Paramount (USA)
1.85:1 1080p
136 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English, DD 5.1 French, DD 5.1 Spanish
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: audio commentary; Defiance: Return to the Forest; Children of the Otriad; Bielski Partisan Survivors; Scoring Defiance; theatrical trailers
Released: 2 June 2009
Edward Zwick is the kind of director who bludgeons viewers with hammers. This is rather odd as he usually favors high-brow projects--black soldiers in the American Civil War, martial law in New York City, the last days of Japanese samurai, African conflict diamonds, etc. People who would be interested in these subjects tend to be well-educated, but it seems like Zwick doesn’t trust audiences to generate conclusions on their own.
Defiance is no different. Over and over again, we’re told that DANIEL CRAIG IS AN EFFECTIVE LEADER. Over and over again, we’re told that JAMIE BELL IS A NICE GUY. Over and over again, we’re told that JEWS IN THE FOREST TAKE FOREST HUSBANDS AND WIVES. Over and over again, we’re told that A BALANCED MIX OF BRAWN AND BRAINS WILL HELP JEWS KICK NAZI ASS. You get the idea.
The true story of the Bielski brothers is undeniably powerful and moving. In fact, I got a bit emotional watching the disc’s special feature about the Bielskis’ descendents. However, Zwick’s dramatization lacks any nuance. The master-of-the-obvious dialogue and ugly caricatures turn the movie into a live-action cartoon.
Yes, the Nazis were monsters, but they were human, too. Compare Defiance to Downfall, in which Bruno Ganz plays Adolf Hitler as a crazed maniac but was still recognizable as reality. In Defiance, both the heroes and the villains are played as stereotypes, which means that the movie is paradoxically racist against Jews even as it lionizes physically strong Jewish woodsmen.
Zwick’s movies all share this trend. There are whiffs of intellectualism and “liberal” sentiments about the human condition, but at the end of the day, the guy with the biggest genitalia is the hero. Maybe the real theme of Zwick’s oeuvre is self-loathing?
Video:
There’s quite a bit of grain in this 1.85:1 1080p transfer, though it’s not distracting and rather beautiful. Colors are usually dark and deep. Fine object detail is excellent. You’re probably not going to see any image defects or compression problems. Another top-notch video effort from Paramount.
Audio:
There are several gun battles, but there are long stretches of people talking, eating, and going about routines as they survive in a forest. Thus, expect the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English audio track to be front-loaded, though the rear channels burst to life when appropriate. Subwoofer presence is fairly continuous and even heavy, which is characteristic of contemporary mixes. Dialogue is crisp and clear despite the thick accents.
Extras:
First up is a so-so audio commentary by Edward Zwick, who usually induces sleep when I listen to his yak tracks.
“Defiance: Return to the Forest” is a brief overview of the production with some decent behind-the-scenes footage. “Children of the Otriad” features interviews with descendents of the Bielski brothers as they visit the production on-location and the actual Belarussian settings of their forbears’ bravery. “Bielski Partisan Survivors” is a collection of photo portraits of people who survived the war under the Bielskis’ care.
The Blu-ray also has some extras not found on the DVD edition. “Scoring Defiance” takes a look at the James Newton Howard’s music score, and you also get two theatrical trailers.
--Miscellaneous--
For a limited time, you can get a $10 discount if you buy Defiance and Revolutionary Road at the same time. The $10 coupon is attached to Revolutionary Road Blu-rays and DVDs.
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