7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A documentary about a Wisconsin man named Mark Borchardt and his attempts to direct a low-budget horror film called "Coven."
Starring: Mark Borchardt, Mike SchankDocumentary | 100% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
It used to be said that everyone wanted to write the Great American Novel, but maybe now it’s that everyone wants to make the Great American Movie (or maybe it’s the Great American TikTok video…who knows in 2024). But in the 1990s, making the Great American Movie was certainly the big dream driving one young man, hungry for success but starved for funds: not just any motion picture, but his motion picture. The documentary film American Movie shows audiences what it looks like to pour one's heart and soul, life and limbs, and every nickel and dime into achieving the dream through hard labor, a lot of favors and loans, and a little bit of good fortune along the way.
Sony Pictures Classics delivers American Movie to Blu-ray with a 1080p transfer framed in its native 4x3 aspect ratio, presenting the film with vertical "black bars" on either side of the 1.78:1 HD frame. The image is certainly adequate with the native film content looking suitably sharp and modestly grainy, preserving the natural filmic appearance. The picture is not necessarily remarkable in any way but holds serve to offer good core skin and clothing details while bringing nice clarity to the many 90s aesthetics and elements seen throughout the film, making this a nice little time machine sort of transfer that offers a real-life glimpse into the way things were a few decades ago. Color saturation is good. The palette is certainly not vivid or robust, but there is enough depth and accuracy to please. White balance is fine, and so are black levels. Skin tones look healthy and realistic. There is no serious print wear and the encode semes fine. All in all, this is a very serviceable, at worst, and solid, at best, Blu-ray from Sony.
Sony brings American Movie to Blu-ray with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack. The presentation is the textbook definition of "simplistic." And it's OK that it's simplistic, because the sound design is as basic as they come. There is very little going on here, with no real score or music and only a few basic sound effects working to help define the location, like a TV playing football in the background, a cash register working, or a few other minor bits that help to fill environments and create light atmosphere. There is a very basic sense of place which helps even in the quiet dialogue scenes or shooting out in the field. The track offers decent front side stretch but never pushing to the far reaches of the front left and right speakers. Most of the content is centered, and that includes dialogue, which is nicely clear and imaged perfectly to the center speaker area, so much so that many, if not most, listeners will be fooled into believing that the center channel is active.
This Blu-ray release of American Movie contains a commentary, deleted scenes, and a trailer. No DVD or digital copies are included with
purchase. This release does not ship with a slipcover.
I'm not sure if "inspiring" is a word I would use to define American Movie, as it prominent on the advertising materials, but it's certainly a fascinating ride through the life of a small independent filmmaker whose struggles to make the film -- whether financial or simply getting a line for ADR just right -- make for compelling cinema all their own. It's a fun journey, in some ways a story of triumph, and in some ways a story of reality; Borchardt is certainly not a household name in the movie business, but he did live his dream, at least to some degree. Sony's Blu-ray is a nice way to watch the movie, offering faithful video and audio and a couple of good extras, including a commentary track and a lengthy assortment of deleted scenes. Recommended!
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