Dragonfly

Starring: Kevin Costner, Joe Morton, Kathy Bates
Director: Tom Shadyac

Rating: PG-13

Review Posted: 8.12.02

By John Teves.

Dr. Joe Darrow (Kevin Costner) is a man distraught over the violent death of his wife (Susanna Thompson). But is she really dead? Suddenly, Joe is confronted by a series of haunting messages, impossible coincidences and unsettling encounters. With each supernatural event, Joe becomes more desperate, until he begins to suspect the shocking truth. Now, in a final shattering revelation, he will make the most astonishing discovery of all.

Dragonfly is a gracious film. This film will make your mind scuffle with the truth about the squiggly cross like symbol, while at the same time it wants you to reflect on the philosophical issues relating to life after death. I must admit that the first half-hour of the film becomes a little tiresome as we see Costner’s character Joe mopping around after the death of his pregnant wife, which is admirable, but it becomes a little irritating after awhile. The drama quickly changes its pace and scales us into Joe’s journey. Kevin Costner does a commendable job as Joe. He makes for a very believable character and doesn’t fall short. Kathy Bates, on the other hand, comes across as a two dimensional character who’s intent is to lighten the film from time to time.

I thought Dragonfly remained a very compelling experience visually and emotionally. It contains more than its fair share of unforgettable moments, and even when I felt confused, I still remained interested and enthralled.

Dragonfly appears in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 on this single-sided, dual-layered DVD; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. The picture was acceptable. Sharpness looked unblemished. Dragonfly appeared quite crisp and defined. Jagged edges created no concerns; there were occasional edge enhancements that cropped up. A couple of print flaws were noticeable, but not enough to warrant a concern. Colors were precious for this type of palette. Black levels were fair I thought they seemed a little sordid at times. Shadow detail appeared generally acceptable, though some scenes seemed overly thick. As a whole, the movie presented a positive image.

Dragonfly is presented in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS. The two mixes sounded practically identical. The rears speakers dispensed a fixed surround audio quality. Speech seemed normal and definite. Effects displayed a pleasing sense of clarity and a lack of distortion. All in all, I thought Dragonfly presented a very appeasing audio experience.

Extras:

• Commentary by director Tom Shadyac
• Making Of "Dragonfly"
• Deleted Scenes

• Author Betty Eadie on her near death experience

• Production Notes
• Widescreen anamorphic format

• DVD-ROM

Dragonfly has its flaws, but I thought it offered a compelling experience. The film kept me consistently intrigued, and it managed to be moving and grievous all at once. The DVD offers good picture with average sound and some extras. I feel DRAGONFLY certainly deserves your attention, and may even be worth a purchase if you think the material will continue to interest you. Highly recommended.

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