Eagle Vs. Shark appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this single-sided, double-layered DVD; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. Though the movie’s transfer showed its low-budget roots, it usually satisfied.
For the most part, sharpness appeared good. I noticed the occasional soft scene, but the majority of the shots came across with nice clarity and delineation. No issues with jagged edges or shimmering arose, and I also failed to detect edge enhancement. Source flaws remained absent during this clean presentation.
Despite a bit of a low-key palette, Eagle kept the hues natural and reasonably vivid. Actually, they seemed to get brighter as the film progressed, which appeared to act as a cheap metaphor for our heroine's improving self-image. Whatever the case, the colors seemed satisfying. Blacks were also acceptably dense and dark, while shadows usually looked fine. A couple of shots appeared slightly opaque, but those were early and also probably acted as cinematic metaphors. (Boy, does this movie like its cheesy metaphors!) At no point did the transfer excel, but it presented a more than acceptable image.
Similar thoughts greeted the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack of Eagle Vs. Shark. Actually, the soundfield was a little livelier than expected, though it didn’t exactly overpower the room. Music consistently showed solid stereo imaging, though, and various elements opened up the spectrum in a satisfying manner. Environmental pieces manifested themselves well across the front, and the surrounds bolstered this material in a nice way. No, it didn’t sizzle, but it seemed pretty good.
Audio quality was also fine. Speech seemed natural and concise, while effects – modest though they usually remained came across as clean and accurate. Music showed good range and vivacity throughout the movie. The soundtrack suited the film.
A few extras fill out the package. We open with an audio commentary from writer/director Taika Waititi and actors Loren Horsley, Joel Tobeck and Craig Hall. To start, Waititi talks to Horsley on the phone, but she has to split about half an hour into the proceedings. Tobeck then shows up in the studio and chats until very close to the film’s conclusion. At that point, Horlsey comes back on the phone and Hall replaces dshakjdas in the studio.
The format sometimes makes the commentary awkward because Waititi has to describe the onscreen action to Horsley. This turns a lot of it into narration. When the director doesn’t simply tell us what we see, he frequently praises the flick or tells us the names of actors. Those who’ve heard commentaries from the Farrelly brothers will recognize the pattern; like the Farrelly boys, Waititi cast lots of friends in the film, so he makes sure we know that. At least Waititi shows self-recognition of this and tries to avoid it.
Nonetheless, we don’t get a lot of good content in this commentary. We learn a little about sets and locations, cast, characters and performances, the script and various concepts, but the package doesn’t add up to much. It improves when Horsley departs simply because the narration factor subsides. Overall, the commentary has its moments and will provide a modicum of insight, but don’t expect a ton of good information.
13 Deleted Scenes run a total of 15 minutes and one seconds. These include “Working Out” (1:13), “Bottle Throw – Part 1” (0:35), “Lily Plays Guitar” (2:24), “Jarrod Visits Tracy” (1:36), “Lily In the Tent” (1:37), “Jarrod’s Phone Call” (1:08), “Hitchhiking” (0:58), “Bike Date” (0:31), “Jarrod Throws Stars” (1:48), “Lily the Morning After” (0:55), “The Fountain” (0:54), “Dream Sequence – Previsualization” (0:59) and “Bottle Throw – Part 2” (0:19).
Proof that I’m devoted to this site’s readers: the fact I sat through 15 minutes of additional footage related to Eagle. Did anything here change my mind and make me think the film wasn’t abominable? No – it’s more of the same quirkiness and inanity. It didn’t enable more rage in me toward the flick, but I think I was already at 100 percent. Fans will be interested to see more about the Jarrod/Tracy “relationship”, though, as some scenes flesh out that side of things.
We can watch these with or without commentary from Waititi. He tells us a little about the scenes, though he often just describes them. Unfortunately, he often fails to let us know why he cut them, so we don’t learn a lot about that side of things.
Next we get two minutes and 47 seconds of Outtakes. This consists of standard blooper reel material. Folks goof up and giggle. Yawn.
In addition, we find a Music Video for “Going Fishing” by the Phoenix Foundation. It presents many quirky movie clips over a quirky song. A few shots of the band as they make a quirky trip pop up as well. It’s all very… quirky, and not even remotely interesting.
The DVD starts with some ads. We find promos for Blu-ray discs, WALL-E, and Gone Baby Gone. These also appear in the Sneak Peeks area along with clips for Becoming Jane, The Golden Door and No Country for Old Men. No trailer for Eagle shows up here.
Want to know how I can tell just how much I loathed Eagle Vs. Shark? Just looking at the DVD’s menus nearly sent me into a fit of rage! Some folks enjoyed this insulting, idiotic claptrap, but I can’t fathom how that was possible. An hour after the flick ended, I’m still actively angry about what I saw. The DVD gives us perfectly acceptable picture and audio as well as mediocre extras. If you must buy a copy of Eagle, please do so simply to destroy the DVD and eliminate this plague from the earth. This is one of the worst films I’ve ever seen.
