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Matthew (Michael Pitt) is a nineteen-year-old American student from San Diego who has come to Paris for a one-year immersion in the French experience. Bertolucci dresses him in jacket and pants that are too small and a bit unsophisticated to create the impression of innocence and inexperience. A film devotee, Matthew attends showings of classic and obscure films at the Cinematheque where, during a demonstration protesting the dismissal of Langlois, he meets fraternal twins Isabelle (Eva Green) and Theo (Louis Garrel). Perhaps due to either perceiving a kindred spirit or someone who could be manipulated, the twin's invite Matthew to their parents' flat for dinner. The father (Robin Renucci) is a notable French poet who may no longer be very productive; the mother (Anna Chancellor) is English, which explains the twins' facility with the language.

The three young adults' common interest in film and their mutual ability to spout movie trivia becomes a lynchpin for a potential relationship. The twin's parents are going away for an extended trip and the twins invite Matthew to move from his cheap hotel to stay with them in their parent's third floor flat. The apartment appears to be decadence left to decay. Elaborate carvings on the walls are painted in a dull, aging, olive drab, perhaps symbolizing the father's loss of status as one who seems to be resting on his laurels. The rooms are cluttered and untidy; left to the care of three irresponsible young adults, it will get worse. The parents leave their children with funds for food and other needs and depart in their Citroen. The fun and games begin.

It soon becomes clear that Isabelle and Theo torture one another with games that border on the sadistic. When one cannot respond to a film trivia challenge, the penalty is humiliating and usually sexual. It isn't clear to Matthew whether they may have descended into incest. Matthew is drawn into the games and risks becoming as co-dependent as the twins. As an outsider looking in, he observes the peculiar behavior and is both repelled and a willing participant, for he and Isabelle become lovers. But the unhealthy bond between the twins stands as an impenetrable barrier; despite Matthew's best attempts at separating Isabelle from Theo to help her become an independent person, she seems unable to break that bond.

The performers and the direction are superb. I admired Bertolucci's techniques, including the imaginative use of the Steadicam. In one continuous sequence he transitions from a crane shot to a walking Steadicam shot; in another he's able to capture the twin's running up three flights of steps from within an elevator in which Matthew is riding. Woven through the three protagonists' personal story is the conflict raging on the streets; Bertolucci weaves historical footage into the film, sometimes reproducing historical scenes and alternating between those and the originals. There is an indefinably beautiful esthetic to his filming technique. The punctuation by rain. Leisurely takes. A love affair with Paris. A sensual lingering over the female form.

Michael Pitt's Matthew conveys an odd mix of perception and naivete, all too often passive until he's provoked sufficiently to confront the twin's behaviors. Eva Green's Isabelle is sensual, impulsive, and unpredictable as she finds herself torn between two desires. Louis Garrel's Theo is quintessentially arrogant, condescending, and emotionally distant. But despite the actors' skillful and effective performances, I simply didn't care about these characters. I couldn't find myself able to invest emotionally in their fates. Theo is a pretentious hypocrite, sipping his father's expensive Chateau Lafite and sponging off his parent's largesse while sitting in a room decorated with posters of Mao. And his actions are a premeditated overture to incest. Theo and Isabelle refuse to deal with a most damaging and unhealthy co-dependence that may destroy them both. And Matthew is entirely too complicit, allowing himself to be drawn into this psychological minefield by sex. The film conveys a minimum of emotional growth, and that comes with great resistance.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

The film's theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 is presented in anamorphic video. This is another lovely transfer by Digital Video Compression Center for Fox. Edge halos have been banished, leaving us with a film-like presentation. Small object detail and fine textures are first-rate. One of the first scenes in the film is of Matthew crossing the Seine in a medium shot; the pattern of his jacket is clearly conveyed. The ample flesh is presented with natural hue and intensity. Primary colors, like the protestors' red flags adorned with hammer and sickle, are painted to the screen in vivid color devoid of chroma noise and smearing. Shadow detail in the many dark scenes is also excellent. I noticed no compression artifacts. Nicely done.

Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is in English (this French film is not dubbed). The surround effects are all too frequently of equal amplitude and phase, so please disable EX decoding or the surround channels will collapse to the center surround. The surrounds are used more generously than I would have expected in a psychological drama. Rainstorms and crowds immerse the listener. Exceptionally deep bass is not present, but unmissed. Sound effects are simply present to support the realism of the onscreen action and do not call attention to themselves. Bertolucci has chosen to score this film with source tracks of popular music from the late sixties of dubious fidelity. The music sometimes intrudes on the spoken word, particularly if an actor is speaking softly or mumbling. With the exception of that sole caveat, the dialog remains quite clear and distortion-free throughout.

Alternative languages are in Spanish and French, both in Dolby Surround 2.0. Subtitles are provided in Spanish and English, along with English Closed Captions.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

Director Bernardo Bertolucci, screenwriter Gilbert Adair, and producer Jeremy Thomas may be heard in a feature-length commentary. Bertolucci focuses on his artistic decisions and motivations. He touches upon the historical backdrop that he experienced thirty-six years ago. The director tends to wax philosophic about the culture and the influence of film. Adair mentions the autobiographic aspects of his novel that was adapted for the screen. He differentiates between the novel and the screenplay and how the plot and the emphasis evolved with the adaptation. He, too, discusses the historical context. Thomas is a bit more practical, explaining the nature of the shoot and the means used to create the images we see. How, for example, does one shoot in the Louvre, where priceless art might be vulnerable to a substantial team of filmmakers? He describes the renting a five-story building as the site for the shoot. There is also considerable discussion concerning the film's full frontal nudity, both with respect to the nature of its relevance and context, and the consideration offered the actors so they might be comfortable with their scenes.

The main featurette is a BBC production entitled Bertolucci Makes The Dreamers (52:24), presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic video (as are, considerately, most of the visual supplements). The beginning of this documentary describes the historical background of the winter and spring of 1968. It is more thorough as it documents the making of the film. While there are a few comments from the players concerning their roles, the overwhelming bulk of the material takes us behind the scenes to watch the director in action and to observe his interactions with his players. Bertolucci contributes quite a few comments to an unseen and unheard off-screen interviewer. This is a quality featurette that is substance rather than fluff.

Outside the Window, Events in France, May 1968 (14:25) is the second featurette. It examines in more detail the French political climate in the spring of '68 and reveals the interrelationships between student protest and their political idealism and the plight of the French worker. Interestingly, it will be the trade unions that benefit most from this little twentieth century French Revolution.

Next, we have a Bertolucci-directed music video, "Hey Joe" (3:42) featuring Michael Pitt and The Twins of Evil. Finally, there are two theatrical trailers; one is for The Dreamers (2:23); and, the other is a teaser for Garden State (1:10). The 115-minute feature is organized into twenty-eight chapters,

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

There are no PC enhanced extras included.

Parting Thoughts