When The Sea Rises (DVD)
APPROX. 93 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 2004 - MPA RATING: NR
" Their relationship is a low-key l'amour fou, not quite love on the run more like love at a brisk walk.
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Wim Willaert, in his first feature film role, is somewhat less convincing. Dries is a feckless drifter, with some pretensions of being an artist, but Willaert doesn't offer much more than a vacant smile along with the occasional temper tantrum. His portrayal renders Dries a certified indie film eccentric, but one with little depth or staying power. Moreau positively swallows him up, and not just because of the size differential between the two. Their relationship is a low-key l'amour fou, not quite love on the run more like love at a brisk walk. At first they simply enjoy each other's company the heat only gets turned up very late in the game. Tragedy looms at the end of the road, of course, but it arrives in a rather subdued fashion.
"When the Sea Rises" has a certain charm to it, mostly because of Moreau's performance, but it doesn't offer any real surprises. Co-director Gilles Porte, a photographer by trade, captures a few beautiful images, all very self-consciously placed, but nothing that really lingers in the mind's eye.
Video:
The film is presented in its original 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio (with the usual option to watch in a 4:3 letterbox ratio as well.) The transfer is not progressive, and shows several examples of combing, some quite bad. Like many New Yorker DVDs, it may be a direct import from the PAL format which means it has several transfer artifacts (including the combing.)
Audio:
The DVD is presented in Dolby Digital Mono. Optional English subtitles support the French audio.
Extras:
None.
Film Value:
"When the Sea Rises" isn't a bad film, nor a particularly good film. It's cute. It's sweet. It's annoying, but not too cloying. It's only 89 minutes. You could do better, but you could do a whole lot worse. I'm going to give it a lukewarm recommendation, but if someone can explain to me why the stage show in the film is meant to be funny, I'd be greatly appreciative.
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