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Released by: Paramount
Relased on: 8/26/2007
Director: Garth Jennings
Cast: Bill Milner, Will Poulter, Jules Sitruk
Year: 2008
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The Movie:
Any one who grew up in the eighties and idolized the action heroes of that decade will relate to Garth Jennings' Son Of Rambow almost immediately. When the film begins, a boy named William Proudfoot (Bill Milner) comes across a pirated copy of Rambo: First Blood. He watches the film in amazement and is so taken with it that he decides to round up a few of his friends and the local school bully, Lee Carter (Will Poulter), and make their own action film.
When the general populace of the school finds out what William and Lee are up to, they all want in on it and soon enough even the French exchange student Didier (Jules Sitruk) has got a part to play in the kids' movie.
Anyone who made their own camcorder epics when the technology first became available to the masses will probably see a small part of their own childhood here. As a kid, there was never any question about doing your own stunts or coming up with your own effects - that was simply part of the process and a large reason for making your own movies in the first place. Jennings' film, which is obviously at least partially autobiographical (check out the extras for more on that) puts that strange and illogical combination of childhood naivety and blatant stupidity and recklessness right up front in the film and that's where many of the laughs stem from.
Underneath the surface, which is primarily made up of a bunch of boys running around playing soldier and doing ridiculous things for the camera, there's an interesting subtext. It's obvious that William delves so deeply into his imagination and throws so much of himself into making this epic movie because his home life isn't so hot. Again, if you went through a rough spot in your own childhood, say your parents split up or whatever, you may be able to better relate to William's plight and subsequent escapism.
First and foremost, however, this is a comedy film and on that level the film really is a success. It's hard not to share in the boys' enthusiasm as they edge closer and closer to finishing their ridiculous film. For a film filled with child actors the picture is surprisingly not in the least bit obnoxious and it never feels forced - you get the impression that the kids making the movie really are doing what they want to be doing. They take it all quite seriously, drawing up storyboards and designing props and weapons in that weird kid way that is endlessly entertaining and imaginative. While it might sound like the film is geared towards a younger audience - and in many ways that is true - there are a lot of nods to the era in which the film is placed and the mindset that much of the world was in at the time meaning that adult viewers will assuredly get more out of the film than kids will. The end result is a refreshingly original and enthusiastically funny film that can be enjoyed by pretty much anyone with a sense of humor and an appreciation for action films.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Son Of Rambow looks nice in this 2.35.1 anamorphic progressive scan transfer. This is a great, colorful, and very detailed transfer that avoids any smeary edge enhancement and presents a nice, film-like image. There aren't any problems with mpeg compression artifacts at all and color reproduction looks dead on as do skin tones. Black levels stay deep and strong without ever getting murky and there aren't any problems with print damage to report on. There's a tiny bit of aliasing here and there but aside from that, the movie looks great.
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound tracks are available in English and Spanish with optional subtitles provided in English, French and Spanish. No complaints here, the film sounds great. Dialogue is clean and clear and there aren't any problems with hiss or distortion to complain about at all. The score and the sound effects are all properly balanced in the mix. Bass response is nice and really, the audio is just fine here.
First up is a commentary track with director Garth Jennings, producer Nick Goldsmith, and cast members Bill Milner and Will Poulter. The same sense of humor that makes the feature so much fun runs rampant in this track. Garth starts by talking about how they actually got Sylvester Stallone's blessing for this picture before the group delves head first into arguing about what was shot when, noting that on the first day they taught the two kids to smoke and on the second day they taught them to shoplift! The track is all over the place, it isn't at all scene specific, instead it's the four participants just discussing the film as they see fit. It's very casual and informal (at one point one of the kids has a coughing fit and blames it on the smoking) but it's also a lot of fun.
From there, check out Boys Will Be Boys: The Making Of Son Of Rambow (26:01). Here we get a look at what it was like on set, some of the stunt work, and interviews with the director and the cast members of the film. It's hard not to share their enthusiasm for the project as they all seem to have had an absolute blast making it.
Rounding out the supplements are a short film entitled Aron (10:46, directed by a young Garth Jennings in 1986 and the basis for the feature), the Son Of Rambow Website Winner short film (a 5:03 piece in which some lunatic kids stop military bad guys in a manner similar to that seen in the feature), previews for a few other Paramount releases, static menus and chapter selection.
The Final Word:
A sincerely funny look at how kids' imaginations can run rampant when infused with the right kind of inspiration. Anyone who grew up in the eighties and wanted to be an action hero ought to really get a kick out of Son Of Rambow. It's a genuinely enjoyable and quirky picture and it's nice to see Paramount give it such a solid DVD debut.