Constantine

Note: the screenshots featured here are taken from the player's downscaled standard definition output and should not be considered in any way representative of the actual quality of the transfer.

Constantine is yet another example of a long line of comic book to film adaptations that have played hard and fast with the concept of faithfulness to the source material, and in doing so invoked the wrath of dedicated graphic novel enthusiasts. This particular example is based on the series Hellblazer, the protagonist of which was the chainsmoking, Liverpudlian thrillseeker John Constantine, whose first appearance was in Swamp Thing by Alan Moore.

In the film version, Constantine (Keanu Reeves) is an bitter Los Angeles-based exorcist - an attempted suicide case who, due to technically being dead for a short period, has earned himself a one-way ticket to Hell (according to the film's rigidly Catholic outlook on morality and mortality), and now spends his time trying to buy his way into Heaven by doing favours in the name of God - high-risk exorcisms, battling demons and the like. Shortly after learning that he has terminal lung cancer, and thus realising that time is running out for him to make amends with the Almighty, Constantine runs into Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz), a detective whose twin sister, Isabel, recently killed herself... or so it seems. Angela disagrees: Isabel was a Catholic, and would therefore never take her own life (oh, really?). Both sisters were, however, gifted with a degree of Second Sight. It is through this that Constantine becomes aware of a plot by Mammon, the son of Satan, to tip the Earth's balance in favour of Hell and, in so doing, bring about an apocalypse.


It's easy to see why fans of the source material were so upset: Constantine is a perfect example of the notorious Hollywood dumbing-down process. Eschewing the comics' humanistic overtones in favour of a more conventional "good versus evil" struggle, it results in a world with a considerably less unique flavour. Other issues, such as Constantine's bisexuality, are predictably glossed over, while the comics' rich cross-pollination of different mythologies is replaced with an unimaginative Roman Catholic approach. Religious iconography can work in the context of a film provided it plays by the rules (and this is coming from a committed atheist), but Constantine is such an uneasy combination of Catholic doctrine and mythology invented specifically for the film that the end result is something akin to having two lunatics babbling in each of your ears.

The biggest problem, however, is not the dubious mythology: no, it's Keanu Reeves. An actor that I've never had much time for, he's absolutely awful here, utterly failing to convince as the grisly, world-weary crusader with one foot in Hell. He's too fresh-faced, and he delivers all his lines in the same monotone that made his turn in The Matrix and its dire sequels so infuriating. A lot of the nonsense he spits out would sound dubious coming from even the most gifted actor, but from Reeves, all this talk of the scales of Heaven and Hell being tipped, the son of Satan and the Lord working in mysterious ways sound absolutely ridiculous.


It's a shame he's so bad, because the rest of the cast is populated by gifted actors who rise to the challenge and deliver some offbeat and genuinely enjoyable performances. The lovely and talented Rachel Weisz is given very little to do, but she makes a solid enough impression and pulls off a half-decent American accent to boot. Tilda Swinton, meanwhile, calls upon her androgynous looks and gives the most bizarre, spiteful rendition of the Angel Gabriel I've ever seen, while Peter Stormare plays Satan as an eccentric but personable salesman. Indeed, the acting is good all round, bar Reeves, and I suspect that the film would have been considerably better with a better performer in the title role.

It also helps that the film is beautifully shot. Director Francis Lawrence's background is in music videos - indeed, this was his feature-length debut - but you wouldn't know it to look at it. Constantine has an interesting look that combines a noir aesthetic with religious iconography and 21st century computer effects which, while not outright revolutionary, is considerably more imaginative and polished than I would have expected from someone with this director's back catalogue. There are some wonderful images scattered throughout the film - Constantine and Angela standing in an empty street as the lights go out one by one; Constantine entering Hell and returning with Isabel's hospital wristband as proof that she is trapped there.


I also like the fact that the script is pleasingly non-self-referential. It definitely has a sense of humour, but it's a very deadpan one, which makes a nice change from the jokey nature of a lot of modern horror. That's not to say that it's always completely successful, but it relies on Constantine's acerbic black humour and as such doesn't feel cheap or self-conscious.

Constantine is ultimately not a great film. It has a few moments of brilliance, and some arresting imagery, as well as some unexpectedly inspired performances, but it suffers from an uncharismatic lead actor and some serious dumbing down of its source material. As religious-themed horror movies go, it's nothing like as stupid as something like The Sin Eater (to use a recent example of a truly dreadful entry into the sub-genre), but it definitely falls short of its potential.


HD DVD Presentation

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1, encoded at 1080p using the VC1 codec, Constantine looks very good, with a couple of criticisms. In terms of detail and overall colour levels, this release is superlative. Likewise, the compression is handled expertly; in particular, the scene in which Constantine is attacked by the insect demon must have been a nightmare to encode, and yet there is not a single artefact in sight, in this or any other scene. Unfortunately, like Million Dollar Baby, also released by Warner, it suffers from a degree of noise reduction and edge enhancement. The former is only a problem in a handful of shots, where some mild artefacting can be glimpsed (e.g. the lettering on Chas' taxi as it pulls up near the start of the film). In the case of the latter, high contrast edges display some mild ringing, which isn't too distracting but is slightly disappointing nonetheless. It's at its worst during the various wide shots of the metal-grilled door against which Constantine collapses during the climax, but other scenes are affected too to a lesser degree. Still, a very pleasing transfer overall and one that most impresses when you consider the sheer amount of material crammed on to the disc.

Among the earliest HD DVDs to be released, Constantine was one of the first to receive a Dolby TrueHD track, which, until the 2.0 firmware upgrade of the Toshiba HD-A1 and HD-XA1 players, was effectively taking up space on the discs on which it was included. Now that TrueHD is playable, however, it should be the default choice for anyone with a decent set of speakers, for the difference between it and the Dolby Digital-Plus track, while certainly not on the same level of the difference between standard definition and high definition video, is certainly pretty staggering. The Dolby Digital-Plus mix was already pretty aggressive, providing a hefty work-out for the speakers, but the TrueHD track takes it to another level. The bass is phenomenal, and the clarity outstanding, with even Keanu Reeves' constant mumbling completely coherent. Most impressive, however, is the level of detail that is present in the audio design. The lossless nature of the track allows you to appreciate all the ambient sounds to their full extent, such as the very faint sounds of everyday city bustle during the opening exorcism, or the chatter in Midnite's nightclub, which comes at you from every speaker. This is demo material of the highest standard, and while those who restrict themselves to the Dolby Digital-Plus track will certainly be immensely satisfied, they are denying themselves the opportunity to experience audio at the next level.

French and Spanish dubs are also included in the form of Dolby Digital-Plus 5.1 and 2.0 audio respectively. English, French and Spanish subtitles are provided for the film itself but for none of the extras.


Extras

In terms of extras, Constantine is definitely a packed release, incorporating all of the bonus materials from the 2-disc standard definition version, apart from the 48-page reproduction of the graphic novel on which the film was based.

The main draw here, of course, is the inclusion of an In-Movie Experience feature. As I detailed in my review of The Bourne Supremacy, this is essentially a picture-in-picture feature which displays interviews, behind the scenes footage and stills as the film itself is playing - something that will, I suspect, eventually supersede audio-only commentaries entirely, but, with Constantine, the results are slightly underwhelming. I still consider the idea of the In-Movie Experience, which incorporates the best elements of both commentaries and documentaries, to be an excellent one, but here the comments are a little too sporadic to make this a comfortable viewing experience. Just as someone seems to be about to say something interesting, it tends to cut back to the movie for a few minutes. And then, just as you're getting involved with the movie again, it ends up being interrupted by yet another snippet of interview footage.

Luckily, the two audio commentaries are somewhat better. The first, featuring writers Kevin Brodbin and Frank Cappello, is intriguing by virtue of the fact that it brings together two people who worked on completely different drafts of the script - something which rarely seems to happen. The result is that the two get to go into considerable detail about their own contributions and the various different interations that the story went through as it was passed through various hands. There are a handful of extended moments of silence, but otherwise one of the best commentaries I've heard in a while. The other track, featuring director Francis Lawrence and producer Akiva Goldsman, is less impressive, lacking the kind of in-depth thematic discussion in which the writers indulge in their commentary, but, all the same, it's a breezy, fast-paced track in which the two participants chat about various issues related to the movie. Obviously, due to the presence of the director, it's predominantly technically oriented, but Goldsman, who is first and foremost a writer, and who it seems did a draft on the script at some point, does provide some discussion of thematic material and differences between the comic and the film.


As far as the rest of the extras go, the bulk are comprised of a series of featurettes focusing on various specific aspects of the film - for example, the character of Constantine, the adaptation process, various special effects shots. There is a wealth of material here, and despite the EPK-style self-congratulatory nature of many of the interviews (everyone involved with this film was, it seems, the most amazing actor/writer/stunt coordinator/coffee maker in the world), it remains interesting for the most part. Unfortunately, the lack of a "Play All" function is rather annoying, because there are in total 14 separate featurettes here, some of which only run for around four minutes.

A collection of 14 deleted scenes is also provided, with optional audio commentary by Francis Lawrence. A number of the deletions make sense, but one that I was sorry to see go is the character of Ellie, a half-demon played by Michelle Monaghan, who was intended to show up on a number of occasions but all of whose scenes were deleted from the final cut. Lawrence's justification for her removal makes sense - the notion that Constantine was having sex with a woman on a regular basis considerably undermines the theme of loneliness - but Monaghan is a gifted actor, and her scenes were, judging by the material included here, of a high quality.

Rounding out the package are a music video featuring footage from the film, the teaser trailer and the theatrical trailer. Regrettably, both trailers are presented in standard definition only.


Overall

Constantine is no masterpiece - Keanu Reeves' performance is pretty cringe-inducing, and the combination of po-faced religious themes and gung-ho demon-slaying doesn't exactly work very well - but, as demo material, this disc has a lot to offer. Fans of the film would certainly appreciate the upgrade from standard definition, while audiophiles and casual viewers alike will get a kick out of the superior TrueHD audio.