THE PHANTOM OF THE OPEN tells the heartwarming true story of Maurice Flitcroft (Mark Rylance), a dreamer and unrelenting optimist. This humble crane operator from Barrow-in-Furness managed to gain entry to The British Open Golf Championship qualifying in 1976, despite never playing a round of golf before. He shot the worst round in Open history and drew the ire of the golfing elite, but became a folk hero in the process and, more importantly, showed his family the importance of pursuing your dreams.
For more in-depth thoughts on The Phantom Of The Open, please see my colleague Larry Fried’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
The Phantom Of The Open comes to DVD with a 480p transfer that is perfectly decent for the format. This DVD offers up a passable amount of detail in the costumes and within the environment. The cinematography of the film is quite fetching, but it is not represented to the best of its ability in this lesser format. Skin tones look consistent and there are some facial details present when our protagonists are in close-ups. Compression artifacts are present without being too distracting. Black levels are not very strong with a fair amount of blocking in the shadows. Colors are the richest part of the experience, especially in the bright daytime scenes that serve as the primary setting for the film. This presentation is fine for DVD, but those who care about video quality will want to go for the Blu-Ray that was not made available for review. This movie is a visual treat and would be worth checking out on that format.
Audio Quality
The DVD comes with a Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio track that sounds lovely within its lossy limitations. The film is largely dialogue driven, but you are provided with some environmental sounds that give the track some life. Elements such as background chatter or various nature sounds add a dynamic touch to the proceedings. Dialogue is presented well and comes through clearly without ever being stepped on by any music or any sound effects. Directionality is rendered precisely so that sounds originate from all the natural spots. There are moments when the sound pans across the room in a way that makes an impression. Although this may not be a big action blockbuster, this track presents the movie exactly as it was intended, which is what you want. The disc also includes optional English SDH subtitles.
Special Features
- Finding Flitcroft: A seven-minute featurette in which the cast and creative team discuss this story, the incomparable character at the center of it all, the family dynamics, how the film bucks convention and more.
- Theatrical Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
The Phantom Of The Open is one of the best surprises of the year as it delivers humor and heart in a way that never feels cloying. It has an endearing earnestness to its story of perseverance even in the face of understandable roadblocks. Mark Rylance reminds you why he is one of the best at inhabiting a character so completely that you forget you are watching a narrative, and his supporting ensemble match him admirably. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released a DVD that is solid enough for the format, but we are living in an high-def age and you owe it to yourself to pick up the Blu-Ray if you are going to pick it up at all. We all need something a bit soul-nourishing at the moment, and this is a film that will fit that mold quite nicely. Recommended
The Phantom Of The Open is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the DVD.
Disclaimer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.