It’s not the subject matter which is the downfall, nor is it the acting, the issue in the execution.
Yet for all the posturing back and forth by everyone involved, no credible evidence is brought in front of the audience so we can make our own judgment on this man. Everything we know stems from accounts of family members and information the Spanish supposedly have. Make the case to the people. Even the British people (this is a BBC production, after all). The only thing "Pinochet´s Last Stand" manages to do is grandstand.
As I alluded to earlier, there is at least one noteworthy aspect of the film: the acting. Each of the actors in screen delivers as best they can with such limited material to work with, though none with as much emotion and energy as Vazquez. There is an inherent danger in playing a person on the edge of mental instability: go too far over the line and you´re perceived as a nut job. Keep too sane and you risk not being believable. In every scene-but especially in one where she describes what happened to her sister in an uninterrupted take-Vazquez brings much needed energy and vitality to an otherwise stoic production, constantly skirting the fine line between reality and insanity.
Either nominated or a winner of every major acting award (though not the Oscar), Jacobi is her polar opposite, remaining buttoned up and regal on screen. As the selfish child learning what the word "no" means, he manages to do a considerable amount with relatively little story. There is a determination in his eyes no other actor matches. Nor should they, as it is his life in the balance.
VIDEO:
Things get a little dicey nailing down the exact video specs. HBO didn´t provide aspect ratio information on the case or accompanying press materials, so breaking out my trusty ruler, I measure approximately 5 ½ inches (top to bottom) and 9 7/8 inches (left to right) on my computer, resulting in a 1.79:1 ratio (anamorphically enhanced, according to the package). It´s not a bad presentation; it looks, as expected, like a British production.
Lit with seemingly natural light at all times, the only real problems occur in outdoor nighttime scenes, where the picture tends to be muddy and slightly blocky. Archival footage is also a problem, but it gets a pass. Daytime outdoor scenes seem to be overexposed, making conversations in a car or near a window appear too bright for their own good. Nothing stands out as excellent or particularly noteworthy, which is another way of saying spectacularly average.
AUDIO:
Two tracks here, English 5.1 and Spanish 2.0, neither of which is utilized to it´s fullest extent. "Pinochet´s Last Stand" is a quiet film, entirely dialogue driven and always sounds too quiet for its own good. Some scenes are nearly impossible to hear from a combination of the mix being too low and the heavy British accents employed by some cast members. And, frankly, there´s no reason for a 5.1 mix. It´s clean and a nice addition-I guess, but a regular English stereo option would have done the same job without the lofty expectations. (English, French and Spanish subtitles are included.)
EXTRAS:
As is nearly par for the course on HBO releases, nothing. Not even trailers.
PARTING THOUGHTS:
There appears to be a slightly longer-90 minutes, to be exact-British version of "Pinochet´s Last Stand." Perhaps in an expanded form, the characters were able to gain a bit of humanity and the story some depth. What was cut from the American version of the film is unknown; one has to wonder, though, why HBO was only able to put this cut on DVD and not the entire production. Nothing else is taking up disc real estate, so space certainly is not a problem. This is a misfire in nearly every way, save the acting. A missed opportunity.
As I alluded to earlier, there is at least one noteworthy aspect of the film: the acting. Each of the actors in screen delivers as best they can with such limited material to work with, though none with as much emotion and energy as Vazquez. There is an inherent danger in playing a person on the edge of mental instability: go too far over the line and you´re perceived as a nut job. Keep too sane and you risk not being believable. In every scene-but especially in one where she describes what happened to her sister in an uninterrupted take-Vazquez brings much needed energy and vitality to an otherwise stoic production, constantly skirting the fine line between reality and insanity.
Either nominated or a winner of every major acting award (though not the Oscar), Jacobi is her polar opposite, remaining buttoned up and regal on screen. As the selfish child learning what the word "no" means, he manages to do a considerable amount with relatively little story. There is a determination in his eyes no other actor matches. Nor should they, as it is his life in the balance.
VIDEO:
Things get a little dicey nailing down the exact video specs. HBO didn´t provide aspect ratio information on the case or accompanying press materials, so breaking out my trusty ruler, I measure approximately 5 ½ inches (top to bottom) and 9 7/8 inches (left to right) on my computer, resulting in a 1.79:1 ratio (anamorphically enhanced, according to the package). It´s not a bad presentation; it looks, as expected, like a British production.
Lit with seemingly natural light at all times, the only real problems occur in outdoor nighttime scenes, where the picture tends to be muddy and slightly blocky. Archival footage is also a problem, but it gets a pass. Daytime outdoor scenes seem to be overexposed, making conversations in a car or near a window appear too bright for their own good. Nothing stands out as excellent or particularly noteworthy, which is another way of saying spectacularly average.
AUDIO:
Two tracks here, English 5.1 and Spanish 2.0, neither of which is utilized to it´s fullest extent. "Pinochet´s Last Stand" is a quiet film, entirely dialogue driven and always sounds too quiet for its own good. Some scenes are nearly impossible to hear from a combination of the mix being too low and the heavy British accents employed by some cast members. And, frankly, there´s no reason for a 5.1 mix. It´s clean and a nice addition-I guess, but a regular English stereo option would have done the same job without the lofty expectations. (English, French and Spanish subtitles are included.)
EXTRAS:
As is nearly par for the course on HBO releases, nothing. Not even trailers.
PARTING THOUGHTS:
There appears to be a slightly longer-90 minutes, to be exact-British version of "Pinochet´s Last Stand." Perhaps in an expanded form, the characters were able to gain a bit of humanity and the story some depth. What was cut from the American version of the film is unknown; one has to wonder, though, why HBO was only able to put this cut on DVD and not the entire production. Nothing else is taking up disc real estate, so space certainly is not a problem. This is a misfire in nearly every way, save the acting. A missed opportunity.
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[release]23120[/release]