DVD DETAILS:
Vision
The visual transfer preserves the original widescreen ratio, 16:9 enhanced. Unusually, the film opens with a dreamlike approach which quickly becomes more concrete as it proceeds. It explores how reminiscences become the impetus behind future dreams, and such are thus brighter and more vibrant than the rest of the film, which seems indeed to take on increasing shadow as optimism is slowly eroded. The final hotel design recaptures the vivaciousness of memory in look but the irony is that now Bridges is blind to its reality, his tactility and memory enabling his sense of place. The visual textures are mostly always crisp and concise, motifs regularly spun on the contrast between stability and instability. Color tints are effectively used (red on one particular occasion) and there is attention to production detail and the grotesque nature of human incident. Indeed, although the setting seems cold, much of the colors and textures are hot (especially in a party scene) and even inconsistent, perhaps deliberately attempting to convey the intemperate nature of human emotion through hot and cold lighting – thus the Viennese sequences are especially remote and testing. At moments, the transfer looks oily. The contrast between locations is well served, each hotel having a distinct look and feel although buildings in this film seek forever to cramp and confine the people within them. There is a triumph to the final scenes of Lowe and Foster.
Sound
The sound transfer is a serviceable, technically proficient Dolby Digital stereo surround. The score reconciles the comical, the bitter and the tragic and is quite evocative when used. Voices stand out and it is interesting to note the ways in which tones of voice reveal the ongoing struggle against sorrow and resignation. All is anchored in the voice-over provided by Rob Lowe, adding a further sense of reminiscence to the movie, as it seems Lowe is the audience anchor throughout, making his relationship with his sister the film’s most sustained tension and in the end rendering this device as ambiguous as intended, a most dubious foundation for a moral center. Details are crisp and feel authentic although backgrounds seem subdued and secondary at times, much of the film concerning how the voices of these eccentric characters are the true expression of life. There is little distinction in the ebb and flow of incidents and the ambient sound seems almost minimal at times. There are some amusing incidences of abrupt sounds for comedic and dramatic emphasis, which speak to the way the comedy is slowly overwhelmed by the bitterness. Indeed, sounds of life are here almost slowly drained away in some respects. Despite the unusual events and the difference in look and audio of Bridges’ flashbacks (which sound rather fuller) it is the brooding even juxtaposing use of sound and silence that dominates. read more
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