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JOSEPH: KING OF DREAMS
Review by Michael Jacobson
Voices: Ben
Affleck, Mark Hamill, Maureen McGovern, Jodi Benson, Dan Castanella
Directors: Robert Ramirez, Rob La
Duca
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby
Surround
Video: Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic
Transfer
Studio: Dreamworks
Features: See Review
Length: 74 Minutes
Release Date: November 7, 2000
Film ***
The story of Joseph from the Old Testament is one of the
greatest and most memorable tales in all of literature:
the favored son who gets sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, only
to rise years later as a great leader in a time of famine, and who is able to
save his family because of it. Regardless
of one’s religious affiliations, there is much to be learned as this story
unfolds: the dangers of favoritism, the tragedy of jealously, the way
hope can rise up from the ashes of despair, and most importantly, the power of
love and forgiveness. For an
animated film, only the studio and team who brought the superb The Prince of
Egypt to the screen could earn the creative task.
They did, and the result is one of the best direct-to-video family
releases in memory.
Although I plan to touch on these further down, I have to
start off by saying leave it to Dreamworks to give a video-only release such a
red carpet treatment. This studio
has issued nothing but top-quality DVDs from day one, and even here, they give
this film an anamorphic widescreen transfer and full 5.1 digital sound.
Plus, the features package make this the best overall family fun disc on
the market.
I try to rate each movie I see strictly on its own merits,
but I have to confess, I watched Joseph under the spell of The Prince
of Egypt. To say it doesn’t
fully measure up is hardly a complaint…I personally found very few animated
features in the 90’s to be the equal of Dreamworks’ first effort in that
department. The styles are very
similar, including the way the characters look and move—I appreciated that,
because in many ways, this story is the prequel to Prince…they both
involve Hebrews in the land of Egypt, only Joseph’s tale was many generations
before that of Moses.
When the movie opens, Jacob is awaiting the news of the
birth of his youngest son, Joseph (Affleck).
He is considered a miracle child: the
first born to Jacob by his wife, Rachel. She was thought to have been barren, and even though his
other wife Leah bore Jacob ten other sons, Joseph is special in his eyes.
While his other sons grow up to tend the family business and toil in the
sun, Joseph is taught to read and write, and given a beautiful coat of many
colors.
The favoritism, however, doesn’t set well with his other
brothers, particularly when Joseph begins to exhibit some signs of really
being a miracle child: he has
dreams of future events, and the ability to interpret those dreams. When
he dreams that his brothers one day bow before him, it is the last straw.
They sell Joseph into slavery in Egypt, tell Jacob that he was killed by
wolves, and we don’t see or hear from them again until the end of the story.
From that point, it becomes the story of Joseph in Egypt:
alone, afraid, betrayed, and forced to be a slave in a foreign land.
He makes the most of his chances, rising to prominent status in the house
of Potiphar, but later, when falsely accused, finds himself in a cold dungeon
prison.
It is there he learns to accept that there must be a reason
for his long, strange, sad journey, and after many years, it becomes clear.
When the Pharaoh needs a haunting dream interpreted, the Hebrew slave is
sent for. There, Joseph is able to
deliver the message of the dream: there
will be seven years of prosperity, followed by seven years of family. He convinces the Pharaoh they can survive with proper
preparation, and Pharaoh allows him to do so, putting him in the position of
second in command of all of Egypt. Under
Joseph’s wise guidance, Egypt works, saves, and stores, and prepare to meet
the lean times in the best possible way. But
the story isn’t over yet.
One day, in the midst of the famine, Joseph’s brothers
show up to buy grain. Still hurt by
their betrayal, and unconvinced they have changed their nature, he orders one
thrown in jail until the others return with his youngest and full brother,
Benjamin.
Both the Biblical version and this story culminate in one
of the most emotional scenes ever: when
Joseph and his brothers are finally reconciled, and Jacob finally learns that
his son is alive after all of those years.
This film captures an unforgettable moment beautifully.
Overall, I was impressed with the effort that went into
this direct-to-video release, starting with the cast, which includes Ben
Affleck, Mark Hamill and others in the lead roles.
Plus, the film doesn’t have the stripped down look of most video
releases: there are touches of
computer animation that give the images extra depth, along with a full range of
beautiful and fully realized colors. One
picture I loved in particular was Joseph’s hieroglyphic wall, where he stored
his history. This wall has an
amazing sense of real texture to it, even surpassing the great hieroglyphic
walls of The Prince of Egypt! Joseph’s
early dreams are even rendered in the style of a Van Gogh painting, with the
swirls of paint coming to life around him.
Only one sequence seemed a bit under-developed:
Pharaoh’s dream is completely computer animated, and very stiff and
geometric, like older computer technology might have produced.
But it’s a minor complaint.
The three years Dreamworks devoted to this project were
well spent. I think this is one
video that kids and parents alike are going to enjoy sharing.
Video ***1/2
Once again, let me reiterate: this IS an anamorphic widescreen presentation.
As I mentioned, the colors are plentiful and bold here.
There are some minor instances of bleeding of stronger colors onto weaker
ones—hardly a distraction, but noticeable, and just enough to keep it from
being a full fledged 4 star rating. This
is a dual layered disc, and as such, there were no noticeable signs of
compression. The images were sharp
and clear, free from grain, shimmer or noise, and with good detail from
beginning to end. As I’ve said,
there was a lot more work done here than you might expect for a video release,
and DVD makes sure the extra effort will translate to your home system.
Audio ***
This is indeed a 5.1 digital soundtrack…nice treat!
No real complaints, but I have to mention that the dynamic range was a
little more subdued than I would have liked:
it’s there, but there are moments that I personally felt should have
been louder or with more force, that simply weren’t.
Most of the audio is presented on the forward stage, with good clear
dialogue and beautiful music, including a handful of terrific songs.
The subwoofer wasn’t used much, but the rear stages added some nice
effects and opened up the overall listening experience nicely.
Features ****
This is where I think the disc really succeeds, and why I
think it’s a perfect family DVD. The
parents are going to enjoy the storyboard presentations (with or without
director commentary), the trailer, production notes, and very extensive talent
files. The kids are going to enjoy
the other features. There’s a
read along, which plays out like a video story book with animation, where the
words appear on the screen as a narrator carefully reads them. There is a sing along section, with a choice of three songs
as they appeared in the video, but with color changing words at the bottom so
the kids can keep their place as they go. There
are DVD ROM extras for the little ones as well, including activity sheets and a
coloring sheet. And to top it off
is one of the best uses of a trivia game I’ve seen.
It’s aimed at the kids, asking simple questions about the movie,
complete with narration, video, and interaction.
Parents and kids can play it together.
Outstanding!
Summary:
If you’ve ever thought that direct-to-video meant skimp-on-quality, prepare to be surprised by Joseph: King of Dreams. Kids and parents alike are bound to be impressed with this timeless story given stellar treatment on disc by Dreamworks, especially the fun extras.