DVD Corner

56 Up DVD Review

“56 Up” is another fine entry in Michael Apted’s endlessly fascinating documentary series.

For the uninitiated, the “Up Series” is a documentary film series by director Michael Apted. The series, which started with “7 Up,” has become a cinematic experiment of sorts that focuses on the lives of 14 British people (Sue, Jackie, Tony, Neil, Paul, Peter, Suzy, Nick, Symon, Bruce, Lynn, John, Andrew, Charles, and Tony) every 7 years starting from age 7. The latest entry in the long-running series is “56 Up.”

In this installment, we catch up with everyone except for Charles who has not appeared since “21 Up.” For the most part, the eighth film in the series is heavily centered around the participant’s families and careers. Sue, Paul, Symon, and even the generally reserved Bruce may not be living lives of luxury (especially with the economic downturn affecting many of them), but they all seem quite content with the children and spouses that they have.

Learning about families and careers aside, the biggest surprise in this film is seeing Peter back on screen. Peter, who has not appeared since “28 Up,”not only has his own family now, but we also learn that he and his wife are musicians that are in a band together.      

As is the case with every Up film, not everyone is having the time of their lives sadly. Neil may have several important and inspiring jobs now, but he’s still a lonely unhappy man. The biggest tragedy here though is the awful events that have occurred in Jackie’s life as of late. While her growing children are all doing well, she lost several family members and has been suffering from health problems. Hopefully things will get better for her soon.

Of course, there are other people that I haven’t mentioned, but I did this intentionally as I don’t want to spoil everything. After all, not knowing what is happening in the lives of these 14 individuals is what keeps us coming back to this series every 7 years.

Whether you’ve seen one or all of the Up films, you’ll know that there is nothing else like this. While “56 Up” may suffer from some sluggish pacing, it doesn’t matter as the film is still engrossing from start to finish. Seeing the ups and downs and the evolution of all of these people right before your eyes is an emotional rollercoaster ride (especially if you watch all 8 films back to back). It’s simply a masterful series about age, change, people, and life.

Video/Audio:

As with any Up film, the picture quality varies in quality as there is footage from different years spliced in. I will say that the newly shot footage looks superb though.

The Unspecified audio track does the job, but again, it varies in quality as we are also hear audio from past Up films.

Extras include First Run Features trailers, an ad for The Up Series Complete Box Set, a photo gallery, a text bio for Michael Apted (as well as a text statement), and a deep half hour 2006 interview between Michael Apted and Roger Ebert which is easily the best extra on this disc.

August 16, 2013 - Posted by nicklyons1 | DVD review | 56 Up DVD Review, Michael Apted, The Up Series DVD