Why So Blu?

Waiting For Forever (Blu-ray Review)

There comes a time when you are given an assignment that you don’t really want, but deep down you do want if even for pure aesthetic value.  Those “aesthetics” would be Rachel Bison.  Whether Waiting For Forever would be good or not is secondary.  There are those times where you just have to set aside your differences and take a couple of grenades for the team.  This be those times.  Reading and looking at the cover I am reminded of Benny & Joon in that it may be a  modern day re-telling of that story with different, but the same, eccentric characters with added  wit to spare.  Whether that’s the case or not, I won’t make you wait for forever to see if this Blu-ray is worth your time or not.  Come on in. 

Film

I can already feel myself fuming, because I am about to unleash some fury upon this review.  I’ll give you a mild run down first.  You ready?  Let’s do this.  Emma (Rachel Bilson) and Will (Tom Sturridge) are childhood friends who when Will’s parents passed away she kept a watchful eye on him and served as his rock to lean on.  Fast forward this puppy about twenty years or so and Emma is a successful actress and Will is a homeless bum who walks the earth and gets into adventures.  I’ll tell you this much, Will is NOT Caine from Kung-Fu.

Emma comes home to be with her mother (Blythe Danner) and ailing father (Richard Jenkins) during some off time from the set.  As if his spider senses started to to tingle at random, Will sets off to find Emma, so that he can finally tell her that he loves her.  You know, TWENTY YEARS later after not seeing her for TWENTY YEARS!  Um, yeah, that’s not creepy at all.

My one star for the film is set aside for Blythe Danner and my new-old favorite character actor of Hall Pass fame Richard Jenkins.  Their parts are rich and greatly written, in my opinion.  There really is some heartfelt moments involved with them.  I will also say that the first ten-fifteen minutes are pretty great, but it goes downhill FAST!

Will does not have a home as he is a man of the streets and earns a living as a juggler on the many street corners of America.  When Will finally tracks Emma down it gets sort of unbearable.  The dude is a freaking stalker!  Like, did the filmmakers and those involved not see the underlined theme beneath this film in the script?  Will is seriously messed up in the head, but because he reworks his lines into these whimsical stories the people around him end up liking him and give him a pass as if everything is alright.  No!  Following a woman from coast to coast, whether you’re a childhood friend or not, is considered stalking.  The kid has mental issues that he never got over when his parents died.  Yes, that’s a sad situation I am sure, but it is no excuse for tracking someone down to tell them that you love them for it.

Rachel Bilson is always great to look at, but even you can tell that she’s just there for a paycheck.  Too bad. All of these actors in Waiting For Forever should have known better before getting involved in the project.  Another thing that bothered me is that certain parts of the film were supposed be in Los Angeles, but the film was filmed completely in Utah.  Yeah.  Utah.

For further proof that this project does not work check out the awkward cover art.  Take a look at Emma’s body language.  Will is leaning in a dramatic, but mysterious way, and Emma is like gritting her teeth thinking “get away from me you freakshow.”  Painful.

Video 

Waiting For Forever is presented in 1080p 1.85:1 widescreen.  Colors are rich and some of the Los Angeles, I mean, Utah scenery look great.  Grain levels are consistent, and I did not detect softness.  Sharpness levels are pretty outstanding.  I hear this was shot on the RED camera.  I wouldn’t be surprised, because the image does leap off of the screen even for this low budget mis-adventure.  The image is pristine as I did not detect instance of dirt or speckle.  Waiting For Forever looks great on Blu-ray. 

Audio 

Waiting For Forever is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.  Waiting For Forever is a dialogue driven film, with added bits of melodramatic hipster music which carry through to the rear speakers.  Dialogue does sound great, and so do those few instances of actual dramatic sound effects mainly found within the first five minutes or so in a flashback sequence.  The sound quality on this Blu-ray perfectly compliments the video presentation.   

Special Features  

NoThInG.

Final Thoughts 

Waiting For Forever is a train wreck of a film that makes me ponder how on earth was this script sold?  It condones stalking by sticking in the obligatory reference of “if it’s for love, then it’s okay” scenario.  No, it is not okay.  Will needs medical attention and so do the people that made this film.  So much talent was wasted on this project that my mind wobbles.  Above average video and above average audio keep Waiting For Forever from the $5 bin (but not for long).  This Blu-ray contains no special features as evidenced by the rotten goose egg as a grade.  I don’t need to tell you guys reading that this is one to skip.  Not even Rachel Bilson’s hotness can save this tripe.

 

 

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