Paramount Home Media
Distribution opens its 2015 home entertainment release campaign with one of the
sure-to-be Best Picture candidates from writer/director Richard Linklater.
Boyhood, which is certain to earn Linklater his third
Oscar nomination for Best Writing (2004, Before Sunset; 2013 Before
Midnight), will be available as both DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack
(with UltraViolet) product offerings on Jan. 6, 2015. The nominations will be announced on Jan. 16
… so the timing is absolutely spot-on.
The ARR is a leisurely 179
days, which makes absolutely no difference because the ultimate success of Boyhood
(financially-speaking) will be driven by the Oscar nominations that it is
likely to receive. There was no reason
to rush this film home.
The box office tally
currently stands at $23.6 million, which has been driven largely driven by word
of mouth. This will change dramatically
as we move into the Oscar season … even with the availability of DVD and
Blu-ray editions for home viewing.
This indie — and it had
to be an indie film production for obvious reasons — is one of the boldest
attempts at a non-documentary dramatic film production that one can
remember. The story takes place over a
12-year period, with the same actors, but it is not a documentary like the Up film
series begun by filmmaker Paul Almond (and joined by Michael Apted) back in
1964 … that series, produced every seven years, tracks the lives of a group of
British school children as they’ve grown over the years to become adults (it is
fascinating in its own right).
The protagonist here is
Mason (played by Ellar Coltrane – aka: Ellar Salmon), whom we first meet at age
six in 2002. Seriously, 2002 is when
the filming commenced … this is not some sort of a CGI-gimmick, the actor is
actually a six-year old kid.
We will follow him —
through jumps in time periods — as he grows (and matures) from a child to a
young man of 18. It is through his
eyes, and growth, that the story of his childhood unfolds.
Mason’s mother is played
by Patricia Arquette (Olivia) … and she too ages like any adult would over a
12-year period. During the course of
the filming of Boyhood she appeared in six additional feature films and was
active in not one, but two major television series — Medium and Broadwalk
Empire.
The same holds true for
Mason’s father, also named Mason (played by Ethan Hawke — he has worked with Linklater
on an on-going basis since 1995), and his sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater),
while the other actors in the production came and went over the years depending
on the roles they played … lovers, new friends, school mates, new husband, new
wife, etc. Much like life itself,
people come and go.
Also heading to the home
entertainment market place during early January are two TV-on-DVD series that
are getting full season updates.
Don Cheadele (as Marty
Kaan) and his “consultants” are back for more deal-closings on Jan. 13 with the
double-disc release of House of Lies: Season Three.
On same street-date
Tuesday (Jan. 13), Episodes: The Third Season (also a double-disc set) — starring Matt
LeBlanc — will be available at retail for fans to enjoy.
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