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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Love the Beast (2009)

Love the Beast (2009)

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Released 14-Jul-2009
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Details At A Glance

General		Extras
Category	Documentary	Main Menu Audio & Animation Interviews-Cast & Crew Theatrical Trailer Gallery-Photo Collector Card-Sticker Featurette
Rating
Year Of Production	2009
Running Time	88:21
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (57:35)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu	Cast & Crew
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Eric Bana
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	Eric Bana Jeremy Clarkson Steve Coad Grant Denyer Todd Kelly Jay Leno Tim Lynas Phil McGraw Barry Oliver Jim Richards
Case	Amaray-Opaque	Starring
RPI	?	Music	Yuri Worontschak

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No	Miscellaneous
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	Yes

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

I have owned many cars in my life but I have only had an emotional attachment to two of them, neither of which I still own. They were my first real car, a red 1979 Alfasud and a silver 1985 Alfa Romeo GTV6. I grew to love both of those cars despite their eccentricities and 'challenging' auto electrics. My Alfasud was killed in an accident and the GTV6 eventually 'had to go' or so I was told. It is hard for some people (especially those of the female persuasion) to understand why a car can elicit such feelings. This documentary, directed by and starring Eric Bana, is the best attempt I have seen at explaining it including some psychological explanation from Dr Phil.

Essentially this film follows the life of Eric Bana and his relationship with a Ford Falcon XB Coupe which he bought at the age of 15. In his own words he describes the car as a 'camp fire' around which he and his mates have orbited since the car came into his life. The film features Bana and his three best mates and their memories of the car along with a large assortment of home movie footage and more recent footage of them competing in the 2006 Targa Tasmania rally with the car. They had previously competed in the same race 11 years earlier with the same car (although it was completely rebuilt in 2005). This film feels really honest and heartfelt and is a very personal account of Eric Bana's life and the things which are important to him; family, friends and his car.

Other guests during the show include Jeremy Clarkson, Jay Leno, Grant Denyer & Jim Richards, all well known car nuts. The car racing footage from the 2006 Targa is excellent using split screen techniques to heighten the excitement. The sound during these segments also adds significantly to the overall experience. The emotions at play during and after he race are quite amazing and you really feel them as you watch the documentary. Overall, this film gives you a real insight into what makes Bana tick and you can really see that he is nothing like most Hollywood celebrities.

An excellent documentary which is heartfelt and personal, much more than the vanity project it might seem at first.

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Transfer Quality

Video

The video quality is very good.

The feature is presented in a 1.81:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced which is close to the original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. There are significant portions of the film especially archival and home movie footage which are in 1.33:1.

The picture was sharp and clear throughout about as good as SD gets, although there was some motion blur in long shots of fast moving cars. Shadow detail is very good.

The colour was excellent throughout with the brilliant red of the rebuilt Ford really leaping off the screen.

There was some minor aliasing on road lines and some grilles.

There are no subtitles.

There is a layer change at 57:35 which is not noticeable during playback.

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

Audio

The audio quality is very good really accentuating the car sounds.

This DVD contains two audio options, an English Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 448 Kb/s and an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s. There is not too much going on from a surround perspective however the general quality of the track raises it above the average. It sounds really clear and loud which works well for this production.

Dialogue was very easy to understand and clear.

There is a score however the most obvious music is a variety of Aussie rock songs especially from Powderfinger.

The surround speakers were used for some atmosphere and car sounds.

The subwoofer was used to add bass to the music and the growl of the Ford.

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

Extras

Sticker

A rear windscreen 'Love My Beast' sticker is included which will now find an ironic home on my Mazda 2.

Interview with Eric Bana (10:12)

An interesting, honest and down to earth set of interview material broken into sections including the experience of buying the car originally, what it means to him, his father's car and other topics. Good Stuff.

Image Gallery of the Beast

Around 20 quality photos of the rebuilt Ford with appropriate sound effects.

Theatrical Trailer (2:09)

A representative trailer.

Further information on the Targa & Tasmania (5:10)

Promotional style short for Tasmania and the race.

Madman Propaganda

Anti-piracy plus four trailers.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

I cannot find any evidence of a release for this film yet on Region 1 DVD.

Summary

A heartfelt and emotional documentary about Eric Bana and his Ford Falcon Coupe.