A Long Way Down: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
In this touching comedy based on the acclaimed novel by Nick Hornby, A LONG WAY DOWN centers on four strangers (Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette, Aaron Paul and Imogen Poots) who decide to end it all on New Year’s Eve. However, when they meet by chance on a London rooftop, they agree to halt their plans for six weeks. Along the way, they discover that even accidental, dysfunctional families make life worth living.
Suicide is not a laughing matter at all but these four individuals make it so weird and awkward that they make it somewhat humorous. This film has its funny moments but it also has a lot of heart. It makes you look at life completely different and appreciate it a lot more. A film that can have an effect such as that deserves to be seen by many. It’s pretty much like getting punched in the face with a fist of emotion. Brosnan gives such an amazing performance that was filled with plenty of depth as well as a great character turn by the final act of the film. Collette’s character was the one that you really felt for more just because her circumstances and situation. Her performance I thought was one that took a bit more to build up than the others just because of her timid demeanor. Paul was great as he always is and it was fresh to see him in something a bit more grounded and different than Breaking Bad. His character’s story was a bit more shrouded in secrecy which made you want to find out more about him. Poots probably had the most troubled character to bring out and she did a great job at being “rough around the edges” and tough skinned. Ultimately the film worked so good because of the various personalities that are so different yet so much alike and the fact that in the end the went from a rag tag group of misfits to being the best of friends. They met during their “bottom of the barrel” moment but rose above it all (not gracefully) and learned to appreciate their lives even with all the inconsistencies it brings. This is a great film to check out with a group of phenomenal actors that you wouldn’t likely see together.
Special Features:
Deleted Scenes – A pretty good amount of scenes including a very nice alternate ending.
Outtakes – These are always fun to watch and this one doesn’t disappoint one bit.
Making Of “A Long Way Down”: Jumping In With Cast And Crew – Your typical BTS feature with small snippets with the cast talking a bit about their characters.
On Toppers Tower: A Behind The Scenes View – A brief look at how they created the rooftop scenes on soundstage and with a green screen.
Working With The Director – Cast and crew talk about their experience in working with Pascal Chaumeil.
Adapting The Story – The cast talk about how much they loved the source material of this story and what they felt about bringing the book to the screen.
AXS TV: A Look At “A Long Way Down” – This is the typical EPK that has a bit of the same things that the “Making Of” feature had but this is pretty brief.
