Breathe
In (2012/Cohen Media
Blu-ray)/We Of The Never
Never (1981/Umbrella
1080/50i Region Free Import Blu-ray)
Picture:
B- Sound: B/B- Extras: C/B- Films: C+/B-
PLEASE
NOTE:
The We
Of The Never Never
Import Blu-ray is now only available from our friends at Umbrella
Entertainment in Australia, can only play on Blu-ray players that can
handle 1080/50i format discs (including those few that can convert it
to 60Hz for US HDTVs) and can be ordered from the link below.
Here
are two dramas for you to know about...
Drake
Doremus' Breathe
In
(2012) has a familiar set-up that applies to some films you have seen
before and even some old thrillers better forgotten, but this is just
a drama about a family that hosts an exchange student (Felicity
Jones) who finds herself fitting in fine initially, but becomes
interested in the male head of the household (Guy Pierce) whose
daughter (Mackenzie Davis) and wife (Amy Ryan) don't suspect anything
for a while. Daughter Lauren even initially suspects she is trying
to take her boyfriend away from her.
Freudian
slip? The drama is handled well and casting works, but as smart and
even realistic as this tends to be, it cannot add anything new to the
situation though Keith is made out to be a good dad/husband/musician
who teaches music at school. Worth a look if you are interested and
never gets too sappy to its credit, but that's all.
A
making of featurette is the only extra.
Few
in the U.S. have seen Igor Auzins' impressive Australian film We
Of The Never Never
(1981), though a DVD was issued at one point which we were lucky
enough to cover at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6402/We+Of+The+Never+Never+(1982/Australian+drama
More
realistic than most of the historical throwback melodramas Aussie
cinema was making so many of, this newly restored edition is a really
nice, welcome, needed upgrade telling the story of ho high society
wife Jeannie Gunn (Angela Punch-McGregor) left the city for the
outback and made a difference over a century ago. This film is one
of the best of that whole overrated cycle and deserves rediscovery
worldwide. This restoration is better than the last one of the DVD.
New
expanded extras include all the audio of the Original Motion Picture
Soundtrack, a Behind The Scenes
Gallery, Original Theatrical Trailer, a vintage Walkabout
Documentary 1974 (no
confusion intended with the Nicolas Roeg film of the the same name,
reviewed on Criterion Blu-ray elsewhere on this site; 27 minutes) and
new Back To The Never
Never making of
featurette, running 23 minutes.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image transfers on both
Blu-rays are nice, if not perfect, with Breathe an HD shoot
that is purposely semi-monochromatic more than it ought to be while
the upgraded, restored 35mm film print on Never can show the
age of the materials used, but this is far superior a transfer to all
previous releases of the film as shot in real 35mm Technovision (like
Apocalypse Now) and it is nice to see it saved as well as it
has been here.
The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless
mix on Breathe
is well mixed and presented, but the quiet moments never undermine
the soundfield, while the
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono sound on Never
can show its age and budget limits, but it has a better sense of
warmth
and fullness as compared to the older U.S. DVD.
To
order the
We Of
The Never Never
Umbrella import Blu-ray or DVD, go to this link for it and more great
exclusives at:
http://www.umbrellaent.com.au/
-
Nicholas Sheffo
