WAR HORSE
Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr
MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: ****1/2 (out of 5 stars)
My journey to “War Horse” is probably not as interesting or epic as the journey in “War Horse,” but it’s interesting to note. I first became aware of the film when I saw the trailer in front of the upcoming holiday movies of 2011. When I first saw it, I rolled my eyes and started to dread it. The entire thing looked like a cheesy, unnecessary film with obvious cliched “war is hell” overtones to it. We had seen movies like this before from Touchstone, including “The Alamo” and “Hidalgo,” and they tended to be soft in my opinion.
However, when I finally got a chance to see the film, I was enthralled by it, wrapped up in the majesty and splendor of it all. God bless Steven Spielberg, who knows how to push my buttons.
The story follows a horse through various owners and situations against the backdrop of World War I. It begins with the horse being sold to a boy on a farm. Then the horse is drafted to work in World War I. After significant battles, the horse makes his way across the European countryside, as the story profiles different characters throughout the war.
In a strange way, “War Horse” is exactly what I expected, but totally not what I expected. It features the grand theme of war and drama, but it also is an intimate “boy and his dog” story that lives through the horrors of that war. Instead of being a cheesy story about a horse in the sometimes silly Disney tradition, the horse is a vehicle to bring the story to different vignettes.
The greatest triumph of “War Horse” is its breathtaking cinematography, which harkens back to the rich look of “Gone with the Wind.” Taken with a powerful score by John Williams, the film captured my imagination. It’s and inspiring film with feeling of the film taps into the earlier Disney films of the 50s and 60s, sweeping sweep the viewer along with real-life drama without getting too grim. I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed this movie.
The four-disc Blu-ray combo pack comes with two Blu-ray discs, one of which includes the brilliant transfer for the feature film. That main disc includes two featurettes: “War Horse: The Journey Home” and a look at the movie from an extra’s point of view.
The second Blu-ray disc includes an in-depth look at the film with “A Filmmaking Journey” with Steven Spielberg, “Editing and Scoring” featuring Spielberg’s long-time collaborators Michael Kahn and John Williams, “The Sounds of War Horse” about the sound design and “Through the Producer’s Lens” which takes a look at the photographic journey of producer Kathleen Kennedy.
Additional discs in the pack include the DVD which features “War Horse: The Look” featurette and a Digital Copy disc.
CONTRABAND
Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr
MOVIE: ** (out of 5 stars)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars)
There are great heist films, like the “Oceans” series, and there are lesser heist films. “Contraband” definitely falls into the lesser kind. It works for an early January release, which is what is was when it hits theaters, but it’s not much to write home about and entirely forgettable on DVD and Blu-ray.
The story follows Chris Faraday (Mark Wahlberg), a former smuggler who is dragged back into a life of crime when his brother-in-law becomes indebted to a drug dealer. Faraday must pull off one last score to settle the debt before his family becomes collateral damage.
There are some nice action sequences, and the movie definitely has grit. However, it’s neutered by the team of criminals we’re supposed to root for being stuck on a ship through most of the film. Ben Foster and Giovanni Ribisi chew through the scenery in their performances, giving the film a grimy feeling that clashes with the relatively hip and fun nature of a cool little heist film.
The Blu-ray comes with a DVD of the film and a Digital Copy disc for portable use. There’s a nice assortment of special features, including deleted scenes, a commentary track and two featurettes: “Under the Radar: The Making of Contraband” and “Reality Factor: The Stunts and Action of Contraband.”
Blu-ray exclusive content includes access with the pocketBLU app and BD-Live for additional features. There’s also the picture-in-picture U-Control mode that always offers a neat addition to the title.
PILLOW TALK
Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr
MOVIE: *** (out of 5 stars)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: *** (out of 5 stars)
One of the best things about reviewing DVDs and Blu-rays is that I get a chance to watch a lot of classic and significant films I otherwise wouldn’t get around to watching. It’s not that “Pillow Talk” is “Citizen Kane,” so I don’t imagine I ever would have gone out of my way to see a light sex romp with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. But thanks to Universal’s release of the film in a Blu-ray book for the studio’s 100th anniversary, I have.
“Pillow Talk” tells the story of modern, single career woman Jan (Doris Day) who is forced to share a telephone party line with playboy Brad (Rock Hudson), who lives in her building. They don’t particularly like each other on the phone, but when they meet in person, there’s a spark. Brad pretends to be a wealthy Texan in a chance to woo her without her knowing his true identity.
There’s a huge admiration from the public for the sex comedies of the 60s, even if the sex in these sex comedies are quite tamed and toned down for the relatively repressed time. This sanitized sexiness is a lot of fun to watch, especially in retrospect, and it often dwarfs the cute formula of the modern romantic comedy.
My only real problems come from the trappings of the 60s, in terms of filmmaking. Here was a time when films were really experimenting with the widescreen format, but the directors and cinematographers hadn’t mastered the close-up. Widescreen films from this era tend to be somewhat uninspired, featuring fantastic composition but relatively little depth. This is, of course, something I overcome as a film watcher in the modern era, and I can definitely get past this element for a film as cute as this.
“Pillow Talk” is as light and fluffy as its title implies. There’s no major danger to the characters, aside from embarrassment and general emotional anxiety. Instead, it’s a fun film to watch unfold, resting on the shoulders of its charismatic stars. Even if the idea of a telephone party line is as archaic as a slide ruler, it’s a cute film to enjoy.
New bonus material to this Blu-ray book include the featurette “Back in Bed with Pillow Talk” and “Chemistry 101: The film Duo of Doris Day and Rock Hudson.” There’s also a feature commentary with film historians Jeff Bond, Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman.
Additional bonus material includes the 100 Years of Universal featurettes “Restoring the Classics,” “The Carl Laemmle Era” and “Unforgettable Characters.”
ERIN BROCKOVICH
Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr
MOVIE: ****1/2 (out of 5 stars)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: *** (out of 5 stars)
Universal’s 100the anniversary as a studio has brought out some classic re-releases, like “All Quiet on the Western Front” and “Sullivan’s Travels.” There have even been some films I remember from playing in theaters when I was a child, like “The Deer Hunter” and “Smokey and the Bandit.” However, it’ll always be hard for me to think of a film only a dozen years old as a landmark in the studio’s history.
However, this doesn’t stop “Erin Brockovich” from being a significant film to include in the Universal 100th Anniversary collection. It’s interesting to note that “Erin Brockovich” came out at a time when Universal was having a great year, feasting on the profits from “Meet the Parents,” “Bring It On” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” That was a different time from now when the studio has struggled with some expensive flops.
All of this is moot when you watch “Erin Brockovich” because the film is good enough to forget that it was only in theaters about a decade ago. Coming out the same year as director Steven Soderbergh’s award-winning “Traffic,” “Erin Brockovich” featured his docudrama style though it was toned down from “Traffic.” The story is a true one, about a down-and-out woman working in a legal office who uncovers cause for a massive suit against a major corporation for poisoning the citizens near one of its factories. Determined and convicted, Erin Brockovich (Julia Roberts) gains the trust of the people to mount legal action.
Roberts won an Oscar for the role, and it was deserved, much more than her first nomination for “Pretty Woman.” While the characters of these two films were quite similar, fitting well into Roberts’ stock performance, this one had an extra dose of realism.
“Erin Brockovich” is smartly directed, with Soderbergh perfecting his style but not overdoing it. The muted tones and digital cinematography gave it a serious look that made it slightly retro but still looking timeless. It’s an engaging drama that is both terrifying and uplifting. I’m not sure how much of a whitewash was done on the Brockovich character, but the script manages to not make her look like a saint while also not making her a slave to her flaws.
It’s been about a decade since I’d seen “Erin Brockovich,” and it was a great opportunity to see it again.
The 100 Years of Universal “Erin Brockovich” Blu-ray also includes a DVD of the film and a Digital Copy disc. The bonus material includes the theatrical trailer and deleted scenes with commentary by Steven Soderbergh, plus the featurettes “Spotlight on Location: The Making of Erin Brockovich” and “Erin Brockovich: A Look at a Real-Life Experience.
Additional bonus material includes the 100 Years of Universal featurettes “Academy Award Winners” and “The Lot.”
SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT
Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr
MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: **1/2 (out of 5 stars)
Back in 1977, my parents flat-out refused to take me to see “Smokey and the Bandit,” not necessarily for anything inappropriate but rather because they hated the idea of watching a movie about a multi-state car chase. Even though all of my friends saw it, I got over my disappointment because “Star Wars” was also tearing up the theaters at the same time, so I was plenty distracted with that movie.
I finally saw “Smokey and the Bandit” about a year ago when I saw it was available through Netflix’s Watch Instantly service. However, that version of the film was a pan-and-scan copy that looked like it was dubbed off a crappy 3/4” tape from an decrepit television station. Consequently, I didn’t enjoy the movie that much, and this is a fantastic example of how presentation can impact a film. (Other films that I’d seen over the years suffering from bad VHS pan-and-scan presentation and yielding a lower opinion include the original “Mad Max” and even the classic “Alien.”)
With Universal’s 100th Anniversary release, I finally had a chance to see “Smokey and the Bandit” in a good format, on high definition and widescreen. Sure, the film has some serious grain issues, and the common flip-flop choice of Universal to scrub their digital prints is evident throughout, but a decent picture and good sound went a long way to helping me appreciate the film.
“Smokey and the Bandit” tells the story of a famous bootlegger named the Bandit (Burt Reynolds) who agrees to run a shipment of Coors beer from Texarkana to the Southern Classic in Georgia in only 28 hours. Bandit runs interference for the truck in a new Pontiac Trans Am. Along the way, he picks up a runaway bride (Sally Field), whose disgruntled fiancé is the son of a mean sumbitch Texas sheriff. The Bandit tries to keep ahead of the sheriff, get the girl and make the run all the way to Georgia to win the bet.
You can’t take a movie like this too seriously, and I can easily see how it became a phenomenon in the 1970s. With the explosion of interest in CB radios and the audience’s penchant for car chase films, “Smokey and the Bandit” was lightning in a bottle. It’s a silly film for anyone who has dreamed of being just enough outside of the law to have fun and not hurt anyone.
Growing up on a steady diet of episodes of “The Dukes of Hazzard,” I found a lot of fun in this film, especially on a second viewing. I am ashamed a bit to have laughed so heartily at parts of the movie, but the good ol’ boy nature of the film and the brilliantly over-the-top performance of Jackie Gleeson as Sheriff Bufort T. Justice just makes me giggle. It’s quintessentially 70s and still a ton of fun.
The 100 Years of Universal “Smokey and the Bandit” Blu-ray also includes a DVD of the film and a Digital Copy disc. The bonus material includes the theatrical trailer and the featurettes “Loaded Up and Truckin’: Making Smokey and the Bandit” and “Snowman: What’s Your 20?: the Smokey and the Bandit CB Tutorial.”
Additional bonus material includes the 100 Years of Universal featurettes “The ‘70s” and “The Lot.”
