|
|
|
We Are the Giant
R2 - United Kingdom - Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (18th November 2014). |
|
The Film
 ***This is a technical review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** In We Are The Giant ordinary citizens face the same moral questions that have defined revolutionary leaders across the ages, from Jefferson to Che Guevara to Mandela. Filmed largely in secret and sometimes at great risk, Emmy award-winning director Greg Barker delivers remarkable access as he documents six people from very different walks of life. Grappling with the agonizing dilemma at the heart of all struggles for justice and freedom, they must advocate change through peace and non-violence. Each faces a brutal regime determined to crush them into submission, and each makes very different, painful choices that come to define themselves - and their struggles. Powerful, tragic and ultimately inspirational, We Are The Giant follows the everyday decisions that transform not just individual lives but the fate of nations. As their stories echo across history, the characters in We Are The Giant speak directly to our own lives, reminding us that we are all products of revolutions, and offering hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
Video
Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment have released the documentary "We Are the Giants" on to DVD for British audiences at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The transfer has been anamorphically enhanced, and is of mixed quality due to the sources of a lot of footage included. With the documentary relying heavily on footage filmed by various Syrians and Bahrainis at the heart of the uprisings, sometimes obviously using camera phones that are quite old models, it comes as no surprise that there are big chunks of footage that look quite poor. Clunky, blocky and sometimes hard to make out faces, let alone smaller details, this footage still manages to hit home the imagery of dead children, and wounded victims of attack. There are several archival news segments included, and they generally look of broadcast quality, though a Newsnight clip that last several seconds looks more like a Youtube video struggling to stream. Interview footage which was pre-planned looks much better. Details come through nicely, especially the dimples in skin and fabrics of clothing, and colours look natural and vivid, adding a good sense of depth. Overall, the lower quality of some of the footage can certainly be forgiven considering the situation, and the interview segments show no signs of damage or any other major issues. This is an adequate transfer at the very least. The documentary is uncut and runs 88:15.
Audio
Two tracks have been provided here: - English/Arabic Dolby Digital 5.1 - English/Arabic Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo For my viewing I opted for the English/Arabic Dolby Digital 5.1 track, though it should be noted that the stereo track is the one that plays by default. As with most of Kaleidoscope's documentary releases, the 5.1 track here is essentially a way to increase the effect of the score, which on this occasion is by Philip Sheppard. The rest of the track, such as dialogue placement, is generally the same as the stereo option, though the 5.1 option also benefits from additional oomph via the LFE during explosions. Some of the dialogue is a little mumbled, and the opening dialogue is slightly tinny, but overall, this is a strong track without major signs of damage such as drop outs. English subtitles are included for some of the mumbled English dialogue, and for Arabic dialogue only. It is presented differently from normal subtitles, and are incorporated into the film looking in various parts of the frame. This is not distracting, and they are easy to read and follow at all times.
Extras
We start the extras off with a selection of deleted material (18:11). The al-Khawaja sisters talk about some of the protest artwork on the walls, though the one that had their father on had been painted over. They also talk about the importance of non-violence, there's a 2012 Skype interview, Zainab talks about her early years in Bahrain, America's foreign policy, how the revolution uses communication, and visiting their father. It's easy to see these scenes were removed for pacing, but they are worth viewing, and give us even more insight into the al-Khawaja family's own thoughts. Next up, we have an interview with director/producer Greg Barker (19:26). Taking place in the editing room in Culver City, California (the editing process took a year), Barker talks about why he made the film, how he found his participants and the editing process in general. This is very insightful into Barker's thought processes, and how he wanted to cover various countries rather than focusing on just a single locality. I would have liked to hear him talk in-depth about the reception of the film though. The final substantial extra is another interview, this time with co-producer Razan Ghalayini (16:40). It starts off about how difficult it was filming in Syria, especially with all the furore going on at the time about fake footage from both protesters and the Syrian state. She also talks about the various dangers of filming in Syria, finding the Syrian activists that were to feature, access to Bahrain, and the film's impact. We also get a start-up trailer for "The Notorious Mr. Bout" (1:30) and a theatrical trailer (2:08).
Overall
The imagery is powerful throughout, and the stories thought-provoking. Could have been structured a little better, but this is the second great documentary this year that Kaleidoscope have released about uprisings in the Middle East (The Square is the other). Nice to see some good quality extras too.
|
|||||
|