Directed by: Stephen Daldry
Starring: Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Thomas Horn, Viola Davis, Max von Sydow
Distributed by: Warner Home Video
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: March 27, 2012
Running Time: 129 minutes
Film: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3.5 out of 5 stars
The events of 9/11 is a very strong subject matter for film. Being a New Yorker myself, it is a little hard to stomach it, even after over 10 years. This film does a great job of focusing on the events of 9/11, without being too much in your face. “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” packs a really strong performances from Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock. Thomas Horn definitely has a bright future in his cards for sure. Max von Sydow ,who won an Oscar for his role, didn’t even speak a word in this film and was phenomenal. You will find yourself trying to hold back your emotions but it is simply not possible. I was really blown away by this film. It is simply fantastic and really delivers constantly throughout the entire film.
The story follows eleven year-old Oskar Schell (Horn), who tries to deal with the events of 9/11 and the lose of his father a year after the events of World Trade Center. He finds a key belonging to his father and sets off on a mission to solve the mystery of what lock the key will open. As Oskar begins to uncover links to the father, he meets The Renter aka Max von Sydow who helps him in his search through the five New York boroughs.
The Blu-ray presentation is very impressive with its 1080p transfer. It looks really sharp and really pulls you into New York during one of its hardest times. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track works so amazing with the films score and works so well with Max von Sydow scenes, even without dialogue. This release includes the Blu-ray, as well as a DVD copy of the fil. If you are a fan of digital copies, this release comes with my new favorite feature UltraViolet digital streaming copy.
The special features are impressive though they are missing an commentary tracks from cast/crew. there is a 20 minute behind the scenes feature called “Making Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” which follows cast/crew on the film’s production. “Finding Oskar” talks about the casting process for Thomas Horn. “Ten Years Later” focuses on a man named Daniel McGinley. He died in the towers during 9/11 but his legacy lives in this feature, very moving. The best feature on the Blu-ray is “Max von Sydow: Dialogues with The Renter”, which runs about 45 minutes. Especially since von Sydow’s performances is so amazing, this is great insight to his work on the film.
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Synopsis: Adapted from the acclaimed bestseller by Jonathan Safran Foer, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” is a story that unfolds from inside the young mind of Oskar Schell, an inventive eleven year-old New Yorker whose discovery of a key in his deceased father’s belongings sets him off on an urgent search across the city for the lock it will open. A year after his father died in the World Trade Center on what Oskar calls “The Worst Day,” he is determined to keep his vital connection to the man who playfully cajoled him into confronting his wildest fears. Now, as Oskar crosses the five New York boroughs in quest of the missing lock — encountering an eclectic assortment of people who are each survivors in their own way — he begins to uncover unseen links to the father he misses, to the mother who seems so far away from him and to the whole noisy, dangerous, discombobulating world around him.
