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Fausto 5.0
Fox // Unrated // June 1, 2004
List Price: $19.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie
The legend of "Faust" has been around since the middle ages. Authors such as Christopher Marlowe and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe adapted the familiar tale of a man who sells his soul to the devil and brought it to a wider audience. Over the years, there have been many interpretations of the story, coming from different cultures. The film Fausto 5.0 offers a very modern turn on the story from a group of Spanish filmmakers.
Dr. Fausto (Miguel Angel Sola) is a stern man who toils in the terminally ill ward of a hospital. When he travels to a distant (foreign?) city to attend a medical conference, he is confronted by Santos Vella (Eduard Fernandez). Vella claims to be a former patients of Fausto's, but Fausto has no recollection of the man. According to Vella's story, Fausto had removed his stomach and given him only a few months to live, yet Vella has survived for over 8 years. Vella, who appears to be a "jack of all trades", feels indebted to Fausto and promises that he can get the doctor anything that he needs to be happy. Fausto, confused by this stranger's odd behavior, turns down the offer, but soon strange things begin to happen to Fausto, some good (such as sexual favors being granted) and some bad. Are these events merely a coincidence, or is Vella making them happen?
Even for an artsy European film Fausto 5.0 is an odd movie. From the outset, we recognize that Dr. Fausto is clearly the "Doctor Faustus" character of legend, but from there, the screenplay by Fernando Leon de Aranoa becomes quite tricky. Vella is never clearly identified as Satan, nor are there any truly supernatural moments in the film. We don't know where the story is taking place, although the city where the conference is being held has a decidedly Middle Eastern look at times. The trio who directed this film, Alex Olle, Isidro Ortiz, and Carlos Padrisa, have given the movie a very dream-like feel and it's up to the viewer to decided what is real and what isn't. And while Vella is never fully explained, the character himself is an open book, as he clearly wants Fausto to loosen up and have a good time, but why is Fausto so tense? We never learn. Has working with the terminally ill made him glum? Is he simply a jerk? All that we know is that Fausto is a very serious man who has no time for tomfoolery. Fausto 5.0 shies away from taking any definite stance on the goings-on straight through until the finale, leaving the viewer to decide what has happened.
While the story is somewhat confusing, and at times, frustrating, there's no denying the fact that Fausto 5.0 has a fantastic visual style. The film is set in an indeterminate place and time, but it does appear to be the future. There is some incredible production design in the film, capped off by the hotel where the conference is being held: the entire high-rise building is sheathed in plastic. In most scenes, strange pictures are being projected onto the buildings of the skyline. Everywhere that Fausto goes, there are people wandering the streets holding pictures of missing persons. Many shots are punctuated with super-imposed pictures that appear to have been taken from a text on anatomy. The look of the film is somewhat similar to a low-tech Blade Runner and certainly adds to the dream-like quality of the movie. Fausto 5.0 is somewhat lightweight in the story department, but it is definitely a visual feast.
Video
Fausto 5.0 deals its way onto DVD courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, as part of their "Cinema Latino" line. The film has been letterboxed at 1.78:1 and the transfer is enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. Overall, this is a nice transfer, although it does show some of the limitations of films which come from Europe. The image is sharp, but there is some noticeable grain at times. Also, there are some overt defects from the source material, such as light scratches, but these are never intrusive. The film has a slightly washed-out look, and this takes advantage of the quality black levels on the image. There is some noticeable artifacting at times.
Audio
With some movies, you have to wait for a key action sequence to judge the quality of the audio. That is not the case with Fausto 5.0, as the Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track kicks into high gear during the opening credits and never looks back. The film has a very creative sound design and this track exemplifies it. The dialogue is clear and audible, but the highlight is the nearly constant use of surround sound, be that from city sounds, or bizarre sound effects. During a nightclub scene, the subwoofer effects come to life, rounding out this fine audio package. The DVD also contains a Dolby stereo dubbed English track, but it can't compare to the 5.1 track.
Extras
There are no special features whatsoever on this DVD.
Credit must go to the makers of Fausto 5.0 for taking a familiar story and trying to do something new with it. Yet, the story leaves much to be desired. Fortunately, the film has dazzling visuals which help to alleviate the tension caused by the mysterious script.
The legend of "Faust" has been around since the middle ages. Authors such as Christopher Marlowe and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe adapted the familiar tale of a man who sells his soul to the devil and brought it to a wider audience. Over the years, there have been many interpretations of the story, coming from different cultures. The film Fausto 5.0 offers a very modern turn on the story from a group of Spanish filmmakers.
Dr. Fausto (Miguel Angel Sola) is a stern man who toils in the terminally ill ward of a hospital. When he travels to a distant (foreign?) city to attend a medical conference, he is confronted by Santos Vella (Eduard Fernandez). Vella claims to be a former patients of Fausto's, but Fausto has no recollection of the man. According to Vella's story, Fausto had removed his stomach and given him only a few months to live, yet Vella has survived for over 8 years. Vella, who appears to be a "jack of all trades", feels indebted to Fausto and promises that he can get the doctor anything that he needs to be happy. Fausto, confused by this stranger's odd behavior, turns down the offer, but soon strange things begin to happen to Fausto, some good (such as sexual favors being granted) and some bad. Are these events merely a coincidence, or is Vella making them happen?
Even for an artsy European film Fausto 5.0 is an odd movie. From the outset, we recognize that Dr. Fausto is clearly the "Doctor Faustus" character of legend, but from there, the screenplay by Fernando Leon de Aranoa becomes quite tricky. Vella is never clearly identified as Satan, nor are there any truly supernatural moments in the film. We don't know where the story is taking place, although the city where the conference is being held has a decidedly Middle Eastern look at times. The trio who directed this film, Alex Olle, Isidro Ortiz, and Carlos Padrisa, have given the movie a very dream-like feel and it's up to the viewer to decided what is real and what isn't. And while Vella is never fully explained, the character himself is an open book, as he clearly wants Fausto to loosen up and have a good time, but why is Fausto so tense? We never learn. Has working with the terminally ill made him glum? Is he simply a jerk? All that we know is that Fausto is a very serious man who has no time for tomfoolery. Fausto 5.0 shies away from taking any definite stance on the goings-on straight through until the finale, leaving the viewer to decide what has happened.
While the story is somewhat confusing, and at times, frustrating, there's no denying the fact that Fausto 5.0 has a fantastic visual style. The film is set in an indeterminate place and time, but it does appear to be the future. There is some incredible production design in the film, capped off by the hotel where the conference is being held: the entire high-rise building is sheathed in plastic. In most scenes, strange pictures are being projected onto the buildings of the skyline. Everywhere that Fausto goes, there are people wandering the streets holding pictures of missing persons. Many shots are punctuated with super-imposed pictures that appear to have been taken from a text on anatomy. The look of the film is somewhat similar to a low-tech Blade Runner and certainly adds to the dream-like quality of the movie. Fausto 5.0 is somewhat lightweight in the story department, but it is definitely a visual feast.
Video
Fausto 5.0 deals its way onto DVD courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, as part of their "Cinema Latino" line. The film has been letterboxed at 1.78:1 and the transfer is enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. Overall, this is a nice transfer, although it does show some of the limitations of films which come from Europe. The image is sharp, but there is some noticeable grain at times. Also, there are some overt defects from the source material, such as light scratches, but these are never intrusive. The film has a slightly washed-out look, and this takes advantage of the quality black levels on the image. There is some noticeable artifacting at times.
Audio
With some movies, you have to wait for a key action sequence to judge the quality of the audio. That is not the case with Fausto 5.0, as the Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track kicks into high gear during the opening credits and never looks back. The film has a very creative sound design and this track exemplifies it. The dialogue is clear and audible, but the highlight is the nearly constant use of surround sound, be that from city sounds, or bizarre sound effects. During a nightclub scene, the subwoofer effects come to life, rounding out this fine audio package. The DVD also contains a Dolby stereo dubbed English track, but it can't compare to the 5.1 track.
Extras
There are no special features whatsoever on this DVD.
Credit must go to the makers of Fausto 5.0 for taking a familiar story and trying to do something new with it. Yet, the story leaves much to be desired. Fortunately, the film has dazzling visuals which help to alleviate the tension caused by the mysterious script.
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