| Reviews & Columns |
|
Reviews DVD TV on DVD Blu-ray 4K UHD International DVDs In Theaters Reviews by Studio Video Games Features Collector Series DVDs Easter Egg Database Interviews DVD Talk Radio Feature Articles Columns Anime Talk DVD Savant Horror DVDs The M.O.D. Squad Art House HD Talk Silent DVD
|
 DVD Talk Forum |
|
|
| Resources |
|
DVD Price Search Customer Service #'s RCE Info Links |
|
Columns
  
 
|
|
|
Prince of Tides, The
Columbia/Tri-Star // R // November 6, 2001
List Price: $24.95 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Prince of Tides is all about family: the ties that bind, through thick and thin, good and bad, love and hate. All his life, Tom Wingo (Nick Nolte) has been a good "Southern boy," putting on a good show of jokes and banter rather than showing pain... and in the process, pushing away the people who matter most in his life. But when his beloved sister Savannah is hospitalized after a suicide attempt, Tom receives a call for help from her psychiatrist, Susan (Barbra Streisand). Helping Savannah means more than making the trip north to New York to visit her in the hospital; Tom must help Susan understand Savannah's troubled past in order to resolve the issues that prompted her suicide attempt. But Savannah's past is also Tom's past, and during the course of his sessions with Susan, Tom must confront and share his most painful, hidden memories.
The film is based on a novel of the same name by Pat Conroy, a fact that's evident in the structure of the movie. Throughout the story many plot details and minor characters are included but are given only a cursory treatment, suggesting that these elements were developed more fully in the book. I get the impression that Conroy, who co-wrote the screenplay as well as the original novel, couldn't bear to prune the story as much as was truly necessary to get to the heart of the story for the film adaptation. The result is that the bones of other parts of the story remain in the film, but without being fully fleshed-out.
As I was watching, I found it difficult to figure out exactly where The Prince of Tides was headed; in fact, it's only about three-quarters of the way through that it becomes apparent that the film is really about the relationship between Tom and Susan. In retrospect, it's possible to see that the movie does center on this element of the story, but there are many other possible directions that the film could have gone in, all of which seem plausible at the time. The opening sequence and several flashbacks focus on Tom and his sister and brother as children, which suggests that the film is going to be about their lives as children, as told in retrospect. But then the present-day scenes take on more importance, and it seems that the film is going to be about Tom's sister, her life, and the reasons for her suicide attempt. However, this, too, turns out to be a side element to the real story, which is about Tom and Susan.
As it turns out, the story is quite interesting despite the lack of initial focus. We start out knowing a few things about the characters, and as the film progresses, we are constantly learning new things that shed further insight into the characters and their relationships with each other. Because of this, there's really no part of the movie that stands still; it's constantly developing at a good pace that draws the viewer into the process of unfolding "the truth"... whatever the truth may turn out to be. At the same time, this process of discovery is changing Tom and Susan as well, and another element of the story's interest becomes finding out what choices they are going to make about their lives.
One of the most interesting parts of The Prince of Tides is the ending. Without giving anything away, I'll just observe that it's a complicated ending that leaves many aspects of the movie, and the characters, open for interpretation. Leaving the story that way, rather than sewing things up in a tidy Hollywood package, makes the film more memorable.
Video
Columbia has presented The Prince of Tides in an anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer that gets the job done but doesn't stand out from the crowd. On the plus side, the image is free from edge enhancement, and colors seem to be accurate and clear. On the minus side, there's a fair amount of noise in the image, and the occasional touch of graininess in the more dimly-lit scenes; the result is that some scenes, particularly outdoor shots, look good, while others are slightly blurry.
Audio
The Dolby 2.0 track is the only one supplied for the film, and it's highly variable in quality. The music-only sections of the film are excellent, with a full, clear sound. However, the soundtrack is considerably weaker in dialogue sections. At normal volume, the dialogue can be muddy-sounding and at times difficult to understand, and whenever voices are raised, the sound becomes harsh and slightly distorted.
Extras
There's not much by way of special features on this DVD. All we get are cast and crew biographies and a set of trailers: a teaser and trailer for The Prince of Tides, and trailers for The Mirror Has Two Faces and The Way We Were. While the back cover of the DVD promises "production notes," there are none on the disc, though the DVD does come with a two-page "booklet" that includes a few comments on the film along with the chapter list.
Final thoughts
While the DVD transfer isn't anything to write home about, it's adequate. The film itself is an interesting mixed bag; I think that it's trying to juggle a few too many plot and character elements, but those elements do make for an intriguing story. The Prince of Tides did keep me engaged, and I'd say that it's worth picking up if you're in the mood for a heavily character-driven drama.
The film is based on a novel of the same name by Pat Conroy, a fact that's evident in the structure of the movie. Throughout the story many plot details and minor characters are included but are given only a cursory treatment, suggesting that these elements were developed more fully in the book. I get the impression that Conroy, who co-wrote the screenplay as well as the original novel, couldn't bear to prune the story as much as was truly necessary to get to the heart of the story for the film adaptation. The result is that the bones of other parts of the story remain in the film, but without being fully fleshed-out.
As I was watching, I found it difficult to figure out exactly where The Prince of Tides was headed; in fact, it's only about three-quarters of the way through that it becomes apparent that the film is really about the relationship between Tom and Susan. In retrospect, it's possible to see that the movie does center on this element of the story, but there are many other possible directions that the film could have gone in, all of which seem plausible at the time. The opening sequence and several flashbacks focus on Tom and his sister and brother as children, which suggests that the film is going to be about their lives as children, as told in retrospect. But then the present-day scenes take on more importance, and it seems that the film is going to be about Tom's sister, her life, and the reasons for her suicide attempt. However, this, too, turns out to be a side element to the real story, which is about Tom and Susan.
As it turns out, the story is quite interesting despite the lack of initial focus. We start out knowing a few things about the characters, and as the film progresses, we are constantly learning new things that shed further insight into the characters and their relationships with each other. Because of this, there's really no part of the movie that stands still; it's constantly developing at a good pace that draws the viewer into the process of unfolding "the truth"... whatever the truth may turn out to be. At the same time, this process of discovery is changing Tom and Susan as well, and another element of the story's interest becomes finding out what choices they are going to make about their lives.
One of the most interesting parts of The Prince of Tides is the ending. Without giving anything away, I'll just observe that it's a complicated ending that leaves many aspects of the movie, and the characters, open for interpretation. Leaving the story that way, rather than sewing things up in a tidy Hollywood package, makes the film more memorable.
Video
Columbia has presented The Prince of Tides in an anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer that gets the job done but doesn't stand out from the crowd. On the plus side, the image is free from edge enhancement, and colors seem to be accurate and clear. On the minus side, there's a fair amount of noise in the image, and the occasional touch of graininess in the more dimly-lit scenes; the result is that some scenes, particularly outdoor shots, look good, while others are slightly blurry.
Audio
The Dolby 2.0 track is the only one supplied for the film, and it's highly variable in quality. The music-only sections of the film are excellent, with a full, clear sound. However, the soundtrack is considerably weaker in dialogue sections. At normal volume, the dialogue can be muddy-sounding and at times difficult to understand, and whenever voices are raised, the sound becomes harsh and slightly distorted.
Extras
There's not much by way of special features on this DVD. All we get are cast and crew biographies and a set of trailers: a teaser and trailer for The Prince of Tides, and trailers for The Mirror Has Two Faces and The Way We Were. While the back cover of the DVD promises "production notes," there are none on the disc, though the DVD does come with a two-page "booklet" that includes a few comments on the film along with the chapter list.
Final thoughts
While the DVD transfer isn't anything to write home about, it's adequate. The film itself is an interesting mixed bag; I think that it's trying to juggle a few too many plot and character elements, but those elements do make for an intriguing story. The Prince of Tides did keep me engaged, and I'd say that it's worth picking up if you're in the mood for a heavily character-driven drama.
|
| Popular Reviews |
| Sponsored Links |
|
|
| Sponsored Links |
|
|
| Release List | Reviews | Shop | Newsletter | Forum | DVD Giveaways | Blu-Ray | Advertise |
|
Copyright 2024 DVDTalk.com All Rights Reserved. Legal Info, Privacy Policy, Terms of Use,
Manage Preferences,
Your Privacy Choices 
| |||||||