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What Lies Beneath
Special Edition
review by Zach B.
Rated PG-13
Studio: Dreamworks
Running Time: 113 minutes
Starring Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer
Screenplay by Clark Gregg
Story by Sarah Kernochan and Clark Gregg
Directed by Robert Zemeckis
Retail Price: $26.99
Features: Theatrical Trailer, Production Notes, Cast
and Crew Bios, Commentary with Robert Zemeckis, Steve
Starkey and Jack Rapke, Construction A Thriller
Featurette
Specs: 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Dolby Digital
5.1, DTS 5.1, English 2.0 Dolby Digital, English Subtitles,
Chapter Search (24 Chapters)
Raking in 155 million during its summer release, "What
Lies Beneath" was one of the most successful films of the
year 2000. There's no denying what drew people to this film
- an intriguing plot, a great director and two giant
Hollywood stars. I expected this film to do well, but I
never imagined it'd rake in 155 million... I figured more of
the 70-80 million range. Critics praised the film and it
basically seemed like some fun, summer release.
I'll have to be honest, I really didn't have an interest
in seeing the film. I heard a little about it before hand,
but it didn't sound that appealing. I'll admit my interest
did perk up when I saw the trailer with "Gladiator", but a
minute into the trailer I again had no interest. Why? Like
most trailers these days, it gave too much of the film away.
It started out mysterious (you can see for yourself on the
DVD), but soon all these plot points and whatnot kept coming
out and by the time it was finished, I turned to my friend
and said "I saw the whole movie".
Claire and Norman Spencer (Pfieffer and Ford) seem like
your everyday, happy couple. Their relationship seems to be
pretty bold, and they have a teenage daughter, who, at the
start of the film, heads off to college. Now that the two
have some free time for one another, they seem quite
relaxed. But tension rises when Claire starts to hear and
see strange things. To top it off, no one really believes
her. Claire's paranoia becomes more and more intense, but
things get topped off when Norman admits his secret (I won't
give it away) and it's all downhill from there.
And so it came time for me to actually "see" this movie
again... but this time in full. I have to say, "What Lies
Beneath" is not what I expected and I can see why people
liked it so much. It starts a little slow, but by the first
half hour things start to pick up. Robert Zemeckis, who I
consider to be a big-time and one of the best directors
working today directed this film, and what he does here is
pretty good. Yes, it's a tiny bit schmaltzy and a lot of
what he does in this film is more like paying homage to some
other great directors (Hitchcock comes to mind). Clark
Gregg's script is well written. Dialogue is not really dull
and the way he weaves the story is very good. Some may think
some of what he does is a bit predictable (oh no... a noise!
It's a stranger! No, wait, it's the dog) and I agree, but I
like how there is also some sense of mystery to everything,
and we wonder who can be trusted and who really can't. I was
a bit surprised to learn that Clark Gregg is actually
featured in David Mamet's recent film "State and Main" as
local politician Doug Mackenzie (just a fun piece of trivia
I wanted to share). The acting is first rate, with top draw
stars Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer. Pfeiffer really
captures Claire as a woman who has to face certain paranoia
and what's going on in her life, while Ford has a deep
secret and must help his wife through what's going on.
Again, moviegoers loved this movie, and I don't blame
them. It's a crowd pleasing thriller with two big actors, a
great director and a well put together story. While I'm not
really so much into thrillers, I was pretty surprised how
much I ended up liking the movie when I actually sat down to
watch it (shouldn't judge a book by its cover... eh?)
Dreamworks has also created a nice DVD for "What Lies
Beneath", so read on...
Again, Dreamworks delivers a spiffy transfer. The tone
and beautiful shots are captured in this 2.35:1 anamorphic
transfer. Colors are solid and fleshtones looks great as
well as very accurate. Detail level is some of the strongest
I've seen on DVD and shadow as well as black levels are very
good. However, I noticed some slight artifacting here and
there and some shimmering too. Also, edge enhancement is
noticeable in some key scenes. Plus there is the occasional
scratch and smudge. No doubt though, this is a stellar
transfer.
Dreamworks has once again included DTS and Dolby Digital
tracks in 5.1, and each is simply fantastic. I knew this
would be a great movie for sound, and I was not
disappointed. Each track brings much tension and constructs
a lot of dynamic range throughout the film. I watched the
movie in DTS and then compared it with some key scenes in
Dolby Digital. Each track is superb, but I prefer the DTS
because I found it to me a bit more jolty. Each track also
makes great use of the .1 LFE. Even the smallest sounds make
this track great, such as in the two minute point where
there is a zap from an electrical socket and a few seconds
later where curtains are opened. The music makes great use
of all the channels. I can truly say this is one of the best
audio presentations I have heard in a long time, and I'm
sure all of you will agree with me once you hear the tracks.
An English 2.0 Dolby Surround track is also included.
Fledged as a "special edition", "What Lies Beneath" isn't
really a full blown special edition as we've come to see
with
Chicken
Run and
The
Road To El Dorado... still, it has a featurette and
commentary, and I am guessing Dreamworks is calling it a
"special edition" due to how big a hit it was over the
summer... but what's included is very nice.
A Commentary with Robert Zemeckis, Producer Jack Rapke
and Producer Steve Starkey is included. While the menu
says "Directors Commentary" (at least on the screener), the
two producers join Zemeckis for this commentary. This is a
pretty informative track. Everyone gets their say in it, and
there's not much silent. A lot of production techniques are
discussed and again, I found all of this pretty interesting,
yet at times some comments were just plain boring and
obvious (I'm pretty sure the viewer can get a grip of some
things without having them being pointed out). I have to say
sometimes the track is a little annoying to listen to... in
the way that it's recorded. Sometimes it sounds like the
speakers are talking through a paper towel roll to give a
hollow effect, and sometimes the audio from the film
overlaps. There is also some annoying distortion. No matter
though... still a nice track as I was very glad to hear from
all these people. Very good input.
A fifteen minute Featurette entitled
Constructing A Thriller is included. It's pretty
promotional, which has behind the scenes info, cast
interviews and whatnot. It also has a nice little section on
Zemeckis himself, with a clip from his great student film,
"A Field Of Honor" (which I saw in full when I visted USC
last summer). I found this to be a pretty good watch.
Rounding off the bonus features is the spoileriffic
Theatrical Trailer in anamorphic widescreen and Dolby
Digital 5.1, plus some detailed Production Notes and
Cast and Crew Bios.
I'm sure some of you will get a kick out of this thriller
and I'm sure some of you may be planning to buy it (the last
time I mentioned it... audiences loved this movie). Still,
if you enjoyed this film or like a decent thriller in
general, be sure to pick up "What Lies Beneath". Decent
features, nice video and some spectacular sound.
 (3.5/5, NOT included in
final score)
 (4.5/5)
(4.5/5)
 (2.5/5)
(3.5/5, NOT an average)
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