Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Bamboozled Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 13, 2020

The United States is currently (as this review is being written) undergoing some significant reexamination of its history with regard to race, but the fact that Bamboozled was shot and released at the turn of the millennium may give credence to the idea that many of the issues currently making the front pages of newspapers and/or the top of online news feeds have obviously been around for at least untold decades if not centuries. That said, Bamboozled also makes clear that the United States' history with so-called "race relations" and depictions of race have also been the subject of rather biting critiques over the course of all those years. Spike Lee has never shirked from being overtly political in many (maybe most or arguably even all) of his films, as some of the supplements on this disc make completely clear, but even in the context of a “Spike Lee Joint”, Bamboozled is unusually piquant and provocative. In what might be seen as a little “soul” inspired riff on Mel Brooks’ The Producers, Lee fashions a film around the outrageous idea of a black guy working in the television industry who is sick of being treated badly (mostly by a white boss), and who comes up with an idea which he is sure will be so offensive it will get him fired: a minstrel show to be broadcast on national television, replete with performers ( black performers, it should be added) in blackface. Of course, in true Producers fashion, this “sure fire miss” turns into a hit of unexpected proportions, with a number of careening consequences.

One of the many ways the United States has been reexamining its history with regard to race is in fact the use of blackface in various entertainment media, and it's kind of remarkable how many people have apologized for using it over just the past few years, something that might be at least a little surprising, given the general sentiment that, despite repeated stumbles, Mankind is supposedly becoming more "woke" about such issues. It's almost positively prophetic, then, that Lee should use this now disgraced "technique" (for want of a better term) as one of the more scabrous elements of a film that Lee himself wants perceived as a satire, but which seems almost unbelievably "real" (within the film's admittedly cartoonish context).

Pierre Delacroix (Damon Wayans) is a relatively well to do black man working at a network called CNS, where he's under the thumb of a boorish, mostly brain dead executive named Dunwitty (Michael Rapaport). Dunwitty repeatedly rejects Delacroix's ideas for shows, until, that is, a frustrated Delacroix, desperate to get out of his contract and positive pitching an idea like this will quickly achieve that aim, tells Dunwitty about his idea for a modern day minstrel show. Of course, Dunwitty instantly approves of the idea, and Delacroix recruits two down on their luck entertainers, Manray (Savion Glover) and Womack (Tommy Davidson) to be his stars.

Much of what ensues tends to be with regard to reactions once the minstrel show broadcast becomes "must see television", and that includes not just the reactions of the stars (which are widely disparate), Delacroix himself (who starts enjoying the celebrity if not the underlyling content), and Delcroix's assistant Sloan Hopkins (Jada Pinkett Smith). There's a vocal presence decrying the series, which threatens to break out into violence (sound familiar?), but at the core of this intentionally uncomfortable film is the issue of identity. It's worth noting that it turns out Delacroix is something of a "fake", going by an assumed name and perhaps trying to erase part of his own history. But the whole aspect of black performers donning blackface themselves and then portraying unabashedly stereotypical characters is Lee's none too subtle skewering of not just what might be termed inherent "black identity", but how maliciously (at least in Lee's perspective, and probably many others') various media have portrayed that supposed "identity".

Both during the film but especially at the end in a kind of coda, Lee offers a lot of those stereotypical depictions that have been part and parcel of the American cinematic landscape through the years. It's hard to watch these and not feel a sense of embarrassment, and maybe even shame, with both live action and cartoon portrayals that seem willfully ignorant and callous. Scenes of actors as famous as Bing Crosby, Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney all taking part in scenes that feature blackface (and donning it themselves in some instances) may cause more than a few troubled consciences, something that is of course what Lee intended with this unashamedly abrasive piece.

Bamboozled Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Bamboozled is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of The Criterion Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. In lieu of an insert booklet, Criterion provides an accordion style foldout with this release which contains the following verbiage on the master:

Bamboozled is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.77:1 [sic]. Black bars at the top and bottom of the screen are normal for this format. This new digital master was created in 2K resolution from the original SD PAL DV footage and new scans of the original Super 16 mm film footage and approved by director Spike Lee.

The original 5.1 surround soundtrack was remastered from the 35 mm magnetic track using Avid's Pro Tools and iZotope RX.

Criterion's own site has some more information on the transfer process here, for those who may be interested, but this is one of those releases where there is probably going to be a split between reactions to how "accurate" the transfer is and how it actually looks. While some tweaking to the palette was evidently done which may raise some hackles with some fans, aside from that issue and especially with regard to the DV material, the "accuracy" of this transfer is probably fine, though as can clearly be seen in the screenshots culled from the DV material, things just don't look all that great. Detail is pretty fuzzy a lot of the time, and colors are kind of muddy looking as well. Some darker scenes, or even scenes that have dark elements within the frame, can look pretty mottled (see screenshot 18). The 16mm footage (which is how the minstrel show was done) shows considerably more saturation, much better detail and a clearly visible grain field. Lee is on hand here specifically stating that the technologies utilized were done to keep costs down and the shoot on schedule, so he obviously made some choices at the time of the production which a high definition presentation can't overcome and which may indeed point out the limitations of some of the technology utilized.

Bamboozled Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Bamboozled's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track features no similar quality qualms, with a nicely immersive and often rambunctious sound that beautifully supports both the more heartfelt music (some courtesy of the great Stevie Wonder) as well as the considerably more provocative minstrel material. Sound effects like Glover's dancing also reverberate nicely and are directionally accurate. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout the presentation, and I noticed no issues whatsoever to report.

Bamboozled Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary is from Spike Lee and was recorded in 2001.


• In Conversation: Spike Lee with Ashley Clark (1080p; 25:41) is from 2019 and is a fascinating if again kind of unavoidably uncomfortable discussion of some of the film's provocative elements and the stereotypes that gave birth to them.


• Manray and Womack (1080p; 22:54) is a 2019 interview with Tommy Davidson and Savion Glover.


• Ruth E. Carter (1080p; 10:30) is a 2019 interview with the film's costume designer.


• On Blackface and the Minstrel Show (1080p; 17:38) is a 2019 piece by Raquel Gates which addresses some of the historical depictions of blacks.


• The Making of Bamboozled (1080i; 53:20) was produced for the film's DVD release and contains a glut of interviews and candid footage.


• Deleted Scenes (1080i; 17:04)


• Music Videos and Commercials (1080i; 18:38)


• Poster Gallery (1080i; 2:37)


• Trailer (1080i; 2:26)

An accordion style foldout insert is also included.

Bamboozled Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Bamboozled is not an easy film to watch, and no doubt Spike Lee intended it to be that way. I personally found it hard to actually laugh at any of this, though it seems like Lee wants to provoke the kind of humor that is founded in discomfort. The underlying conceit of this piece is kind of devastating, but as with many Lee films, my hunch is while I personally didn't react to the film this way, some may feel Lee's approach is pretty heavy handed and screed like. Performances are winning, though some of the material is obviously extremely provocative. The film's hybrid technologies used during the shoot means this has a pretty heterogeneous appearance which can be fairly ragged looking in the DV sequences. The audio is great, and the supplementary package outstanding. Recommended.