DVD Review: ‘Boyhood’ develops into a fine film

It’s a minor miracle that Richard Linklater’s “Boyhood” was ever finished, let alone that it’s as good as it is. As has been widely publicized, it was shot over the course of 12 years, with the players visibly aging with the passage of time. There are some partial precedents — e.g., Francois Truffaut’s Antoine Doinel series and Linklater’s own “Before” trilogy (“Before Sunrise,” “Before Sunset,” “Before Midnight”). But in neither of those cases was there long-term intent from the start.

It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to envision circumstances that would have ended the project prematurely — an actor becoming disgruntled or dying. But the principle cast — Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, and (most importantly) Ellar Coltrane — stuck with the project throughout. We watch Coltrane develop from a little boy to an adult. In less deft hands, the film could have felt as though it was passing in real time, but the events are almost entirely low key without trying our patience.

Not surprisingly, both audio and visuals are utilitarian, and both are transferred accurately to home video. There are only two extras, but both of them are first-rate — a 20-minute “making of” and an hourlong Q&A with Linklater and some of the cast, taped at L.A.’s Cinefamily Theater. The only disappointment is the lack of a commentary track; if ever a film cried out for one, this is it. Perhaps they’re saving it for a later edition.

Boyhood (Paramount Home Entertainment, Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, $41.99; DVD, $29.99)