The Rules of Attraction Blu-ray delivers great video and superb audio, but overall it's a mediocre Blu-ray release
During a semester at New England's exclusive and ultra-expensive Camden College, a sexual triangle emerges between Sean Bateman, the all-American looking guy who deals drugs on the side, Paul Owen, who's bisexual, and Paul's ex-girlfriend, Lauren. Sean grows obsessed with the pure Lauren because he thinks she's passing him passionate, anonymous love notes. At the same time, Paul keeps trying to get Sean into bed, while Lauren pines for Victor, who she believes is her dream man despite the fact he is studying abroad in Europe.
Roger Avary's "Rules of Attraction" (2002) debuts on Blu-ray courtesy of UK-based distributors Icon Home Entertainment. The disc contains the uncut, previously released in France, version of the film which is currently unavailable for purchase in US market. Region-Free.
A typical scene from Roger Avary's Rules of Attraction
The story of Rules of Attraction follows a group of students at Camden College, a small, liberal arts college in New England - Sean Bateman (James Van Der Beek, Varsity Blues) a cocky playboy who sells drugs to his wealthy peers; Paul Denton (Ian Somerhalder), an extravagant boy looking for a boyfriend; and Lauren Hynde (Shannyn Sossamon, 40 Days and 40 Nights), a virgin getting ready to lose her virginity. Throughout the course of the film, all three characters dramatically impact each others' lives, though they do not immediately realize it.
Rules of Attraction begins where it ends – at The End of the World party where Sean, Paul and Lauren are taught a lesson in reality; it is not the type of reality most of us could easily accept as...real, but more on it in a few seconds. The film also jumps back and forth between all sorts of different events that ultimately bring the three protagonists to the infamous party.
Roger Avary directed Rules of Attraction eight years after he completed his now cult hit Killing Zoe (1994), a film that apparently had a profound impact on Quentin Tarantino, who ended up promoting it a few years later. Similarly to Killing Zoe, in Rules of Attraction chaos is very much a key element that gives the story an edge. There is also a lot of the same type of nihilism that was prevalent in Avary's earlier film.
In Killing Zoe, however, we also knew well in advance that there was a head-on collision in the making; the main protagonist, an American played by Eric Stoltz, who by the way has a small role in Rules of Attraction as well, arrives in Paris to join an old friend planning a heist. After the two celebrate their reunion, we learn that the American's friend has AIDS and not a lot of time left to live. So, the destructive behavior that follows up isn't entirely surprising.
This is hardly the case with Rules of Attraction. All of the main protagonists in this film have plenty to live for yet, compared to the two friends in Killing Zoe, they seem far more determined to destroy their lives. Most of the time, this unusual urge is veiled in humor – the same bizarre type that Gregg Araki's The Doom Generation (1995) and Nowhere (1997) first introduced – which apparently many enjoyed. But, truth be told, there is more sour drama here than genuinely hilarious moments.
This is one of the main reasons why I find it difficult to like Rules of Attraction. The type of behavior the students from Camden College reveal, not just the three protagonists Avary's camera follows, is irreversibly marred by endless clichés meant to convince us that there is a different world out there, which most of us, the grownups, are incapable of comprehending. This may well be so, and I give Bret Easton Ellis, the novelist whose book the film is based on (and whose personal experience at a liberal arts college was apparently what inspired it), the benefit of the doubt. But, it is an indisputable fact that most everything in Rules of Attraction is overplayed and overenhanced to such an extent that the film works better as a parody rather than a realistic depiction of twenty-something life.
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Roger Avary's Rules of Attraction arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of UK-based distributors Icon Home Entertainment.
There are no surprises Icon's latest 1080p transfer – contrast is pleasing, clarity and detail consistent, and color-scheme natural looking. Post-production filtering isn't an issue of concern either (the outdoor scenes for example look fresh and full of color and are not marred by digital sharpening). Edge-enhancement and macroblocking are also not a major issue of concern with this Blu-ray release. Furthermore, the actual print used by the UK distributors appears to be notably healthy - I did not detect any scratches, debris, or stains to report here. My only complaint revolves around a a few softer than usual scenes that I noticed during the second half of the film; a good example is the infamous orgy party. Nonetheless, The Rules of Attraction certainly offers a strong upgrade over the existing SDVD release of the film available on the US market. (Note: Even though this disc is marketed as Region-B, it is in fact Region-Free. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).
There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English Dolby Digital 5.1. Though not overly aggressive, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track certainly sounds quite strong. There is a good dose of activity in the rear channels, a few interesting scenes where the bass comes alive, and no serious balance issues to report. Furthermore, the dialog is crisp and extremely easy to follow. Somewhat surprisingly, however, Tom Hajdu and Andy Milburn's (better known as tommanddandy) music (as well as original tracks by The Cure, Yaz, Erasure, and Blondie) isn't as prominent as I was expecting it to be. Finally, there are no dropouts, pops, or hissings that I could detect. For the record, Icon Home Entertainment have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.
In addition to the theatrical trailer, teaser trailer and TV spots, on this Blu-ray disc you will also find the "Anatomy of a Scene" featurette where Roger Avary as well as cast and crew members talk about the film, the different characters, the shooting process, etc. Writer Bret Easton Ellis, whose book Rules of Attraction is based on, also offers his thoughts on the film. More importantly, however, the Blu-ray disc contains two commentaries - one with Sharon Seymour, Ron Jeremy Hyatt, Ian Somerhalder & Russell Sams; and another with Shannyn Sossaman, Theresa Weyman, Kip Purdue & Clifton Collins Jr (all of the supplemental features are in standard-def PAL).
Roger Avary's Rule of Attraction arrives on Blu-ray with a handsome, if not overly impressive, transfer. More importantly, however, this disc contains the uncut version of the film which isn't yet available in the US. Take a look at it if you liked the film.
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