Written by: Michael Den Boer on July 26th, 2009
Theatrical Release Date: Australia, 1993
Director: Rolf De Heer
Writer: Rolf de Heer
Cast: Nicholas Hope, Claire Benito, Ralph Cotterill, Carmel Johnson
BluRay released: July 28th, 2009
Approximate running time: 114 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive
Rating: NR
Sound: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English, DTS HD 5.1 English
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish
BluRay Release: Blue Underground
Region Coding: Region 0
Retail Price: $34.95
Bad Boy Bubby is the story of a thirty five year old man who has spent his entire life in one room with his only companion being his overtly cruel mother. One day the father he never knew shows up and Bubby slowly takes on the characteristics of his father. Not wanting to share his mother with his father who still has no use for him, Bubby kills them. After killing his parents Bubby bravely leaves the only world her has ever know behind when he goes outside into the real world.
The first act which takes place entirely in the one room where Bubby has spent the first thirty five years of his life is pretty brutal stuff which includes Bubby wrapping cellophane around his cat. Once he emerges into the world outside of this room is where the film is at its best. Bubby is flawlessly portrayed by Nicholas Hope whose reactions and moments of self reflecting in the film make the character he is portraying all the more tangible. The most enjoyable aspect of this film is watching the Bubby character absorb (mimic) everyone who he comes in contact with. As good as the script and Nicholas Hope’s performance is, one most not overlook the abundance of visual style and ambience in the films soundtrack. Ultimately Bad Boy Bubby is a fascinating film that gets better with each new viewing.
The BluRay:
Bad Boy Bubby comes on a 50 GB dual layer BluRay. The film is presented in a 1080 progressive anamorphic widescreen. The image looks extremely clean with faithfully rendered colors and flesh tones. Black levels look solid throughout and there are no issues with edge enhancement or DNR. Grain is noticeable but never overwhelming and details look fare outside of a few scenes they look a tad soft.
This release comes with two audio options a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English and a DTS HD 5.1 English. This release comes with four subtitle options English, English SDH, French, and Spanish. It should be noted about the soundtrack that the director intentionally created a soundscape in which the viewer hears everything from the lead characters point of view. So while this may be jarring to some at first as the film progresses this type of audio mix grows on you as Bubby’s world engulfs you. Both audio mixes are free of any distortion or background noise.
Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer for the film, a short film titled “Confessor Caresser” which also stars Nicholas Hope, a twenty four minute interview with the films writer / director Rolf De Heer and a fourteen minute interview with actor Nicholas Hope. The interview with Rolf De Heer is a detailed and insightful look into Bad Boy Bubby. The interview with Nicholas Hope is equally informative as he not only talks about Bad Boy Bubby, he covers various other films he has worked on and how Bad Boy Bubby led to him being typecast. Blue Underground had previously released Bad Boy Bubby on DVD in 2005 and this release carries over all the extras from that release except a poster & still gallery. Overall this is another first rate BluRay release from Blue Underground.