Creation (Blu-ray) (2009)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Featurette-Making Of-Creation : The Battle for Charles Darwin (23.15) Featurette-Darwin's Legacy : Three Scientists Discuss Featurette-Digging Deeper into Darwin with Nick Spencer Featurette-Nick Pollard on the Film (5.56)
Rating
Year Of Production	2009
Running Time	108:26
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Jon Amiel
Studio Distributor	Icon Entertainment	Starring	Paul Bettany Ian Kelly Guy Henry Martha West Anabolena Rodriguez Paul Campbell Zak Davies Teresa Churcher Jennifer Connelly Freya Parks
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Christopher Young

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 (4608Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	1080p
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

In 2009, the world celebrated the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, whose revolutionary theories on the origin of all life and the evolution of species changed the world forever. Surprisingly there was little in the way of film productions that recognised this important event: a few documentaries, and only one feature film – Creation.

Creation doesn't try to tell the life of Darwin. Rather, it attempts to fill in the gaps. It leaves out the two most traditional images of Darwin – the young naturalist striding across the deck of The Beagle and chasing iguanas and giant tortoises over the volcanic rocks of the Galapagos Islands, and the aged Darwin, replete with mighty white beard, juggling approval for his theories with condemnation.

Instead, Creation is about the period when Darwin settled down with his family in the country and began writing his landmark treatise On the Origin of Species. A film about writing a book sounds a dry affair but for Darwin this period was anything but stable. If the film is to be regarded as accurate, in the 20 years it took him to write the book he was plagued with ill health, wracked with anguish and guilt over the death of a daughter, and conflicted over the effect that his views would have on his marriage to his much-loved and devout wife.

In the film Charles and Emma Darwin are played by real-life couple Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connolly. Although the voice of religion pops up in the form of Jeremy Northam and the voice of science in Benedict Cumberbatch and Toby Jones, this is essentially a threehander. The other part of the trio is Darwin's daughter Annie, who died aged 10, and is played by first-timer Martha West. She appears throughout either in flashback or as a constant apparition to the ill and hallucinating Darwin.

The film was based on a book by Darwin's great grandson, which was then scripted by John Collee, the writer of Happy Feet and Master and Commander, in collaboration with director Jon Amiel. The result is an absorbing piece on the creation of a work of original thought that took its toll on the writer for a variety of reasons. It is also a surprisingly glum story, with heartache, guilt and regret the core emotions at play. The acting from the leads is superb and the set design and costuming pitch-perfect.

Some scenes are unforgettable, in particular when Darwin plays with a young orangutan (director Amiel says in the commentary track that he just put them together and filmed what happened) but the relentless focus on illness and mental anguish makes the story a bit of a slog. The movie's narrative is splintered and re-arranged, making it sometimes difficult to follow what is going on.

Worth watching to get an insight into this part of Darwin's life.

Video

Creation was shot on 35mm film and projected at the cinema in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. That ratio has been preserved for the Blu-ray release.

In the commentary track, Amiel describes an early scene as featuring "glorious lambent lighting" and explains that this was the effect he was looking for in the film as a whole. He also talks about the post-production work that saw subtle colours added to scenes for emotional effect.

So it is no surprise then that the transfer is not terribly consistent in look. The interiors are low-lit, with glowing yellows, and the exteriors are often slightly over-exposed. As the film switches between time periods quickly, Amiel often uses varies the look to differentiate each period. Otherwise we would be confused all the time, trying to place the time period by Darwin's receding hairline!

Therefore, bearing in mind these directorial touches, this is a pretty good looking Blu-ray release. The flesh tones are accurate and the level of detail, both in the actor's faces and in the finery of the clothing, is sharp and rich. Colours are generally subdued but accurate. There are no defects. The grain is minimal and compression artefacts are not an issue.

There are English Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired.

Video Ratings Summary

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Audio

Creation features a DTS HD Master Audio prime track and a Dolby Digital 5.1 track running at 640Kb/s. There is also an audio commentary track which runs at 192Kb/s and is Dolby Digital 2.0.

Whatever the track you select, the sound is clear and precise. The dialogue can be heard clearly.

The surrounds are used to fairly subtle effect, such as with the all-encompassing rustle of leaves in a forest. The sub-woofer is rarely engaged.

The score is by prolific composer Christopher Young. It is a strong and moving accompaniment to the film.

Audio Ratings Summary

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There is a wealth of extras on the Creation Blu-ray of varying quality.

Audio Commentary - Jon Amiel

The director is an eloquent and passionate observer and provides an excellent commentary track for the film. It blends the technical with the historical and the practical.

Creation: The Battle for Charles Darwin

Although this is a studio puff piece and features the usual load of clips from the film and sundry backslapping, it has enough interesting interviews with Paul Bettany, Jon Amiel and others to make the 20-odd minutes pass quickly.

Darwin's Legacy

Though this is billed as "Three Scientists Discuss", two of the three approach the subject from deeply-held faith, one being a Theistic Evolutionist, so it is more or less an exercise in trying to disagree with Darwin without trying to make it sound like the debate is purely one of faith.

The three topics are:

• What Difference Has Darwin Made? (5.07)
• Three Scientists on Science and Religion (5.24)
• Three Scientists on Unanswered Questions (3.44)

Digging Deeper into Darwin with Nick Spencer

Nick Spencer is the author of Darwin and God, which means issues of faith dominate his discussions. He covers a number of aspects of Darwin's life:

• Emma (4.19)
• Family (2.13)
• Missions (4.19)
• Innes (4.19)
• Christians (3.01)
• Delay (3.39)
• Publication (3.41)

Whilst the comments are occasionally insightful, more often than not the segments are filled with clips from the film. Just as often, Spencer notes that the film had to use a good deal of supposition for many scenes.

Nick Pollard on Film

Almost unwatchable, this is a short lecture by a Christian thinker about what reasons Darwin may have had in his life to lose faith. The theme seems to be "hold on to your faith".

   This is an All Region Blu-ray.

Creation is a fairly dour look at the hardest years in the life of Charles Darwin. Very good performances don't lead to a unified whole, and the film is probably best for those who like their dramas a little on the cold side.

The image quality is fine and the sound is pretty good.

The extras seem unduly lumbered with religious debate.

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