Penelope (DVD)

Introduction

There is a curious irony to this film, a story about a girl sheltered from the outside world because of her physical appearance. This film was made in 2006, but didn't see the inside of theatres until the winter just gone. That's the better part of two years locked away in studio vaults, and leaves you wondering just what it was about Mark Palansky's directorial debut and Reese Witherspoon's first time as a producer (apparently there's no such word as 'productorial') that warranted the audience being protected for so long. Judging by the evidence on this disc, not a lot. Who'd be a studio exec, eh?



The blueblood Wilhern family is cursed, and has been for over a hundred years. A love affair that ended tragically led to a vengeful witch decreeing that the first daughter born to that family will have the countenance of a pig until the day that one of her own kind can accept her. Generations of boy children were born without problem, until the fateful day that Penelope was born, resulting in a media circus. Her mother, protective of her child, faked the death of the baby and locked Penelope away, to raise her safe and sound from prying eyes. It didn't stop one investigative reporter named Lemon from sneaking into the house, and he lost an eye for the privilege. But when Penelope reached eighteen, it was time to find her a suitor, and arrange that marriage that will break the curse. So a long line of bluebloods were ushered in, and then pursued on the way out to get them to sign a non-disclosure contract. Seven years passed and Penelope remained unwed and cursed, until the day that Edward Vanderman made it to the press before he could be coerced into signing on the dotted line and sealing his lips. The Wilherns were under pressure now, and finding a match for their benighted daughter became imperative. Yet the only person who believed Edward was the reporter Lemon, who out of sheer doggedness had remained with the story. Together they concocted a plan to find out the hideous truth about Penelope, and all they needed was a blueblood patsy. Stopping off in a gambling den, Lemon found a hard on his luck toff named Max Campion, someone who could be persuaded to snap a few secret photos in exchange for his next poker stake. But the day Max Campion met Penelope Wilhern, was the day that everything changed…

Picture

A recent film offering a perfect print, along with ten years of DVD encodes to perfect the art means that this 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer is as good as it gets on DVD. There is that tiny bit of aliasing that indicates the limits of the technology, so if you want better than this, you'll have to go Blu-ray.

As befitting a modern day fairytale, it's a film that has seen a fair bit of post-production to give it a rich and lush palette, with plenty of warm colours befitting an attractive fantasy feel, while the odd gloomy and scary moment is equally as effective. The porcine prosthetic looks astounding and works perfectly well in carrying the story. Visually and aurally the film seems like a collision between London and New York, with a contrast between twee Victorian streets and modern skyscrapers.

Sound

You have a choice between DD 5.1 English and a DD 2.0 audio descriptive track for the visually impaired, although the only subtitle track is an English one. The dialogue is clear throughout and the music is uniformly excellent, with some choice songs selected for the soundtrack, while the orchestral theme strikes just the right note of whimsy.

That geographic schizophrenia strikes again with a combination of American and English accents in the cast. The problem is that the film was filmed on location here in England with a predominantly local cast, so some gruesome American accents abound. Nick Frost and Burn Gorman are particularly excruciating, while Ronni Ancona, well, I never really appreciated her talents for mimicry so it's no surprise that I grimace at her accent here. All I can say is thank God that Lenny Henry maintains his brummie twang, True Identity was more than enough of that. It's really just an issue with the supporting cast, and the main cast of English turned American sound just fine.

Extras

The disc autoplays with an advert for chocolate, it's probably meant to replicate the cinema experience but it's just annoying. People buy DVDs to avoid the adverts; otherwise they'd just watch them on broadcast TV. Fortunately it's skippable.

On the disc you'll find a trailer, a 5-minute behind the scenes featurette offering some EPK frivolity, a 2 minute photo gallery slideshow, and some ROM content offering a screensaver, wallpapers and a printout, cut-out and keep Penelope mask.

Conclusion

Penelope is a fairy-tale, with a nice bit of romance thrown in, and with an admirable message about self-acceptance at its core. It's hardly the most original of messages, nor the most profound, but when it's told in such an engaging way as in this film, you can forgive the narrative redundancy. Penelope is simple, harmless fun for all the family, a kid's film that avoids the witticisms and post-modern winks at the audience that currently typify the genre, in order to tell a warm and heartfelt story. In doing so, it manages to appeal to adults as well, with a nice balance of romance and comedy.

If there is a downside to it, it is a tad predictable with the film following a well-worn path laid by previous similar stories. The characters are all cookie cutter and none too memorable outside the main cast. Poor Edward Vanderman is a stock villain whose black hearted ways keep the story ticking over, but whose snivelling twit of a scoundrel doesn't really impact. More impressive was the paparazzi with the heart of gold Lemon, who quickly gains a sense of compassion when confronted with the truth of who Penelope really is. The leads are excellent, with Christina Ricci wonderful as the sheltered and unworldly Penelope, looking surprising cute with a prosthetic schnozzle, and she plays off well against James McAvoy who appears to be channelling Pete Doherty, but in a good way. Richard E. Grant is practically invisible as Penelope's father, but that's only because his wife Jessica, played to overbearing perfection by Catherine O'Hara, drowns him out. Otherwise it turns into one of those typical foreign films made in the UK, which features a stream of cameos from establishment players and members of current pop culture. It's a chance to play spot the performer for British audiences, although most of them will be lost to audiences on the other side of the pond. Yes, that is Russell Brand.



It would be nitpicking to point out the contradiction in having a film about self-respect and acceptance concluding with the lifting of the curse, but that really isn't the point. It's about not being driven by the opinion of others, and in that respect the true villain of the piece is the overbearing and overprotective mother. It all works out in the end though, and like all good fairy tales ends with a suitably happily ever after. Penelope is a simple story, but it's brought to life with passion and charm and I found it wonderfully heart-warming and entertaining. It's one for all the family and one of those increasingly rare films that can be enjoyed as such. Very much recommended.