The Film
An unlikely group of society's outcasts joins together in a caper to take down two competing arms manufacturers. A beautiful, timeless fantasy world unfolds in Micmacs on Blu-ray. After Brazil (Dany Boon) takes a bullet in the head as an innocent bystander in a shooting, his quality of life is reduced to street performing until a reclusive group of characters takes him in. His sights then turn to revenge on the company that made the ammunition of the bullet in his head, and the competitor that made the land mine that killed his father.
Piece together more of the story in David Kempler's review of Micmacs.
The Picture
In a film with scenes in both fantasy and reality, attention to detail brings the world of Micmacs to life. While the overall look of the film has a greenish yellow wash that is characteristic of this type of fantasy film, colors are rich with deep, dark tones and inky blacks. The definition in each scene is impeccable in this 2.40:1 transfer. It's important to pick up every detail of the world as parts of the film take place in a junk yard where the group of Micmacs themselves live and create contraptions from old discarded junk.
The Sound
Unless you speak French you might not be as drawn into the sound in this foreign language film. Despite this fact the dialog is clear in most scenes, whilst the Blu-ray makes good use of the 5.1 DTS-HD master audio surround soundtrack when action takes place off center or even off screen. There is no shortage of discrete audio cues from the various channels. The movie's musical soundtrack also works well within the context of the film's story without competing with action and conversations taking place.
The Extras
The Micmacs package has the obligatory director commentary and a Q&A feature with interviews from Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet and actress Julie Ferrier, plus a making-of feature. There is also "Animations: Absurd Deaths," which shows how animated intervals in the film were conceived and rendered. That adds a little to the minimal collection of extras, though not a whole lot for a film that probably could have had a whole lot more.
Final Thoughts
Micmacs is a beautiful looking film. The colors and details in each scene are thrilling when you watch this fantasy piece. The story is very contrived, and doesn't always try to connect the dots before the plot unfolds. The antics of this rag-tag group of characters is entertaining to watch, but all too forgetable after the credits roll.
Product Details
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