Irrational Man (DVD): Review

Film

Abe (Joaquin Phoenix – Her), a tormented philosophy professor starts teaching at a new university. He has no zest for life, and begins a complicated relationship with one of his students, Jill (Emma Stone – Magic in the Moonlight). Soon a chance encounter propels Abe to commit an existential act, and the debate of right and wrong ensues, as he and Jill wrestle with their relationship, emotions and morals.

Written and directed by Woody Allen (Blue Jasmine), Irrational Man is saturated with enough layers of symbolism, and promotes a great amount of debate. It is a lesson in philosophical thinking, from the character debates and actions, to the construction so the scenes, the camera moves that languish on a character and reach in to their soul. The cinematography of a Woody Allen film is as much a character as the others in the film, providing a voyeuristic insight for the viewer.

Top notch acting, which is to be expected of such a cast. From Abe, who becomes tiresome with his eternal moping, and the eventual elevation of his inner-energy as he discovers his new purpose, to Jill with her free spirit and hint of hippie student. The two main characters have a connection that varies throughout the film, charting each individuals point in their life as they fight the inner turmoil that perturbs them.

Irrational Man is not a film to sit back and just watch. It promotes thought, it questions, and challenges the viewer to do the same. Woody Allen films are known for long dramatic discussions between characters, and this is no exception, putting the weight of story on character as apposed to effects, as many others do. There are no major plot twists, as there is little to try predict in the film. We are voyeurs watching the lives of others, in secret.

Sit back and enjoy with those you are close to, as Irrational Man is a journey, of questions, emotion and life, hinting at it’s great moments and tragedies, and a chance to enjoy some entertainment along the way, as a person strives towards their self actualisation. Good on all fronts of acting, directing and story.

Disc

Overall, the disc is very basic, with just the main feature and a few trailers. Technically, the disc is of good quality.

Irrational Man is available now, to purchase on disc, in South Africa.

Video

Video is encoded at a high average bitrate. There is no bleed between colours. Blacks are deep in the darker scenes, maintaining their detail. There are no visible artefacts on screen.

Viewers with the relevant hardware or software can scale up to a larger or higher resolution screen, should they wish.

Audio

Audio is presented in a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, with a 2.0 downmix. These are encoded a high average bitrate.

Given the genre of the film, there is not extensive use of the surround channels, however, some scenes do use these to great effect to expand the on-screen action and further draw the viewer in to the story.

Dialogue is clear via the centre channel.

Navigation

Navigation is a simple menu with options to play the main feature, for chapter selection (leading to sub-menus with motion thumbnails and chapter numbers, with no description), and an audio menu to select between 5.1 or 2.0 audio.

Bonus Features

There are no bonus features, apart from trailers for The Keeping Room, Truth, and Modder En Bloed at the beginning of the disc. These can be fast forwarded, but lack the facility to skip to the next trailer.

By Andrew Germishuys

Founder of SAMDB | Actor | Armourer | Tech Enthusiast With over two decades in the film industry, I'm a seasoned actor and skilled armourer. I hold numerous certifications in acting and filmmaking, complemented by degrees and diplomas in IT and technology, giving me a unique blend of creative and technical expertise. When I'm not on set or in the workshop, you'll find me immersed in the world of gaming and VR, fuelling my passion for cutting-edge technology. Connect with me: X / Twitter Facebook Instagram Mastodon Threads Explore my work on SAMDB IMDb

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