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Aura (The)
R1 - America - Genius Products Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (25th April 2007). |
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The Film
 "The Aura" was the first film that I had seen from filmmaker Fabián Bielinsky and sadly it will also be the last, Bielinsky died of a heart attack after the release of this film. His previous effort was the impressive "Nine Queens" (2000) a film about two con artist trying to swindle a stamp collector into buying counterfeit stamps. "The Aura" is a film much further from the style of his previous; it's a rather moody crime thriller with a taste for the existential. The story is told progressively with very little back story, keeping you on the edge for as long as possible until its ambiguous ending. "The Aura" tells the story of Esteban (Ricardo Darín), a taxidermist who's deeply involved in his work. Esteban suffers from epilepsy which strikes him on occasion, he also has a rather uncanny ability, he has a photographic memory enabling him to retain and understand his surroundings better than anyone. While on a hunting trip with Sontag (Alejandro Awada), a fellow taxidermist, Esteban accidentally shoots Carlos (Manuel Rodal) the owner of the cabins he's staying in. Esteban discovers that Carlos has been planning a robbery of an armored truck and when the other criminals involved show up Esteban finds himself mix-up in the whole plan, trying to convince them that Carlos put him up to it and keep from them the fact that Carlos is in fact dead. From the start it's unclear where this story is going, the first 20 or 30 minutes is spent setting up a few of the devices our main character uses later on in the film in order to preserve his own life and subsequently getting involved in the planned robbery. Although it takes it's time to get going the overall result is a rather effect thriller that manages to keep you focused no matter how slow the film tends to move at times. What I enjoyed about the film's structure is that you are learning each step as the character does, although the filmmaker Bielinsky does occasionally throw some subtle misdirection at the viewer especially concerning the film's ending, which should generate some conversation. This leads me to another point, watch this film with a group of people; it will certainly prove a much stimulating experience considering the amount of value you'll get simply by discussing the film after the credits have rolled. I was also impressed with Ricardo Darín's performance, it was understated at times and almost always very depressing however he managed to pull it off quite convincingly. It's not really worth mentioning the other supporting roles in the film simply because Darín is very much the driving force behind this film. I hope to see far more from this actor in the future. Adding to this moody thriller is its style, the grittiness of the location matched with the naturalistic style of photography helps create an overall sense of danger that harks back to the film noir days of the 1950's. "The Aura" has many great things going for it, a provocative and interesting script, excellent performances from the lead and distinct look and feel, but at the end of the day it's the film's over-long runtime (138 minutes) and the deliberately slow pace of the film that might prove a challenge for most viewers.
Video
This film is presented in its original theatrical ratio of 2.35:1, but unfortunately Genius Products and IFC films have dropped the ball on this release as the transfer is non-anamorphic. A decade after the release of the DVD format and we still have to deal with non-anamorphic transfers? This is unacceptable, 16x9 enhancement should be a compulsory. Aside from this incredible oversight on Genius' part the transfer was a mixed bag at best. It was clean and without visible damage, colors were muted but that was an aesthetic choice not the fault of the transfer. Blacks were a little noisy and the image was grainy. Sharpness was generally good however dimly lit scenes tended to suffer a bit and some night scenes were a little hard to make out at times.
Audio
A single Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track is included, I'm glad Genius didn't screw us in the sound department and release it with a stereo track. This 5.1 number is rather effective although on the subtle side. Dialogue is clear and distortion free with the majority of the sound being front heavy. Ambient surround effects were used on occasion and the music was also subtly employed throughout the sound mix. Overall it's a good track but I've heard better. Optional subtitles are included in English, English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
First up is the short "Making The Aura" featurette which runs for a paltry 3 minutes 18 seconds, this EPK piece includes actor Ricardo Darín and director Fabián Bielinsky telling us about what the film is about, the characters, the challenges of shooting on location and how great it was to be able to work with each other. Standard fluff material is found in this clip, there is nothing substantial about and not worth repeat viewing. Next is "The Aura Behind-the-Scenes" musical montage which runs for 2 minutes 34 seconds, this is a series of footage shot of the cast and crew on the set during production set to music from the film's score. Also included is the film's original theatrical trailer which runs for 1 minute 48 seconds. Rounding out the extras are a series of bonus trailers for: - "Killshot" which runs for 2 minutes 1 second. - "Harsh Times" which runs for 2 minutes 32 seconds. - "Coastlines" which runs for 1 minute 49 seconds.
Overall
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