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The Movie: Originally intended to be a mega-budgeted historical epic under the direction of Ron Howard (who still has producer credit, along with spiky-haired partner, Brian Grazer), "The Alamo" fell apart when the studio did not want a star-driven (originally Russell Crowe was set to star) film with profit participation issues and also, wanted a film that was not R-rated (despite the fact that a PG-13 historical epic would likely have less appeal to the target audience and make the film suffer, but I digress.) The final film, done with John Lee Hancock ("The Rookie", which I like, despite it being overlong) was delayed and finally released earlier this year, making only about a quarter of its nearly $100m budget. While not a complete disaster, "The Alamo" remains a largely forgettable affair, partially due to a lackluster retelling of the story and partially due to a cast that often appears uninterested. Early in the film, Davy Crockett (Billy Bob Thornton) has found that his time in Congress is over, and he heads to Texas to join the militia. The film also establishes a few other figures: Gen. Sam Houston (Dennis Quaid), Col. William Travis (Patrick Wilson), and James Bowie (Jason Patric). After about a half hour of ineffective character development, the siege at the Alamo finally begins. Col. William Travis and Crockett attempt to helm the defense of the Alamo along with Bowie, while Houston is off elsewhere. While the three and their small group of soldiers are able to hold off the Mexican army outside, it's only a matter of time before they storm the gates and attack those left inside. After the Alamo battle has ended, the remaining Mexican army keep progressing towards a fight with Houston and his men. Appeared to have been edited in a blender during its delay from the original Christmas date, the picture becomes dull with impressive speed. The characters aren't interesting, aside from Thornton's compelling, rather subdued performance as Crockett. Quaid's drunken Houston is probably the actor's worst effort in ages and Patric makes little impression as the ill Bowie. Once the battles begin, they are visually uninteresting and not particularly well-choreographed, but the effective and intense sound design makes up for some of these concerns. Again, this is also a PG-13 film and these are PG-13 battles. The majority of the sequences simply have the two sides lobbing a few cannonballs at each other and then firing and then stopping for a while. With characters that are largely one-dimensional, it's a long, slow standoff that - like the rest of the movie - has surprisingly lackluster intensity. To find some positive aside from Thornton's very good performance, at least the movie looks good. Dean Semler's cinematography catches some strong images on occasion and production/costume design is first-rate. While I can't see how this cost nearly $100m, the film looks moderately good. Still, "The Alamo" doesn't work and, aside from Thornton's performance, is almost entirely unmemorable. Although not a disaster, "The Alamo" still is a mess - one that started with the studio's decision to make an overbudgeted historical epic that caused a PG-13 restriction instead of a mid-budget effort that could have gone with an R. The latter probably would still have had difficulty making its money back, but I'm guessing it would have been better than this. Oddly, despite reports of heavy recutting from a longer original length, the DVD only offers a few minutes of deleted footage. The DVD VIDEO: "The Alamo" is presented by Touchstone in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The picture looked good, but inconsistent - some noticable flaws took the general impression of the transfer down a few notches. Sharpness and detail were often perfectly fine, as images appeared crisp and well-defined, although definition was never too impressive. A couple of shots here-and-there appeared somewhat soft, as well. The main issue was edge enhancement. While not always present, mild edge enhancement was noticable and distracting in several scenes. Pixelation and other flaws, were not apparent, though. Colors remained bright and vivid, with strong saturation, such as the scene at the Alamo with the rich red sunset. SOUND: The film is presented here in Dolby Digital 5.1. The film's audio fares better than the video, as the battle sequences were livened up by excellent use of the surrounds. In fact, those who can enable a rear back surround should do so, as it is effective in opening out the film's battle sequences. Gunfire, cannon hits, voices and other sound effects were heard all around during these scenes, creating a very immersive experience. Audio quality was excellent, as dialogue remained clean and clear, while effects seemed well-recorded and powerful. EXTRAS: The main supplement is an audio commentary from historians Alan Huffines and Stephen Hardin, who served as consultants on the movie. The commentary is involving and informative, as the two spend the movie discussing the realities behind the people portrayed in the movie, and they also address some of the issues that have been leveled against the accuracy of the picture. Both also share some tidbits about the production of the film, as well. Overall, a very good track, as both display a pleasant amount of enthusiasm in their discussion of both the film and the history behind it. Aside from the commentary, we get three brief featurettes: "The Making of the Alamo", "Walking in the Footsteps of Heroes" and "Deep In the Heart of Texas", as well as deleted scenes (w/optional commentary from the director.) Final Thoughts: "The Alamo"'s real bright spot is Thornton's performance - aside from that, the film never builds characters sufficently and, as a result, the drama or action never become entirely compelling. Disney/Touchstone's DVD edition provides satisfactory video quality, very good audio and a few enjoyable supplements. Maybe a rental for those interested. 
Film Grade The Film ** DVD Grades Video 86/B Audio: 92/A Extras: 82/B |