The Tourist (Review)
Wednesday, 27th April 2011, 11:15

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The Disc

Extra Features

The bonus feature to which I was most looking forward was the commentary by Florian Henkel von Donnersmarck to see what his take on the film was and whether he had any regrets. It is a very well delivered commentary with von Donnersmarck's grasp of the English language better than many who claim it as their native tongue and it is quite amusing, given the Blu-ray's 12 certificate (the film was a 12A in Britain and PG-13 in the US) to find von Donnersmarck being bleeped out when describing some of the lines that had to be removed or changed in order to secure the PG-13 rating. When it comes to the film itself, von Donnersmarck, just like Edith Piaf, has no regrets and is proud of the lengthy picturesque shots of Venice, how beautiful film makes Angelina Jolie look and the CGI work which makes the stationary train look as if it's whizzing through the countryside.

Bringing Glamour (9:08, HD) features interviews with the likes of producer Graham King, Florian Henkel von Donnersmarck, executive producer Lloyd Phillips, costume designer Colleen Atwood, screenwriter Julian Fellowes, Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Rufus Sewell, Paul Bettany and Steven Berkoff. They generally talk about Venice as a location and how the film brings glamour back to Venice; I wasn't aware that it had ever left. Everyone is very complimentary about the film and other members of the cast and crew so it really comes across as an EPK piece rather than anything of real substance.

Canal Chats (6:00, HD) is, as the title suggests, interviews with members of the cast and crew (particularly von Donnersmarck, Paul Bettany and Julian Fellowes) on boats in Venice as they browse the canals talk about the city, why it's a great location and their personal experiences with the city.

Travelling the Canals of Venice (3:17, HD) is another EPK piece about Venice as a location, why it is such a unique place and such a great location in which to set a film.

Action in Venice (6:28, HD) explores and examines the action sequences, mentioning the authorities wouldn't let them involve a motorcycle in one case sequence so they had to use two boats without creating high waves which would lead to the corrosion of the city itself.

The Gala (7:11, HD) has contributions from von Donnersmarck, Graham King and, in particular, production designer John Hutman, talking about how certain parts of Venice where recreated or added to in order to create the setting for the gala sequence, something about von Donnersmarck says he was extremely keen to have in the film.

Outtakes (1:25, HD) is 'hosted by' Paul Bettany, Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp and is really too brief to show anything of interest.

Interview with the Director (9:22, SD) is conducted entirely in German with English subtitles and, with a background of curtains, a lamp and a big poster for The Tourist, is clearly an EPK piece made for German TV to publicise the film.

Optimum Trailers for Sammy's Adventures, Babies, The Princess of Montpensier and Leap Year.

Being a Double Play release, this also comes with a DVD should you want to watch it in a room without a Blu-ray player or HD setup. This is also a release that, only costing a few pounds more than the standard DVD release, should apply to people considering buying a Blu-ray player in the near future.

Overall, aside from the commentary, it is a shame that there is very little of substance amongst these extra features which are all extremely brief and seem to be designed as EPK material for the DVD/BD release or features on TV.

The Picture

As is usually the case for a film shot on HD digital or 35mm (this was shot on the latter) a matter of months ago and only about 12 weeks removed from the end of its theatrical run, the HD picture, presented in AVC 1080p, has the vibrant colours, deep contrast levels and detail you would expect.

I can't imagine it's too difficult to make Venice looks like an extremely picturesque holiday destination and the perfect setting for a romantic getaway, but von Donnersmarck , production designer John Hutman and cinematographer, John Seale, find some remarkable locations from which to film the city which, with the sun shining on the turquoise canals, terracotta roofs and numerous bridges, could be used by travel agents and the Italian tourist board to persuade people to go.

Just as other films set in Venice have done, this uses the canals and the city's landscape to good effect, particularly when shooting the equivalent of a car chase with the boats speaking around the waterways without much thought for what the wake will do to the neighbouring buildings.

There isn't a great deal of CGI or other visual effects, but some colour correction has been used and there is one scene where a boat runs over someone with the effect created by splicing two different shots together in a seamless transition. When it comes to the post production digital effects, it is nice to see that there isn't too much DNR, edge enhancement or other such over use of digital correction which works against the viewing experience.

The Sound

The disc comes with numerous audio and subtitling options and the one I opted for, being a native English speaker, was the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English track which is very nicely balanced, presenting the dialogue crisply and using directional sound very well for the music, sound design and atmospherics. When it comes to the action sequences, the track is up to the job bringing the surround speakers and subwoofer to life with a swirling soundstage with plenty of LFEs for the gunshots and roar of the outward motors.

The score, by James Newton Howard, does a very good job of underscoring the romantic elements and ramping up the tension bit by bit and then maintaining it during some of the (supposedly) more suspenseful and tense scenes.

If you're wondering what audio and subtitling options are available, just look to the top left-hand corner of the screen for a full list.

Final Thoughts

The Tourist is a film that has ideas beyond its station, aspiring to be a much more serious and intricate film and the piece of popcorn nonsense it turned out to be. It is an instantly forgettable film and I really had to be on my game to remember so many details to write this review. Johnny Depp is far from the remarkable physical actor who transformed himself to play the likes of Edward D. Wood Jr, Edward Scissorhands and Raoul Duke/Hunter S. Thompson in his more memorable screen performances whilst Angelina Jolie does the sort of thing that pays the bills rather than the more challenging roles (such as in Changeling and Girl, Interrupted, the latter won Jolie her only Oscar). One of the more surprising turns is by Steven Berkoff who is a remarkably threatening presence as the gangster, Reginald Shaw, with Rufus Sewell also 'rising' to the challenge as a mysterious Englishman who attracts the authorities' attention.

If his previous film is anything to go by, Florian Henkel von Donnersmarck is capable of much better films so it is a shame to see him wasting his considerable talents on a big budget studio film like this without much in the way of artistic merit.

The disc is a very good one with plenty of extra features, despite their 'puff piece' nature, and excellent AV quality so, if you liked this at the cinema or think that the trailer makes it look like your kind of film, this is worth at least a rental. However, if you treat film seriously, buy the brilliant new 50th anniversary Blu-ray release of North by Northwest instead.

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