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Title: |
The
Patriot |
| Reviewed By: |
PJ Hruschak |
| Genre: |
Drama |
| Video Format: |
Anamorphic 2.35:1 |
| Audio Format: |
Dolby Digital Surround 5.1 |
| DVD Format: |
SS-RSDL |
| Language Tracks: |
English |
| Subtitle Tracks: |
English, French |
| Length: |
165 Minutes (2 hours 45 minutes) |
| Rating |
R |
| Release Date: |
October 24, 2000 |
| Regular/Special Edition |
Regular |
| Region Code: |
1 |
| Studio: |
Columbia -Tristar |
| THX: |
No |
| Commentary |
See Below |
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|
| Documentaries |
None |
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|
| Featurettes |
1. Visual Effects Interactive
(various perspectives) This consists of 2 mini featurettes:
"How a Patriot Loses His Head" and "Recruiting a Digital Army."
Both offer quick glimpses into the digital effects used in
the film with 3 scene variations. Navigating the variations
is somewhat difficult, but well worth the effort. Each view
has a unique track, though it may not initially be apparent.
"Loses a Head" repeatedly shows a decapitation scene that
may not be appreciated by some viewers due the grotesque result
of the effect. "Digital Army" offers a wireframe view of digitally
constructed extras use din the film. 2. "The Patriots" "Patriots"
offers great historical background into the scene and costume
creations for the film. Mark Gordon (producer), Dean Devin
(producer), Rex Ellis (Historian from the Smithsonian Institute)
and Deborah Scott (costume director) all offer insights into
the mindset of the colonials and patriots. An original colonial
uniform is shown from the Smithsonian archives which is used
as the basis of the unique uniforms created for the film.
Original costume concept sketches are also shown. 3. "The
Art of War" This consists of a mixture of interviews with
cast members, the director and producers. This featurette
is a nice roundup of the other bonuses offered on the disk.
It offers insight into how actors portrayed their characters. |
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| Filmography
& Biography |
Photographs of
cast and major character groups (such as continentals, Britains,
etc.). These photographs are taken directly from the film,
and are not quite as good as using the pause function during
the film. The aspect ratio is slightly smaller than the original
film's for these images. |
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| Interviews |
(See the Featurettes) |
| |
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| Trailers &
TV Spots |
None |
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| Alternate/Deleted Scenes
& Clips |
The deleted scenes are very
difficult to find. They are encapsulated with the real scenes
in the film to help place where they would have been included.
Remember where they were because you may not be able to find
them ever again.28 scenes; Live preview |
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| Music Video(s) |
None |
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| Other |
DVD-Rom features
availble (not reviewed; PC only - will not operate on a Macintosh) |
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| Cast &
Crew |
| Cast
|
Mel Gibson, Heath
Ledger, Joely Richardson, Jason Isaacs, Chris Cooper, Tchéky
Karyo, Rene Auberjonois, Lisa Brenner |
| Written by |
Robert Rodat |
| Produced By |
Dean Devlin, Roland
Emmerich, Ute Emmerich, William Fay, Mark Gordon, Gary Levinsohn |
| Directed By |
Roland Emmerich |
| Score By |
John Williams |
| The Review: |
| This film is something less
than Braveheart, but definitely an epic American war film.
Set in the midst of the American revolution, Benjamin Martin
as portrayed by Mel Gibson leads a band of colonial rebels
through the wooded countryside to protect their homes and
stall the British from a full-scale invasion. The story leads
Martin, a former hero of the French-Indian War, to fight to
protect his family while guarding a grotesque secret and starting
a bit of olde Americana romance. The costumes reflect the
dress of the era and are wonderfully adapted for the big screen.
The settings and digital backgrounds are fluid, with hardly
a break or glitch to make reality and Hollywood magic difficult
to discern. Several subplots help to further fill out the
already rich film. The most notable involves Martin's idealistic
and romantic son, Gabriel played by Heath Ledger, who goes
against his father's wishes to join the war, then falls in
love. Also, Martin's unusual fighting tactics enrages British
Colonel William Tavington (wonderfully acted by Jason Isaacs)
who mirrors Martin's own tactics to try and turn the war to
their own favor. Tavington's turn from traditional British
military style accentuates his brutally mean character throughout
the film. He is truly and enjoyable villian. Watch for Gibson's
trademark sarcasm when dealing with the enemy, and bloodily
realistic battle scenes, a la Braveheart. |
| Image & Sound: |
| There is very little grain
or image disparity throughout the film. The rustic colonial
colors and murky scenes are not lost at all, while the bright
British uniforms retain their full glory and colorful splendor.
The sound was superb and split nicely. The dialogue is sometimes
muddled by the thundering soundtrack or effects, but rarely
buried. Bullets whiz between the speakers during the battle
scenes creating additional reality. The heavy British boots
are accentuated to help create an intense indoor chase scene
where officers are searching for Martin's family members.
Both the image quality and the sound help to create a wonderful
background for the entire film. |
| Extra Features: |
| Though the menu's navigation
scheme is often difficult to follow, the background effect
and menu wipes are enjoyable. The extra features in this DVD
are well worth watching. The interactive visual effects section
offers three views of specific effects used in the film. You
can choose from the live, the unedited and a wire-frame view
of each scene with unique commentary for each view. One of
the featured effects concentrates on a particular scene that
may not be suitable for younger children or those who cringe
at bloody scenes. This section will take some time to learn
to use. Be patient - though they seems that have the same
audio, each view has unique information. The commentary is
enjoyable and informational enough for most viewers to bear
the entire film in this mode. The patriots and war featurettes
offer more background into the historical aspect of the film.
Here you'll learn that several fiction characters in the film
are based on real colonials and war heroes. |
| Commentary Track: |
| This is a dual commentary
featuring the director, Roland Emmerich, and one of the film's
primary producers, Dean Devlin. Emmerich's and Devlin's continual
commentary is surprisingly enjoyable. They offer a nice mix
of character development, historical background and small
anecdotes. Emmerich tends to describe the more technical elements
of each scene whereas Devlin often concentrates more on the
emotional aspect of the characters, though neither strictly
follows these trends. The parlee between them keeps the commentary
interesting and moving. Devil often mentions how technology
was used to actually reduce the costs of certain scenes in
the film while increasing historical accuracy. He is also
quick to give notice the editor's work, pointing out where
the editing improved certain scenes. Emmerich's perspectives
are most useful to film students who are looking for insight
into the director's mind. He seems to enjoy putting everything
into a technical perspective without making the commentary
dull. |
| Finals Words: |
| This is a great disk to help
fill a film collection. Since the film crosses so many genres,
many unsuspecting viewers will become Gibson and Devlin and
Emmerich fans. There is enough historical accuracy to allow
this film to be shown in many high school classrooms. Though
the navigation is a bit cumbersome and the deleted scenes
are nearly impossible to find, this is a great disk for a
great film. The extras really add to the value of this DVD.
This is truly and epic film with large-scale, action-packed
battle sequences. The subplots are interesting enough to follow
while not detracting from the overall film |
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