After collaborating on the critically acclaimed drama The Mother, director Roger Michell and Britain's busiest actor Daniel Craig re-teamed for the "intelligent and gripping dramatic thriller" Enduring Love. This disturbing tale of a man stalked by another man (Rhys Ifans) stands out in a recent slew of mediocre British films, although it divided critics and audiences with its eerily offbeat sensibility.

Bursting The Balloon

Ian McEwan wrote the book on which the film is based, but in The Film And The Novel confesses, "It's not the movie I dreamt they would make." He also admits that this isn't necessarily a bad thing in this brief but insightful look at the story's evolution from page to screen - or as McEwan puts it, "a demolition process". Of course director Roger Michell is on hand to talk about his vision and screenwriter Joe Penhall explains how he set about subtly reshaping the material to fit.

The Actor's Story neatly follows on from this discussion to take into account the themes of love and obsession that form the basis of the characters. In regard to casting the lead, Michell says of Craig, "as an actor he has a madness lurking in there" while producer Kevin Loader notes of Rhys Ifans, "It's just the way he flutters his eyelashes." And so it gradually becomes apparent why Loader identified with this particular piece of writing...

One of the most complicated scenes of the film (in terms of staging) is the balloon accident that opens the story. It comes under scrutiny in another brief yet engaging featurette that finds the crew on location in sunny Oxfordshire. While waiting for the perfect wind conditions, Michell talks us through his storyboards for this logistical nightmare of a sequence while McEwan oversees the situation between catching a few rays on a nearby hilltop. It's all right for some, eh?

Elsewhere, five deleted scenes range from the totally banal (Craig lighting a gas hob), mildly ballistic (Craig losing his rag with a local copper) to moments of beautifully-observed nuance such as a dinner scene of idle small talk that sees Craig's character gradually withdraw from the crowd. It feels at this stage that guilt and fear are taking over his daily existence.

Hot Air

Lightening the mood is the short film Burst, evidently crafted between takes on Enduring Love by second-assistant director Olivia Preston-Bird (observe the ever-present red balloons). First assistant director Barrie McCulloch stars as fictional movie icon Maxwell McCourtney who's lauded in a collage of soundbites by the likes of Roger Michell, Rhys Ifans, and Daniel Craig. "He's true, man," says Craig. "He's just true." It's a fun but very fluffy piece - don't expect to see Preston-Bird accepting an Oscar any time soon.

Also lacking a bit of substance is a feature commentary by Michell and the film's producer, Loader. It's a very laidback, at times lethargic, trawl through the film. To liven things up a bit, Michell invites you to play a game of Where's Wally? with Rhys Ifans who lurks in the periphery of early scenes. Elsewhere there are a few interesting points to be gleaned. For instance, the bronze apple tree that transfixes Craig at The Tate Gallery was actually part of The Turner Prize exhibition in 2003 when the film was shot - its resemblance to the red balloon motif was pure luck.

Overall this is a thoughtful selection of extras, but the featurettes are frustratingly short and the commentary is only intermittently interesting. You mightn't fall in love, but this intriguing little thriller is well worth pursuing on DVD.

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