It’s hard not to mildly recommend the film on the basis of the performances.
Byrne and Sarandon fare somewhat worse, due to the fact we never buy into their ageless love affair. If, for the sake of argument, the really did care about one another and Melanie has been trying to keep a record of the camp survivors for years, how are we to believe these two never crossed paths? Granted, this nit pick doesn´t have a lot to do with the performances, but the scenario informs the acting choices by making both-particularly Sarandon-overplay the rekindled romance to such a point we want to tell her to grow up. This goes back to her performance early on, too, in which she acts like a giddy schoolgirl showing Jakob the room she has put together for him. There´s a wide-eyed exuberance in her, eventually becoming supremely annoying.
I did want to take a minute to mention the location shooting. Taking place almost exclusively at the Winters home in Canada, Barzman creates a believable setting with all the little touches we´d expect: bottles of pills, papers strewn on tables, clothes discarded on beds. These visual cues tell us this homestead is a place where people actually live, instead of a movie set. Additionally, when the action moves outside, the scenery is lush, calm and serene. My feeling is the complexity inside the house and the stillness outside are meant to parallel one another.
So what does "Autumn Hearts" actually say? I don´t know if it´s ever truly sure. On the one hand, we´re supposed to remember the past for both the people who died and the people who lived. But on the other, we can´t live in the past. When Jakob entrusted Melanie with a record of the camp back in WWII, he never explained to her the difference. She kept meticulous notes every day and continues to live in their shared past to the detriment of David. There´s a cruel lesson for her to learn in the climactic scene, one verging on success since we are sympathetic to Melanie despite the character. Thing is, by the time the film gets to this point, our consciousness is filled with unanswered questions and leaps in logic, we simply don´t care anymore. And that´s sad, to be honest. There is so much potential on the screen and it goes, largely, to waste.
VIDEO:
I´m torn over the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. On the one hand, the first 60% of the production looks respectable, good even. Colors aren´t the most crisp, yet there is a very discernible style at work. Everything looks like a painting, with hard black outlines and a gentle palate. Then comes the end of the film, taking place almost exclusively at night. Every problem the transfer could have comes to life here, from white spots to very visible mosquito noise.
It´s distracting, to say the least, trying to pay attention to the action and relationships while seeing flickers around the entire screen. On a 46 inch TV screen, these flaws are painfully obvious. On a smaller computer screen, the picture appears very good.
AUDIO:
No surprise here with the English 5.1 and 2.0 audio tracks. Both are serviceable enough, with the 5.1 version bringing forward more ambient sounds (like water rippling). The dialogue remains unscathed, though neither track brings much to it. Without any major sound effects for the mix to play with, the quiet affair is rendered well. English and Spanish subtitles are included.
EXTRAS:
This is a sparse section, considering the on screen pedigree. We have a short featurette interspersing movie clips with interviews with Sarandon, von Sydow and Bryne. (Barzman and a couple producers make appearances.) There´s not a lot of substance to the information; it´s a lot of standard back slapping we´ve seen and heard before. The only other extra is this films trailer (1:47) along with those for "The Tracey Fragments" and "Six Reasons Why" at the beginning of the disc.
PARTING THOUGHTS:
"Autumn Hearts" is a movie fully cognizant of its message and perceived importance. The critical mistake here is in the way various moments from the past are presented: out of order, through flashback and without any context. They don´t add anything of importance to the end product, ultimately leaving the film hamstrung. A scene at the end-a bit too obviously simplistic, if you ask me-captures the essence. A dumbed down version of a story in need of complexity, not ambiguity.
I did want to take a minute to mention the location shooting. Taking place almost exclusively at the Winters home in Canada, Barzman creates a believable setting with all the little touches we´d expect: bottles of pills, papers strewn on tables, clothes discarded on beds. These visual cues tell us this homestead is a place where people actually live, instead of a movie set. Additionally, when the action moves outside, the scenery is lush, calm and serene. My feeling is the complexity inside the house and the stillness outside are meant to parallel one another.
So what does "Autumn Hearts" actually say? I don´t know if it´s ever truly sure. On the one hand, we´re supposed to remember the past for both the people who died and the people who lived. But on the other, we can´t live in the past. When Jakob entrusted Melanie with a record of the camp back in WWII, he never explained to her the difference. She kept meticulous notes every day and continues to live in their shared past to the detriment of David. There´s a cruel lesson for her to learn in the climactic scene, one verging on success since we are sympathetic to Melanie despite the character. Thing is, by the time the film gets to this point, our consciousness is filled with unanswered questions and leaps in logic, we simply don´t care anymore. And that´s sad, to be honest. There is so much potential on the screen and it goes, largely, to waste.
VIDEO:
I´m torn over the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. On the one hand, the first 60% of the production looks respectable, good even. Colors aren´t the most crisp, yet there is a very discernible style at work. Everything looks like a painting, with hard black outlines and a gentle palate. Then comes the end of the film, taking place almost exclusively at night. Every problem the transfer could have comes to life here, from white spots to very visible mosquito noise.
It´s distracting, to say the least, trying to pay attention to the action and relationships while seeing flickers around the entire screen. On a 46 inch TV screen, these flaws are painfully obvious. On a smaller computer screen, the picture appears very good.
AUDIO:
No surprise here with the English 5.1 and 2.0 audio tracks. Both are serviceable enough, with the 5.1 version bringing forward more ambient sounds (like water rippling). The dialogue remains unscathed, though neither track brings much to it. Without any major sound effects for the mix to play with, the quiet affair is rendered well. English and Spanish subtitles are included.
EXTRAS:
This is a sparse section, considering the on screen pedigree. We have a short featurette interspersing movie clips with interviews with Sarandon, von Sydow and Bryne. (Barzman and a couple producers make appearances.) There´s not a lot of substance to the information; it´s a lot of standard back slapping we´ve seen and heard before. The only other extra is this films trailer (1:47) along with those for "The Tracey Fragments" and "Six Reasons Why" at the beginning of the disc.
PARTING THOUGHTS:
"Autumn Hearts" is a movie fully cognizant of its message and perceived importance. The critical mistake here is in the way various moments from the past are presented: out of order, through flashback and without any context. They don´t add anything of importance to the end product, ultimately leaving the film hamstrung. A scene at the end-a bit too obviously simplistic, if you ask me-captures the essence. A dumbed down version of a story in need of complexity, not ambiguity.
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[release]24338[/release]