Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

This review is sponsored by

BUY IT

General		Extras
Category	Comedy	None
Rating
Year Of Production	2012
Running Time	82:00
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Colin Trevorrow
Studio Distributor	Reel DVD	Starring	Aubrey Plaza Basil Harris Mary Lynn Rajskub Jake Johnson Karan Soni David Schultz
Case	Amaray-Opaque
RPI	?	Music	Ryan Miller

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English dts 5.1 (768Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     It was only a couple of months ago that I commended the film Your Sister's Sister starring mumblecore legend Mark Duplass. Hot on the heels of that release comes another film featuring the oddest romantic lead in Hollywood, Safety Not Guaranteed. Once again it is an offbeat romantic story although this time the comedy is blended with a measure of science fiction.

     Writer Derek Connelly got the idea for the film from an advertisement in a US survivalist magazine which went viral. The ad read: WANTED: someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You will get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED.

     Darius (Aubrey Plaza) is a struggling intern at a Seattle magazine. Journalist David (Jake Johnson) put his hand up to investigate a story based on the newspaper advertisement. The plan is to find out exactly who put the ad - is he crazy? He decides to take Darius and another intern, a young Indian (Karan Soni).

     It turns out that David has other motives. In his college years he met and formed a relationship with a woman in the same small seaside town as advertisement was placed. Seeing her picture online he is convinced that she is just the woman for him and that she will eagerly welcome him back. The glum, sarcastic Darius slowly warms to the detective aspects of the journalistic assignment. When a head-on approach by Jeff fails to engage the suspicious Kenneth, Darius plans an approach using her feminine wiles. Meeting him at the supermarket where he works Darius quickly finds out that Kenneth is an odd and very serious man who believes that his actions are being watched by shady government operatives. He may be right. After all, what are those two men in suits driving a big black car doing drifting past Kenneth's house?

     Safety Not Guaranteed is two very different love stories rolled into one. Jeff is obsessed with the idea that the past can be forgotten and he can rekindle his high school romance as if the pair never parted. Meanwhile, Darius and Kenneth form a bond that only two souls sitting firmly left of centre can make.

     The film is funny, sweet and sad in parts and at 82 minutes is rather slight. However, those who enjoyed the work of Aubrey Plaza of Parks and Recreation fame can see her at her sensitive yet diffident best. I'm not sure if Mark Duplass has that many fans but he should have many more after this solid performance combining the sensitive with the paranoid.

Video

     Safety Not Guaranteed was shot on high-definition digital and transferred to 35mm film at a 2.35:1 aspect ratio for cinema projection. The DVD of the film comes in this aspect ratio. It is 16×9 enhanced.

     This film was never meant to look like the latest Hollywood blockbuster but it still presents a pleasing image on DVD. The transfer is fairly sharp. The colours are vibrant and well defined. The flesh tones are accurate.

     There is a slight noise to be seen in some scenes however overall this is a good looking film on DVD.

     There are subtitles in English for the Hearing Impaired.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     Safety Not Guaranteed comes to DVD with two English language soundtracks. One is a straight Dolby Digital 5.1 running at 448 Kb/s. There is also a DTS 5.1 track running at 754 Kb/s.

     It is always nice on a DVD to get a DTS soundtrack. It was no doubt possible to fit the larger track on the disc due to the short running time of the film and lack of extras. As said, it is nice to get although this film perhaps does not cry out for expensive sound.

     The dialogue is clear and easy to understand.

     The surround sound is used to general ambient effect although there are a few well-placed directional sounds at key moments. The sub-woofer is not used too often although comes into effect at the end of the film.

     Original music for the film is by Ryan Miller. There is a host of songs used from English stars Arctic Monkeys to Miller's own band Guster and hipster two piece Wye Oak. Miller also wrote the song Big Machine sung by Mark Duplass at a key moment in the film.

    There are no technical defects with the sound.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

    There are no extras with this DVD. It is also available on Blu-ray in this region however there are no extras on the Blu-ray either.

    The Region 1 DVD has a couple of short features.

     It may not appeal to everyone but Safety Not Guaranteed is an enjoyable romantic comedy with a real offbeat twist.

     The DVD is of fine quality both in sound and vision terms.

    It would have been nice to have some extras but they not available on any version in this Region.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall