AWAKE - Blu-ray review

"Anesthetic awareness" is a rare medical phenomenon affecting about one tenth of a percent of the population going under the knife for routine surgeries. After sedation, something goes wrong preventing the patient from entering a completely unconscious state. Each report varies in severity, but in some of the worst cases the victims can actually still hear and feel everything that's happening to them during the procedure. I can't even begin to imagine what it feels like to lie there on the operating table in terror and agony--totally helpless until the drugs wear off. It must seem like an eternal nightmare.

"Awake" is a thriller that plays with the idea of this anesthetic anomaly and pushes it to the extreme. The topic is interesting for a movie as the subject matter alone can greatly affect the mind. It's an experience that can literally happen to just about anyone, a crapshoot really, and the unknown factor is what makes it such a dreadful and terrifying thought.

In this particular story, Clay Beresford (Hayden Christensen) is a rich young tycoon suffering from a severe heart condition. Clay has been on the recipient list for a transplant for a while, except to add insult to injury he has the cliché of an extremely rare blood type. Anyway, since deep pockets won't do anything to speed up the process, all he can do is play the waiting game until a possible match becomes available.

Due to personal and medical reasons, Clay has grown up in the tight grip of his overprotective mother--Lilith (Lena Olin). Clay wants nothing more than to make his own decisions and live his own life, but he's having difficulty severing the umbilical cord and breaking out of Lilith's plastic bubble. So much so that Clay is forced to keep his relationship with his mother's sexy assistant--Sam Lockwood (Jessica Alba)--a secret. This in turn frustrates Sam, because hates sneaking around behind Lilith's back and feels unimportant. I don't think I need to point out that Alba isn't the smartest choice for a girlfriend if your heart is struggling to keep on beating, but I'm it's worth the risk.

The plot thickens when a heart eventually becomes available and Lilith insists on bringing in the best cardiac specialist in the field--Dr. Jonathan Neyer (Arliss Howard). Clay has other ideas, as he only trusts one person to perform the operation--his close friend Dr. Jack Harper (Terrence Howard). This is where Clay stands up for himself to take control of the biggest decision of his life.

Skipping ahead to the surgery, Clay is wheeled into Jack's operating room and the anesthesiologist puts him under. In every way--physically and on the status machines--the patient appears to be asleep, but to Clay's horror he's far from it. He can hear the doctors talking and feels them prepping his chest for the operation, but he's unable to move or call for help. And if that's not traumatic enough, he overhears a devious plot to end his life--and can't do a thing about it.

After his starchy portrayal as Anakin Skywalker in the "Star Wars" prequels, I have never really warmed up to Christensen as an actor. I'm just being honest here, for some reason he always appears to be out of touch with reality. However in "Awake," his monotonous cardboard presence doesn't seem so out of place. His character is supposed to be emotionally troubled and physically run down, so it kind of works. This go around, I only found myself wincing a handful of times at some of his poorly delivered dialogue.

Making his feature film debut, writer/director Joby Harold does a pretty decent job producing a stylish film with an interesting premise. I would have never guessed that he's a rookie filmmaker just judging from the slick look of the movie's cinematography and the professionalism of the editing. Most of the time, filmmakers start at the bottom with a B-movie and work their way up, so it's impressive that Harold accomplished what so many newcomers are rarely able to do right out of the gates.

Unfortunately, Harold was a little too overambitious in my opinion. While trying to play in the sandbox with the big boys, he just ended up setting his sights way too high. For instance around the halfway point, more subplots enter the picture and the main one is basically shoved aside on the back burner. It was almost as if he was trying to cram in everything he could on the subject even if it didn't really belong. I thought we'd eventually get back to the anesthetic awareness being a key element for the story, but it doesn't really go anywhere. It just seems incomplete as it fades away into a forgotten realm.

My biggest issue is how "Awake" is riddled with so many medical blunders it's downright embarrassing. The sterility aspect was so atrocious that if the people in this movie were real doctors, their licenses would be yanked before they could say "HMO." Isn't it common sense that if a film is being made where the bulk of it takes place inside a hospital, then research should be done to make sure all of the medical facts are straight? I know dramas like "ER" and "House M.D." have real medical advisers on hand, so why wasn't one brought in here? What I find really disturbing is that Harold even specifically mentions in the commentary how the cast and crew observed actual open-heart surgeries in preparation for the film. If that is true, then the end product isn't something to be proud of--that's for sure.

Video:
"Awake" comes on a BD-25 platter (MPEG-4 video codec) and is presented in widescreen 2.35:1 aspect ratio. To be honest, I never really expected such a sharp picture for this film. I was able to make out the tiny dust particles floating around in Harper's office and I could even partly see through Alba's top during the bathtub sequence--which was a nice surprise. Colors are bright and vibrant throughout, with rich and deep black levels as well as excellent facial detailing. With absolutely no noise and minimal grain, the Weinstein Co. definitely delivers a very pleasing transfer.

Audio:
The disc features English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and English/French Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks. Like the video, I was thoroughly impressed with the lossless sound. The dialogue is well balanced with the music, and although the feature is primarily front-channel heavy, the rear speakers contribute a fair amount of background sounds in the operating room. Also available are optional English and Spanish subtitles.

Extras:
The first bonus feature is a routine "Audio Commentary helmed by writer/director Joby Harold. While the man does provide the odd informative detail on filmmaking now and then, he's so enthralled with his creation that he fails to point out any of the film's faults--and often rambles on with tedious and irrelevant comments. Do we really need someone telling us Christensen is now walking through the door? I think we can figure stuff like that out. Obviously Harold is new at this, and it shows.

"Under The Knife & Behind the Camera: The Making of Awake" (13:13) contains little interesting information since the cast and crew uses the time to gush all over each other's work. Is this a production documentary, or a promotional piece? I couldn't tell.

After that we have seven "Deleted Scenes" with optional commentary by Joby Harold: "Clay & Jack," "Dracula," "The Checkbook," "Grim Reaper," "First Date," "Last Train Home," and "Christmas Eve."

The disc wraps things up with a "Storyboard-to-Film Comparison" showing a side-by-side view of scenes from the movie with storyboard artwork, and a "Theatrical Trailer."

What this release lacks is the bloopers and outtakes that were supposedly included on the Blockbuster exclusive version of the DVD. I guess the studio wanted it to remain exclusive to that release.

The Final Cut:
While "Awake" has its moments on a purely entertainment level, it ultimately suffers on a technical standpoint dozing off in places. The plot ends up being way more complex and convoluted than it really needed to be, and there is absolutely no excuse for Harold's sloppiness on medical accuracy and detail.