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Here on Earth
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
Leelee Sobieski is one of the best actresses of this new generation of stars. There are a lot of teen stars out there, but she is one of the few that I believe will certainly make it into a future of films. "Here On Earth" will be a film that she will definitely want to forget. It's a film that I want to forget watching, as well.
The film starts off on the wrong foot and never regains its balance. It opens with a rich prep-school kid named Kelly(Chris Klein) getting a new car and taking his friends for a ride. After stopping at a small-town diner, the film leads to a race that ends up destroying the diner, which belongs to Samantha(Sobieski)'s mother. Sam's boyfriend(Josh Hartnett) was also involved, and both have to help rebuild the diner.
The movie is weakly written, and I suppose had a better screenplay come along it would have made for a decent movie based on the central plot. Watching the final product though, seems like one of those romance novels that you see at the checkout counter at the local department store. Strangely, Sam takes a liking to this bratty new kid in town and her boyfriend Jasper becomes a second thought. A love triangle, yes. A boring one...well, that too. Eventually Samantha becomes sick, and the movie, which was up to this point passable melodrama, falls apart.
Sobieski, who not only looks but actually sounds like Helen Hunt, is the movie's one element that actually comes close to saving it. The movie should thank its lucky stars that it has her - without her, the film could have been a total loss. She is an engaging actress and proves that she can make something out of even this poorly written character. The two boys are both unsympathetic and irritating characters and the performances don't make much of their material.
Of all the teen material that I've seen and I've seen quite a lot of it - this is really about the worst of it. Slowly paced, dull and really lamely written, "Here On Earth" has Sobieski - and that's it, but she's definitely not enough to save this story.
The DVD
VIDEO: Fox's anamorphic transfer of "Here On Earth" has a number of positive aspects and a number of elements that detract from the picture quality. The film has some wonderful country scenery, but is filmed in such a soft nature that it takes away from the the enjoyment of the picture. While this seems intentional, it becomes annoying.
Again, sharpness is not too great. Detail similarly isn't too pleasing, and occasional scenes wander into looking not terribly well-defined. Some darker or dimly lit sequences seem a little overly dark. Colors are fine - warm and rich, with plenty of great colors in the outdoor scenes. Colors don't bleed and have no problems.
There are some additional problems on display. Slight amounts of pixelation appear once or twice, but aren't too distracting. A couple of minor marks and scratches on the print used are apparent, but nothing too major. This is generally a soft-looking picture with a few flaws. Some good scenery, but that's about all it has to offer.
SOUND: Sound for "Here On Earth" is similarly unsuccessful. The film relies on music to an almost silly amount, and when the music arrives in the scene, it's loud and takes too much of a focus. The film is pretty quiet...then the music blasts. Irritating, to say the least.
As a dialogue (and apparently, song) driven drama, "Here On Earth" doesn't make much (if any) use of the surrounds during the presentation. A few slight uses are all we get - the rest of the film comes all from the front. Dialogue is soft in volume, but generally is easily heard.
MENUS:: An animated clip leads into well-done menus, which are film-themed and have nice animation between menus.
EXTRAS: Trailer for "Here On Earth" as well as trailers for "Anna and The King", "Anywhere but Here", "The Beach", "Drive Me Crazy", "Ever After"(gotta love that trailer.), "Romeo and Juliet" and "Simply Irresistable". Also included are 5 TV spots, soundtrack promo and Jessica Simpson music video.
Final Thoughts: "Here On Earth" is a bore; weakly written and often slow. Fox's DVD is ok, but they are capable of better.
The film starts off on the wrong foot and never regains its balance. It opens with a rich prep-school kid named Kelly(Chris Klein) getting a new car and taking his friends for a ride. After stopping at a small-town diner, the film leads to a race that ends up destroying the diner, which belongs to Samantha(Sobieski)'s mother. Sam's boyfriend(Josh Hartnett) was also involved, and both have to help rebuild the diner.
The movie is weakly written, and I suppose had a better screenplay come along it would have made for a decent movie based on the central plot. Watching the final product though, seems like one of those romance novels that you see at the checkout counter at the local department store. Strangely, Sam takes a liking to this bratty new kid in town and her boyfriend Jasper becomes a second thought. A love triangle, yes. A boring one...well, that too. Eventually Samantha becomes sick, and the movie, which was up to this point passable melodrama, falls apart.
Sobieski, who not only looks but actually sounds like Helen Hunt, is the movie's one element that actually comes close to saving it. The movie should thank its lucky stars that it has her - without her, the film could have been a total loss. She is an engaging actress and proves that she can make something out of even this poorly written character. The two boys are both unsympathetic and irritating characters and the performances don't make much of their material.
Of all the teen material that I've seen and I've seen quite a lot of it - this is really about the worst of it. Slowly paced, dull and really lamely written, "Here On Earth" has Sobieski - and that's it, but she's definitely not enough to save this story.
The DVD
VIDEO: Fox's anamorphic transfer of "Here On Earth" has a number of positive aspects and a number of elements that detract from the picture quality. The film has some wonderful country scenery, but is filmed in such a soft nature that it takes away from the the enjoyment of the picture. While this seems intentional, it becomes annoying.
Again, sharpness is not too great. Detail similarly isn't too pleasing, and occasional scenes wander into looking not terribly well-defined. Some darker or dimly lit sequences seem a little overly dark. Colors are fine - warm and rich, with plenty of great colors in the outdoor scenes. Colors don't bleed and have no problems.
There are some additional problems on display. Slight amounts of pixelation appear once or twice, but aren't too distracting. A couple of minor marks and scratches on the print used are apparent, but nothing too major. This is generally a soft-looking picture with a few flaws. Some good scenery, but that's about all it has to offer.
SOUND: Sound for "Here On Earth" is similarly unsuccessful. The film relies on music to an almost silly amount, and when the music arrives in the scene, it's loud and takes too much of a focus. The film is pretty quiet...then the music blasts. Irritating, to say the least.
As a dialogue (and apparently, song) driven drama, "Here On Earth" doesn't make much (if any) use of the surrounds during the presentation. A few slight uses are all we get - the rest of the film comes all from the front. Dialogue is soft in volume, but generally is easily heard.
MENUS:: An animated clip leads into well-done menus, which are film-themed and have nice animation between menus.
EXTRAS: Trailer for "Here On Earth" as well as trailers for "Anna and The King", "Anywhere but Here", "The Beach", "Drive Me Crazy", "Ever After"(gotta love that trailer.), "Romeo and Juliet" and "Simply Irresistable". Also included are 5 TV spots, soundtrack promo and Jessica Simpson music video.
Final Thoughts: "Here On Earth" is a bore; weakly written and often slow. Fox's DVD is ok, but they are capable of better.
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