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 Director
: Tom Shadyac
Starring
: Kevin Costner, Jacob Vargas, Jay Thomas, Joe Morton, Kathy
Bates, Linda Hunt, Lisa Banes, Matt Craven.
Picture
2.35:1 Anamorphic, DD 5.1 and DTS 5.1, Dual-Layer, Keep
Case
Running
Time : 105 mins
The
story:
When
someone you love dies... are they gone forever?
Dr.
Joe Darrow (Kevin Costner) is trying to come to terms with
the tragic death of his wife, but he can't let go of the
past. He's given a haunting message by a child and sees
images that remind him of his wife and becomes convinced
that she isn't dead after all. But his friends think it's
all just a spooky coincidence and all in his mind. But Joe
knows that if she's trying to reach him he must dig deep
to uncover the truth, however ghastly it may be..
The
summary:
Dragonfly
is yet another of those "Sixth Sense" cash-in's,
you know the ones - supernatural thrillers usually involving
someone that's dead. In this case it's Joe Darrow's wife
Susanna, who died in a coach accident but appears to be
trying to contact him from the other side. It's an interesting
concept and don't worry, it's not another "Ghost"
- it's more chilling and darker than that. Tom Shadyac does
well building up the suspense - it jumpy at times and the
subject matter of losing a close loved-one can lead to some
sad (if not tearful) moments. It's a very good story and
it does well to keep the twists in the plot to throw the
viewer off the scent. Perhaps the biggest disappointment
was the ending which really wasn't the dramatic final-twist
that the trailer and packaging sells it as. Okay, so I didn't
exactly guess it but it was more than a little cheesy.
Coster
has come under some criticism for some time over his choice
of acting roles. I'm not sure he's done himself any favours
here and I can understand people's concerns. He plays his
role in a one-dimensional manner and lacks the passion and
emotion that would have allowed the audience to sympathise
with his character (and warm to Costner). Luckily for us,
with a film like this it's more about the story than the
acting. Bruce Willis was never going to win an Oscar for
The Sixth Sense, it was the story that carried him through
the film and the same is true here. Of the other cast, Kathy
Bates plays her part well but she's really not in the film
enough for my liking and seems under-utilised throughout.
The lack of participation of the other characters does affect
the pace of the film, which can be a little slow at times.
All things considered, Dragonfly provides good entertainment
for an hour an a half. It didn't set the world alight on
it's theatre release, but it may just find it's feet in
the DVD market.
The
disc includes good DD 5.1 and DTS audio mixes that are effective
in adding to the eerie atmosphere. The picture looks very
pleasing with it's warm natural colours and sharpness and
there's a handful of extras including a directors commentary,
deleted scenes and featurette. Not the best package in the
world but enough to make this a consideration for your collection.
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