6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.3 |
In this hilarious spoof of the music industry, three intelligence-challenged rock'n' rollers decide to take drastic action after their music continually falls on deaf ears. They break into a radio station, hoping to get their demo played on the air. But when the deejay and station manager refuse to play their song, the boys have no choice but to take the entire radio station hostage.
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi, Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, Michael McKeanComedy | 100% |
Music | 20% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.84:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Few films are so aptly named as Airheads. It's descriptive of the water gun-toting Rock Star lead characters, probably a play on the popular "air guitar," and it certainly describes the movie as a whole, a picture with next to nothing in between its figurative celluloid ears. But that's just fine. Airheads may not have much of a brain -- and it doesn't take much of a brain to enjoy it -- but it does the whole thoughtless entertainment thing quite well. It's a movie that strives for little and succeeds at producing only a little: a little fun, a little entertainment, a little smile on the face when it's all said and done. It's not a thinking man's picture but rather a pleasant little slice of low-end cinema escapism that's put together very well for what it is and all it needs to be. It proves that mindless cinema isn't always a bad thing, that sitting back in the air conditioning and watching a movie purely for fun and a ninety-minute reprieve from the doldrums of life can be a pleasurable experience when the movie, in turn, only aims to be that escapist picture, nothing more and nothing less.
Go ahead, make my day by playing my song.
Airheads enjoys a fairly good, basic, proficient transfer of a midlevel catalogue released on the cheap to Blu-ray. Anchor Bay's picture quality is almost always more than satisfactory, producing a fair film-like image that's clean, sturdy, and rarely with major flaw. Light grain, minimal wear, and precious little edge enhancement help solidify the image. Details are solid, though never really spectacular. There's a pleasing sense of clarity and accuracy to faces and clothes, while the transfer reveals sharp, positive imagery in the background inside the radio station. The color palette certainly isn't vibrant, but it holds its own. Some scenes look rather dim, and a few disappointingly so, but general color reproduction leaves little room for annoyance. Flesh tones are decent if not slightly warm at times, while black levels don't stray too far from a natural shade. All told, fans should be happy with this one and videophiles won't be pulling out their 80s-inspired Rock 'n' Roll hair in agony, either.
Airheads blares out a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It's not the most exciting Rock 'n' Roll movie soundtrack, but it's suitably big and loud and with enough muscle under the hood to play it all back about as well as can be expected. There's a nice general clarity and precision to music; the Rock notes enjoy a positive flow, fine front end spacing, and a good deal of balanced surround support. Music certainly dominates the track, and its aggressive posture is the presentation's most notable asset, but there are some other good qualities to share. A few action-oriented sound effects play with positive energy and fair clarity; nothing comes across as mushy, not even the crowd din outside the station. There is some quality thuds and bangs accompanying some of the gunfire heard later in the film. Dialogue plays cleanly and clearly from the center channel. This is a good, well-roudned track that serves the movie very well.
Airheads contains no extras, and no menu is included. The film begins playback immediately after disc insertion. Optional English SDH subtitles must be switched on or off in-film with the remote control.
Airheads won't be remembered as a Comedy classic, but it's a surprisingly well-rounded picture largely thanks to its ability to remain focused. It never deviates from a winning formula that dictates that, sometimes, the simplest way is the best way. This is straightforward entertainment, no harm, no foul, and yes, no thought cinema that should satisfy its target audience. As an added bonus, the cast is fantastic in name and execution both, with Brendan Fraser delivering what is one of his finer efforts; he absolutely nails the character on both the outside and the inside. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of Airheads unfortunately lacks any supplemental content, but video and audio qualities are just fine. Recommended.
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