Director
Scott Hicks

Cast
Ethan Hawke,
Youki Kudoh,
Rick Yune,
Eric Thal

Music
James Newton Howard

In no way is this a downfall, as it is not often that a film can hold my attention so well. In fact if it doesn’t I have a severe tendency to snooze. (And snore as ED. would agree :)

There are several underlying stories in this film and they all piece together carefully but accurately both in a film context and in an historical context.

Shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese Americans were put in internment camps for the rest of WWII. The film concentrates on different aspects of the relationships between White and Japanese Americans around this time in the town of San Pedrio.

It is difficult to summarize the complete plot as the film is primarily made up of flash backs that support the current day situations.

Basically a local fisherman Carl Heine (Eric Thal) is killed while out on a fishing trip. Murder or Accident? Then becomes the question. There is a suspect however who is accused of the murder, Kazuo Miyamoto (Rick Yune). His conviction of course completely based on circumstantial evidence and racism. The twist is that the local newspaper editor Ishmael Chambers (Ethan Hawke) has had a romantic relationship with Miyamoto’s wife Hatsue (Youki Kudoh) when they were mearly children. It is evident that they still hold some complex feelings for each other, and Ishmael sets about proving her husband’s innocence.

There are so many factors in this film that it would be foolish of me to analyze it for you anymore than this. It is a serious film that the viewer needs to watch and to take whichever direction they see fit. This could be the portrayal of a well known historic prejudice, or mearly a simple murder/mystery love story.

So How Does This Transfer Hold Up?

VIDEO
This is very much a reference quality 2.35:1  Anamorphic Widescreen transfer. The only thing that may drag it down is some barely noticeable ailiasing.

As a qualified photographer myself, I can see some extremely complicated work here. The scenery is exquisite and the lighting is technically a cinematographer’s nightmare. My congratulations to Robert Richardson for an amazing job with the photography.

The entire film is shot in predominately dark surroundings. This would pose huge problems for shadow detail but at no stage was there any lack of detail.

The colour palette is also restricted to predominately bleak and muted colours, which show a very convincing cold winter. There is no direct contrast in colour in the forest scenes, which is also quite exquisite. Colours were never bright or oversaturated and blended with the film easily.

There are no MPEG Artefacts and no film artefacts.

Detail is superb during this film. Given the lighting restrictions this is quite amazing. This kind of detailed yet dark photography poses great threats of imposing grain but once again there is no grain at all.

This transfer is stunning both in transfer quality and in the original cinematography.

AUDIO

Wow! Can this film get any better? The English 5.1 audio transfer is effectively flawless.

Dialogue is always clear and concise, maybe a little quiet at times.

The base and surround channels were used minimally but certainly to full effect given the nature of the picture. The surrounds certainly have a very lifting and enveloping feel though. At no time could your attention be drawn from the film, and this largely due to the sound impact as well as the story.

James Newton Howard provides ANOTHER! fantastic soundtrack. He often reminds me of the classical brilliance of Andrew Lloyd Weber. Who also has an exquisite feel in mood music. More so than his musical songs.

EXTRAS
Collectors Edition quality is evident in this nice package.

Theatrical Trailer

Cast and Crew Biographies

Production notes: These are perhaps a little extensive and unneeded but still provides a lot of information.

Web Links

Deleted Scenes: 9 deleted scenes which, have added some more mystery to the film would have made it somewhat easier to understand in parts.

Spotlight on Location: Some interesting insights into the film and interviews with people form internment camps used in the film for extras.

History of Manzanar Internment camp: Definitely an extra that should be viewed before the film itself. This gives a much better understanding of these internment camps, which makes a lot more sense when watching the film.

Audio Commentary from Scott Hicks (Director): Quite entertaining and certainly a great source of information on the background behind the film. At times sleep-worthy though.

Not something that should be looked over, this may not sound like your cup of tea but believe me everyone will be surprised.

Review Equipment
TV: GE 68cm (16:9 selectable)
DVD: Samsung DVD909 (via S-Video)
Receiver : Yamaha RX-V595a (DD/DTS)
Speakers:-
Fronts: Wharfdale Diamond R6 (on a pair of custom made stands you'd KILL for)
Centre: Venturi
Rears: Sony bookshelf

- Reviewed 23rd August 2000