Shekhar Kapur's
The Four Feathers is the fifth (perhaps sixth) re-imagining
of A.E.W. Mason's famous novel. This time around, the film
features a hot young cast consisting of Heath Ledger, Wes
Bentley, Kate Hudson, and Djimon Hounsou. Michael Schiffer's
screenplay went back to the book in an all-new adaptation of the
novel.
Harry (Ledger) and Jack (Bentley)
are two friends and soldiers serving in the British Army
during the late years in the 19th century. When the Army
announces it's taking part in the Sudan to fight the local
rebels, Harry becomes conscious of his marriage to Ethne
(Hudson) and resigns his post in the regiment. Labeled a coward
by receiving four white feathers, Harry must combine his
feelings and strength to lead an adventure through the Sudan in
order to prove to his friends he is not a coward.
Four Feathers is
exquisitely photographed and acted, but the flaws of its script
cause the film to break down in mediocre entertainment. The
major setback of the film is the way characters are introduced
and play out. The characters' emotions don't translate, because
of the absence of a true connection between them. As a member of
the audience I was unable to feel much empathy or sadness for
them, because they all felt a bit too superficial. The pace of
the film is another setback as the total running time clocks in
at a long 130 minutes. Much of this has to do with Harry's
adventure and battle in the Sudan.
Since Four Feathers is so
reliant on its characters to drive the story, not too much can
be attributed to the overall effect the otherwise well-executed
sequences in the Sudan have. Director Shekhar Kapur
has created an epic, no doubt, but along the way forgot to make
the characters part of it.
6 out of 10
The
Video
This transfer comes in a glorious
widescreen presentation. Shekhar Kapur
exploits this format so well, because many of the film's scenes
look really beautiful. I didn't notice anything wrong with the
picture quality, except for a few blurs during blackness. Colors
are cold in all the sequences in England and shiny bright in all
the sequences in the Sudan. Colors in some scenes come off as
too flushed out and make the focus loose its effectiveness.
Nonetheless, a transfer done well.
8 out of 10
The
Audio
Presented in 5.1 English
Dolby Surround, this DVD makes great use of all speakers during
the battle sequences. However, the rest of the film doesn't use
its audio capabilities well enough to impress any audiophile.
James Horner's score pops in once in a while, but it doesn't
impress much either. It feels like the film should have been a
lot more audio driven than what is presented. Nevertheless, this
audio transfer does the job.
8 out of 10
The
Extras
Considering the dismal box office
run, I didn't except this DVD release to get much attention.
However, Paramount proved me wrong. There's some interesting
stuff on here that is worth the price of a rental, but then
there is other stuff that is not.
Director's commentary - Shekhar Kapur
offers an entertaining insight into the filmmaking process of
this film. His comments translate well to what is seen in the
film.
A Journey From Within: Making
Of- This particular making of goes more in-depth than most
of its kind. This one features interviews with the cast and
crew, offering valuable insights as well.
7 Featurettes - These
break-down featurettes add a lot of detail and background to
not only the film and story but the entire process behind it
as well. Interviews and on-location footage are spliced
together in these well-done featurettes.
Trailers
- You get the Feathers theatrical trailer and a very
long trailer for Spring 03's The Core.
8 out of 10
Overall
The Four Feathers lacked
character development and a sensitive pace, but featured
beautifully shot sequences to make it mediocre entertainment.
With a nice video/audio transfer and a great set of special
features, including an informative commentary, this DVD is
definitely worth the price of a rental.
