Disobedience (2018)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	None
Rating
Year Of Production	2018
Running Time	109:18
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Sebastian Lelio
Studio Distributor	Filmation Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Rachel Weisz Rachel McAdams Alessandro Nivola
Case	Amaray-Opaque
RPI	$19.95	Music	Matthew Herbert

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.40:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.40:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    This recent theatrical film, from mid this year, is a UK production which made about $7 million at the global box office and to be fair was probably never going to be a huge box office success. It did get theatrical releases around the world including Australia, mostly I would guess in arthouse cinemas. It was filmed on location in various areas of London and directed by Chilean director Sebastian Lelio who won the best foreign language Oscar for his film, A Fantastic Woman. This film Disobedience, is based on a novel by Naomi Alderman, seemingly based on her own upbringing in an Orthodox Jewish community.

    The story involves a group of three friends who grew up together in a strict Orthodox Jewish community in London, Ronit (Rachel Weisz), daughter of one of the leading rabbis in the community, Dovid (Alessandro Nivola) a devout young man taken in by Ronit's father and Esti (Rachel McAdams) another young woman from the community. Before the start of the film, Ronit decided to leave the community and move to New York taking up life as a photographer and leaving the orthodox ways behind. She breaks ties with the community and with her two friends. Dovid and Esti decide to get married at the encouragement of Ronit's father, despite Esti really being attracted to the same sex and especially to Ronit. The film kicks off with the sudden death of Ronit's father, Rav Krushka, whilst speaking in the synagogue. Unknown to Dovid, who has now become a Rabbi, Esti lets Ronit know of her father's death and she returns to London to pay her respects. This rekindles the animosity of the community towards Ronit and the attraction to her of Esti. The film explores the intersection of sexuality, friendship, faith and freedom.

    This is a quality film with excellent performances from the three leads. It is a somewhat slow moving drama but with a quiet intensity which is compelling. The score by Matthew Herbert adds to the atmosphere of the film. It is gentle and orchestral. Audiences with an affinity for the subject matter will certainly enjoy this film and find themselves considering the challenges and issues faced by the characters.

    Recommended for arthouse cinema fans.

Video

    The feature is presented in a 2.40:1 aspect ratio (PAL) which is the original aspect ratio. It is 16x9 enhanced.

    It looks pretty good for a DVD although there is certainly a lack of sharpness throughout.

    The colour is restricted by the brown and grey colour scheme of the film, accentuating the oppressive nature of the community.

    Shadow detail was quite average even for DVD.

    There are subtitles available in English for the Hearing Impaired which are clear and easy to read.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is good but this is not a film to show off your home theatre with.

    This disc contains an English soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1 at 448 Kbps which is adequate for the job.

    Dialogue was generally clear throughout although the subtitles were certainly useful at times. The music required a broader soundstage at times but generally there was little surround or subwoofer use.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu includes music.

    This movie is available globally seemingly in the same format on DVD.

    The video quality is good.

    The audio quality is good.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall