The
Video
Touting a newly restored
high-definition digital transfer supervised by Paul Thomas Anderson, Punch-Drunk Love comes to blu-ray
looking brighter and sharper than usual while still retaining the undeniably
filmic look it had in theaters. Having
seen the film twice during its initial 35mm run, the noticeable image
flickering, lens flares, intentional smearing and blurring of the focus in
particular shots all have been retained in this very organic looking
master. With exception to The Master, director of photography
Robert Elswit has shot every one of PTA’s movies and the results here are of
course enormously impressive. Color is
key here with the color blue being primarily focused on Adam Sandler’s suit and
red on Emily Watson’s dress and the color transitions by late artist Jeremy
Blake have never looked more brilliant than they do here. Granted the two-disc Superbit DVD back in the
day was a robust disc, but Criterion more than outdoes that disc in the image
department. Impeccable work, Criterion!
The
Audio
Previously available in
Dolby Digital 5.1 EX and DTS 5.1 surround, this new DTS-HD 5.1 surround
soundtrack renders Jon Brion’s anxious percussion filled score beautifully with
thundering bass and aggressive use of the surround channels. Some of the tensest moments in the film are
driven entirely by Brion’s music, with some of the more unnerving moments
played backwards ala Angelo Badalamenti’s score for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
As with Magnolia and There Will Be Blood, sound ranges from
pin drop quiet to a near volcanic explosion erupting almost out of nowhere, startling
viewers even more so than traditional jump scares in horror movies. The opening sequence for instance of a
minivan rolling over with broken glass goes from dead silence to all the
channels roaring to life, echoing later scenes where Adam Sandler seems stable
before abruptly smashing sliding glass doors and windows which are as startling
to hear on loudspeakers as it is for the characters in the movie. Punch-Drunk
Love wouldn’t be the sublime listening experience it is without Jon Brion’s
re-rendering of Harry Nilsson’s He Needs
Me sung by Shelley Duvall from the soundtrack to Robert Altman’s Popeye.
While obviously taken from another source, He Needs Me with Jon Brion’s own augmentation becomes the central
theme for Punch-Drunk Love, imbuing
Sandler’s difficult and hostile misfit with heart and a sense of hope for a
happier life. All in all, the disc
sounds great!
The
Extras
Nearly all of the extras
from the two-disc DVD have been ported over to the Criterion edition, including
the Mattress Man commercial, the twelve scopitones created by Jeremy Blake,
deleted scenes and trailers. New to this
blu-ray edition, however, is the complete Cannes Film Festival press conference
as well as additional interviews conducted at Cannes, new interviews with Jon
Brion on the soundtrack as well as a behind-the-scenes look at the recording of
the score and an NBC news interview with David Phillips, the man who inspired
the ‘pudding’ plot thread in the film. Also
new to this edition are interviews with art curators Michael Connor and Lia
Gangitano regarding the scopitones created by Jeremy Blake. While missing a director commentary, after
people started quoting the commentary PTA did for Boogie Nights (often to PTA’s face), he swore off the practice of
recording commentaries completely. Can
you blame him? Where the DVD kept PTA in
the background with little to nothing in the way of behind-the-scenes material,
the press conference at Cannes features the director heavily as well as sharing
words with Sandler on how the unique project came to be and what it represented
for Sandler’s career. Most of what’s
here is stuff we’ve seen before but the new contents are a welcome addition and
round out the extras for this set as hefty and comprehensive.
Final
Verdict
The long awaited blu-ray
debut of Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk
Love is finally here and Criterion has delivered a solid home video package
with excellent video, audio and extras. The
true definition of oddball quirk with a very raw and real emotional
underpinning, PTA’s one lark is a sweet and inspired romantic comedy that at
once comments on the Adam Sandler Happy Madison picture as well as offering its
own misfit worldview on the power of love.
As a work of pure cinema, it’s a film buff’s dream come true and despite
Sandler’s own later dabbling in drama with Spanglish
and Reign Over Me, Punch-Drunk Love is undeniably his
finest performance as an actor to date.
Though some of the supplemental features on this edition are merely
duplicated from the DVD release, overall this is a solid package I will watch
time and time again and remains a real treat to see and hear!
Score:
- Andrew Kotwicki