Martin Scorsese is such an important director that with each new film comes a certain amount of expectation. That is why his latest film, “Bringing Out The Dead,” is such a major disappointment.

Scorsese seems like a natural to direct the big screen version of Joe Connelly’s novel about an eventful weekend in the life of a burnt out New York City paramedic. Scorsese and the “Mean Streets” of New York go hand-in-hand, and yet “Bringing Out The Dead” finds the director at his weakest.

Dull and laborious, “Bringing Out The Dead” is much ado about nothing. It pretends to be another one of those “slice of life” diatribes but comes off as nothing more than two painful hours of watching Nicolas Cage go through one of his trademark benders.

Despite its technical gloss, the film is flat. You immediately admire Robert Richardson’s virtuoso cinematography and Thelma Schoonmaker Powell’s razor sharp editing. Elmer Bernstein contributes a musical score that shows more life in a few chords than the entire film does.

All are Scorsese veterans, and serve the master well. You just wish their hard work wasn’t for naught. As it stands, “Bringing Out The Dead” is nothing more than an exercise in futility.

It doesn’t help matters that it is virtually impossible to identify with any of the characters, or even care about them. Paul Schrader, who has penned some of Scorsese’s most challenging films (“Taxi Driver,” “The Last Temptation of Christ”), misses the mark here. You get the point, but you just don’t care.

Characters endlessly go on about their miserable lives, almost to the point where you just wish they would put a gun in their mouths and end it. These passages are supposed to be windows into the character’s souls, yet they are so transparent you see through their self-importance.

Cage, a fine actor who has mined bizarre characters for all they are worth (and even winning an Oscar in the process for “Leaving Las Vegas”), fails to ignite the screen as Frank, the New York paramedic going through a particularly tough weekend. Tired and strung out, Frank finds himself haunted by the ghost of a young girl he failed to save.

Frank seeks redemption through Mary (Patricia Arquette), a young woman who frequents his life after he saves her father’s life. Frank sees another lost soul in Mary, and hopes that they can save each other from themselves. While it’s an interesting conceit to have Cage and Arquette (husband and wife in real life) share screen time, their characters are so thinly drawn and under directed that the union isn’t a happy one.

“Bringing Out The Dead” lacks passion and power, two Scorsese trademarks. Usually his characters are on fire, but here they generate little more than a spark. John Goodman, Ving Rhames and Tom Sizemore play drivers who share Cage’s ambulance over the course of the weekend, but except for Rhames, the others are just along for the ride.

Not only is the film poorly executed, it is also implausible. It is hard to take any of this seriously when Scorsese refuses to do so. “Bringing Out The Dead” could have and should have been an excellent companion piece to “Taxi Driver.”

They share the same themes, including main characters who are loners and see the city as a jungle. However, Schrader’s narrative lacks depth and focus. We may not root for Travis Bickle in “Taxi Driver,” yet we understood his motivation. Frank’s obsession with the dead girl is so vague and poorly executed we never believe his torment.

That pretty much sums up “Bringing Out The Dead.” What should have been a wild ride through the streets of New York becomes nothing more than an excuse for Scorsese to get his old gang back together again. You just wish the director had something more substantial to feed them than this tripe.

COMPLETE CHECK-UP

VISION: 20/20

2.35:1 Widescreen

16×9 Enhanced

RSDL

Digital transfer perfectly captures the film’s garish look, including neon reds and blues, tarnished blacks and dirty earth tones. Flesh tones are honestly alive, same as the streets of New York thanks to a clean transfer from a pristine print. No noticeable digital compression issues here. Instead, you get stunning and sharp images that never waver, with impenetrable blacks and bright whites. Depth of field is especially strong, as is attention to detail. You can actually count each and every raindrop on the ambulance’s windshield. Color saturation is warm with no bleeding.

HEARING: Excellent

English 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround

English 2.0 Dolby Digital Surround

The intricate sound mix gets due respect here, with excellent attention to separation and detail. The dialogue is front and center, while the musical cues cut through the speakers with assurance. Stereo separation, both front left-to-right and front-to-back is authentic, as is the data being pumped the rear speakers. Surround effects are dizzying when necessary, while basses are thunderous. Clean high and low ends produce no audible hiss or distortion. Excellent presentation.

ORAL: Good

Closed Captions in English for the Hard of Hearing

COORDINATION: Okay

Cast & Crew Interviews: Brief yet welcome, these are the usual P.R. stuff included here for posterity.

Handsome Main and Scene Access menus that take full advantage of the film’s theme.

2 Theatrical Trailers

PROGNOSIS: Fit

I wasn’t a big fan, but this patient is hardly D.O.A.

VITALS: $29.99/Rated R/120m/Color/30 Chapter Stops/Keepcase

ATTENDING RESIDENT: John Larsen
PATIENT: BRINGING OUT THE DEAD

BIRTH DATE: 1999

HMO: Paramount Home Video

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 6th, 2001 at 2:30 am and is filed under Film Review. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.