Blindness was reviewed in it’s theatrical release by our own Ryan Ingram back in October. I certainly don’t disagree with his assessment, but I think he may have been far too kind. This is a film that is as grungy, dark and dirty as the living conditions of the characters become. The trend now seems to be that in order to be considered a serious film you must show lots of gratuitous sex, horrific, repugnant violence and, basically, a story full of characters being completely unkind to each other. Movies (and television and comic books, for that matter) are no longer about entertainment, but about how much depravity you can show and/or get away with. I’m not a prude by any stretch of the imagination as I like a good zombie flick or early 80’s slasher film like nobodies business. Those are great fun! That seems to longer be enough now as any enjoyment must be sucked out of a horror story to instead show ever increasing degrees of depraved unkindness between realistically portrayed people. I firmly believe that’s why films like Inkheart get short shrift. Perhaps if Dustfinger had gone around lopping off heads or Reza had spent the entire time bound and naked, being routinely raped, Inkheart would have lived up to film viewers’ expectations.
This bare-bones DVD also includes Deleted Scenes, which were smartly removed from the main spectacle, and a Making Of feature that is too precious for it’s own good. I’m all for seeing the nuts and bolts of how a film is put together, but when you start adding the films visual effects and mood music to rehearsal shots and table read-throughs, you’re pretty much taking yourself way too seriously. I know this is based on a novel, terrific. But when your whole point becomes making a film that will make the novelist proud, then you’ve ceased trying to make the best film you can. I had forgotten about all the terrible reviews this film received last year and went into this DVD with an open mind. To paraphrase a line fro ma much better film, “I chose… poorly.” Use your money to buy My Name Is Bruce instead this week.
