7.8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.4 |
New York City. Melvin Udall, a cranky, bigoted, obsessive-compulsive writer, finds his life turned upside down when neighboring gay artist Simon is hospitalized and his dog is entrusted to Melvin. In addition, Carol, the only waitress who will tolerate him, must leave work to care for her sick son, making it impossible for Melvin to eat breakfast.
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr., Skeet UlrichRomance | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Music: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
There’s probably no finer example of the changes wrought by the sixties on Hollywood than Jack Nicholson. Could Nicholson have flourished in the studio system of the thirties or forties, or indeed even in the fifties with the slow and steady encroachment of television? Though Nicholson was at least passably dashing in his younger years, he wasn’t flat out matinee idol handsome, and he had a sort of snarky persona that was distinctly at odds with the glamorous ethos of the Golden Age of La-La Land. Seeing Nicholson’s early performances now in such films as The Little Shop of Horrors (the original), The Raven and The Terror, it’s at least a little surprising that Nicholson went on to become one of the most iconic performers of his generation. Part of that ascent must certainly be due to the sea change that brought the independent film to the forefront in the late sixties, and Nicholson’s contributions to such legendary outings as Easy Rider most assuredly helped put him (mostly) in the driver’s seat for a career that really exploded in the seventies. It’s really rather amazing at just how quickly Nicholson did ascend in that decade, with the one two punch of Carnal Knowledge and Five Easy Pieces finally bringing him the mainstream recognition which had largely eluded him for the early part of his career. By the time Nicholson starred in As Good As It Gets in 1997, he was largely unassailable as one of the two or three leading male performers of his generation, and even without really “stretching” in his role of Melvin Udall, he brought home his third Oscar, perhaps due at least as much to the force of his now beloved curmudgeonly persona as for any acting brilliance he brought to the project (but make no mistake about it, he does bring acting brilliance to the part). But the fact is probably no other actor could have played as offensive a character as Udall, a writer suffering from OCD who hurls insults like Don Rickles crossed with the Energizer Bunny. In less beloved hands, Udall would have come off as a hopeless, unseemly boor. Nicholson somehow manages to make the character palatable, if only barely at times. While As Good As It Gets is perhaps not quite as good as its rapturous 1997 reviews claimed, it’s a showcase for the very idiosyncratic and even peculiar charm that Jack Nicholson brings to his performances.
As Good As It Gets is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Twilight Time with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. This is yet another really nice looking high definition presentation culled from the Columbia assets catalog, with beautifully saturated colors and excellent sharpness and clarity. Fine object detail is often exceptional and many of the exterior location shots provide great depth of field. The film feels just a little dark at times, with contrast perhaps not pushed quite as far as some would hope, which leads to some minimal loss of shadow detail in some interior and night scenes. That said, there doesn't appear to have been any excessive digital tweaking (if indeed much of any at all), giving this presentation a very natural filmic quality. The elements are in excellent condition all the way through the film. This continues Twilight Time's generally superior track record in releasing high quality high definition transfers.
As Good As It Gets' lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix has some surprising immersion for such a dialogue based character study. Part of this is due to the great outdoor footage which bustles with the sounds of Manhattan, but even little things like Verdell scampering through Melvin's cavernous apartment are handled with really nice directionality that fills up the sound field, albeit subtly at times. Dialogue is clean and crisp and the film's copious use of source cues is also rendered very well on this lossless track. Fidelity is top notch and dynamic range is decently wide, if never really overwhelming.
There's some real disappointment to be felt with regard to the supplements on this new Blu-ray in that the excellent commentary from the DVD (which featured the principal players plus Brooks plus others) hasn't been ported over to this Blu- ray release. Perhaps it wasn't offered as part of the licensing deal or perhaps Columbia – Sony was asking for too much for it to be included, but it's a real shame that it's missing here. Otherwise, the disc includes:
As Good As It Gets isn't a perfect film, but you know what it is? It's a brave film, one that dares not to toe the line of cookie cutter movie making, and that makes it aces in my book. There's probably never been a character quite like Melvin Udall in the annals of film, and Nicholson brings him fully alive in a wonderful performance. Hunt and Kinnear are also exceptional and the interplay between the three characters is fantastic. The film has its share of laughs, but this is really an analysis of three wounded souls learning to form a community. It's a lesson that seems even more relevant today than it did in 1997. This Blu-ray offers superior video and audio and though the missing commentary is a real disappointment, this release comes Highly recommended.
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