transfer, with intentional
grain and surprisingly few compression problems.
The Dolby
Digital 5.1 sound mix is astonishingly good, the film's
subtly mixed sound design often unsettling in its creative
use of the surround channels. The DTS mix adds in a little
more detail and slightly better definition, but both tracks
are simply outstanding.
 With
the film first released on DVD in September 2004, it's a
little hard not to be cynical about the double-disc re-release
that has now followed a mere three months later. With the
first disc a direct re-use of the original release and
the packaging plastered over with superlatives from critics
singing the film's praises, it's impossible to see this double
dip as anything but another step in the already ongoing Oscar
campaign. But this being said, any version of the film that
might tempt more buyers to take a chance on this unjustly
overlooked gem of a film is okay in our book, and the shiny
package does look nicer on the shelf than the preceding 'regular'
edition.
Whichever edition one winds up with, the highlight among
the extras is easily the audio commentary track from director
Michel Gondry with writer Charlie Kaufman, who have a great
time discussing the film, revealing more about the production
than all the featurettes in the set combined. Of far less
interest is the 12-minute promotional piece that offers the
usual collection of interviews along with clips from the
film. Less promotional in nature but hardly less awkward
is the distinctly weird 'Conversation with Jim Carrey and
Michel Gondry', in which the star and director try (and fail)
to talk about the film before the camera without seeming
forced or superficial. There are some nuggets of info that
pop up, but it's a highly unnatural inclusion. Four short
deleted scenes run consecutively without further commentary
or context, the last of which is quite good, but was understandably
left out of the final feature. The full 'Lacuna commercial'
glimpsed in the film is available on the first disc as well,
along with a music video.
Far from offering the kind of definitive investigation into
the film that many may have hoped for, the second disc in
the new set is actually a tacked-on collection of similar
material that isn't very cohesive but that at least does
dig slightly deeper than the slender featurettes on disc
one. The meatiest addition is an episode from the Sundance
Channel's 'Anatomy of a Scene' series that examines the incredible
Saratoga Avenue sequence and the visual effects that went
into creating it. Also on board is a 'look inside the mind
of Michel Gondry', which is basically a collection of interview
snippets with the director and his gushing collaborators. Far
more spontaneous is the seemingly impromptu 'Conversation
with Kate Winslet and Michel Gondry', in which Gondry walks
in on an interview with Winslet and ends up hanging around
on the couch as they continue to chat together. Finally,
the welcome addition of nearly twenty minutes of deleted
and extended scenes reveals the Naomi character, who had
some scenes that ended up on the cutting room floor, and
which also add a little more back story to some of the other
characters.
Dan
Hassler-Forest
Reviewed:
January 3, 2005
Click
here for IMDB info on Eternal
SUnshine of the Spotless Mind .
Click here
to return to the front page.
|
|
| |
