DVD Review: Son of Rambow

Movie Info:
Writer: Garth Jennings
Director: Garth Jennings
Cast: Neil Dudgeon, Bill Milner, Jessica Hynes, Anna Wing, Will Poulter, Tallulah Evans, Jules Sitruk, Sam Kubrick-Finney, James Clarke, Zofia Brooks
Rating:
Studio: Paramount

Release Info:
Theatrical Release: January 22, 2007 (Sundance)
DVD Release Date: August 26, 2008

I could very well have been one of the kids in the movie Son of Rambow…Except I’m not British, nor am I old enough to have been in any movies in 1983. Still, I was old enough in the mid to late 80s and I appreciate all of the 80s throwbacks, such as the VHS camcorder (I think I used one of those that looked quite similar during my Make-a-Wish trip to California in 1990). For being seven years later, the camcorder looks remarkably similar!

I’ve heard it said that those not born in the 80s cannot appreciate this film. That those who are young can appreciate it because they “get” the 80s. I’ve heard adults won’t like it or they will. I’ve heard kids won’t like it, or they will. The comments keep rolling in about Son of Rambow. While most of the early critics loved this movie, the general census has been the film is either awesome or stupid. I just happen to think its awesome. Not only that, but this movie is also a lot of fun.

From the very first time I saw the trailer for Son of Rambow I wanted to see this movie. There’s just something absolutely hilarious about two little boys trying to make the sequel to the first Rambo movie, First Blood. Add in the fact that one of these kids is from a freaky, over-religious family that doesn’t even allow him to watch television or listen to music (the boy, Will, becomes obsessed with First Blood) and you have a very interesting story.

Add in the part of the French exchange students, in particular, the “cool dude”, Didier, who all the English teens want to be like (and who wants to have a role in the movie, Son of Rambow), and you get a movie that is the perfect throwback to the 80s. I laughed as much at the writing as I did the various “80s” devices and references. I miss the 80s, but I definitely don’t miss the hair! Didier definitely reminded me of that.

Son of Rambow Plot
Hammer and Tongs, the team behind The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy is back with Son of Rambow. The movie was modeled after Garth Jennings childhood, when he used to play around with camcorders, making movies. The movie is set in the early 80s, around the time the film First Blood was released in English theaters.

Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner) lives in a humble dwelling with his mom, Mary (Jessica Hynes), his little sister, Jess (Tallulah Evans), and his Grandma (Anna Wing). The Proudfoots are Plymouth Baptists. They protest movies, especially the release of First Blood at the local theater. They don’t allow anyone in the religion to listen to music that isn’t church hymns and television is off limits. In fact, when Will is in school, he must leave class every time the class watches television or an educational video.

One day, when Will heads to school, his mom finds out he has taken his dead father’s watch. Angry at him, she tells him to return it to the place he found it when he returns home. When Will is out in the hall, he meets the worst kid in the school, Lee Carter (Will Poulter). Lee is put out into the hall because he lied about having a ball in class. He ends up throwing the ball and hitting Will in the head. As the boys are in the hall, they knock over the fish tank next to the door of Will’s classroom.

When they both end up at the principal’s/headmaster’s office, Lee tells Will that they’re both going to be tortured badly. He can save Will for a price. Will is so terrified, he gives Lee the watch. When Will spots Lee leaving school, and pretending to limp, he agrees to skip school and drive him home on Lee’s bike. What he finds is that Lee’s stepfather is rich, they have a huge, elegant house, and Lee lives there alone with his older brother, Lawrence (Ed Westwick - Gossip Girl) while their mother and stepfather live at their home in Spain.

When Lawrence comes home unexpectedly and Lee is re-taping a pirated copy of First Blood that he made at the theater, he makes Will hide in a boat in the basement with the recording equipment, while he does Lawrence’s bidding. Will has never seen a movie let alone anything violent like First Blood. He becomes entranced with the movie and leaves before Lee can return. On his way home, Will turns into the “Son of Rambow”. With his only creative outlet the doodles and drawings he makes in his notebook/journal, he begins to fantasize about a movie he’s making, the “Son of Rambow” movie.

Lee has decided that Will still owes him for the punishment (though he didn’t really get punished). He wants Will to help him make a movie, which quickly turns into Will’s idea for the “Son of Rambow” movie. In the process, the two become friends as Lee opens Will’s eyes up to a new world in which culture and creativity reign supreme. Meanwhile, the older kids at school get French exchange students that live with them. Most of them seem to be boring, but then he shows up.

He is Didier Revol (Jules Sitruk). With his “cool accent”, curly hawk “Rufio” hairdo (think 80’s punk meets emo), and metrosexual outfit complete with funky boots, the English kids are in awe of him. Every boy wants to be him. Every girl wants to be with him. You can’t get any cooler than Didier. Well, at least not in early 80s England. Didier grows bored easily by everything England has to offer, that is until he finds out about the making of “Son of Rambo”. He wants to be a part of it and be famous, but his ideas clash with Lee’s who is in it to win a young filmmaker’s competition.

Will has a lot of fun spending time with Lee. He also has fun making the movie. In fact, he’s never had more fun in his entire life. Of course, the church realizes that Will is changing. He’s lying to miss church/prayer services and he is turning away from the religion. Brother Joshua (Neil Dudgeon), who feels he has stepped into a fatherly role with Will, plans to do everything he can to make sure the Proudfoots remain true to their values. That includes shutting down the production of “Son of Rambow” or the Proudfoot family might just face rejection from their religion.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
Paramount went all out in its presentation of Son of Rambow. The 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen picture is stunning. With an exceptional color palette (bright, vivid, lifelike tones), excellent contrast and a crystal clear picture, there isn’t much to complain about visually. The bright picture just compliments the movie. I couldn’t have asked for better video quality in a standard release movie.

The audio is presented as an English 5.1 Dolby Digital surround track. Everything comes through clearly. I didn’t have to play with my volume. The track makes good use of the speakers. The sound comes through nicely with dialogue, action based sound effects and the excellent 80s soundtrack all sounding exceptionally dynamic. There is an additional Spanish 5.1 track and subtitles are available in English, Spanish and French.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
There are a few bonuses included on the Son of Rambow DVD. Things start off with an audio commentary. The commentary features Hammer and Tongs (Jennings and his production partner, Nick Goldsmith), Will Poulter and Bill Milner. While this isn’t the most cerebral, in depth commentary, it does seem to be quite fun to listen to, especially with the boys offering their two cents in relation to making the movie and the content of it.

Coming in at over 25 minutes in length is a featurette called “Boys Will Be Boys: The Making of Son of Rambow”. This is a fun and informative making of featurette. It nicely compliments the commentary with a little bit more information presented than what the commentary actually has to offer. Jennings talks about the ideas he had for creating this movie and even includes footage from the movie he made in the early 80s, “Aron, Part I”. The bonuses continue with the showing of a short film by the winner of a contest on the Son of Rambow website.

The bonuses conclude with trailers for Shine a Light, Drillbit Taylor, American Teen, The Love Guru and The Duchess.

Bonus Features:

Bottom Line:
Son of Rambow is one of the best films I’ve seen this year. If the excellent 80s soundtrack isn’t enough for you, the heartwarming story will be something your entire family can enjoy. This is recommended for pre-teens and teens. Younger kids may be prone to the few images of violence they see. They may also be prone to some bad language Lee uses. Otherwise, this movie is kid-friendly and worth watching. My whole family loved it and chances are yours will, too.

Overall Rating:

Technorati Tags: Son of Rambow, DVD Review, Paramount, First Blood, Plymouth Brethren, Garth Jennings, Bill Milner, Jessica Hynes, Anna Wing, Will Poulter, Sundance Film Festival

Written by Ashtyn Evans - Visit Website
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Ashtyn lives in her home state of Michigan with her life partner, Dominick, her 14 year old son, and her baby, the Shih-Tzu, Oliver Twist. Ashtyn is in college, going for a degree in Psychology. She plans to get her Ph.D and work as a therapist in the field of human sexuality. Ashtyn is an experienced and talented chef. She also excels at writing and has worked as a professional writer for the past five years. Ashtyn enjoys spending time with her son and four year old nephew, watching movies, listening to music, and writing works of fiction.

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