Class Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Class Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 31, 2016

Lewis John Carlino's "Class" (1983) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of independent U.S. distributors Olive Films. The only supplemental feature on the disc is an original trailer for the film. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

"Going up, or going down?"

Lewis John Carlino directed only three films and Class was the last one. He was much more prolific as a writer and contributed to a number of very interesting projects, including John Frankenheimer’s Seconds and Anthony Page’s I Never Promised You a Rose Garden. The latter earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Writing in 1978.

In Class the young and naive Jonathan (Andrew McCarthy, Mannequin) arrives in a prestigious private school and discovers that he must share a room with the handsome and quite popular Skip (Rob Lowe, Bad Influence). Before he can even unpack his bags Jonathan is made to look like a complete fool, but soon after he and Skip become good friends. They constantly talk about girls and when Skip discovers that his roommate is still a virgin he sends him to a place in Chicago where he can become a man.

The place is not a brothel but a bar where men and women meet and try to have a good time. Jonathan does his best to impress a few of the single beauties but fails miserably and decides to go back home. It is then that he is picked up by Ellen (Jacqueline Bisset, Day for Night, Bullitt), who takes him to an expensive hotel and teaches him how to make love. Jonathan and Ellen begin seeing each other but eventually make discoveries that force them to question their sincerity and the future of their relationship.

Class comes from a different era. It is the type of film that can no longer be made in the politically correct environment we live in because no one would be willing to fund a film like it and then go against the many powerful watchdogs that determine what is right and wrong. It is sad but true.

There are small parts of Class that remind of classic sex comedies like Porky's and Screwballs but anyone expecting to see the type of phony personalities that are present in these films will be hugely disappointed. Class actually treats its characters like real people who essentially get caught up in awkward situations for the same reasons many of us do.

This sincerity is what keeps the film grounded in reality and makes it look fresh today. We can understand exactly how Jonathan feels when he is around Skip and his friends and why he keeps going back to Ellen. The film also makes it clear why a woman like Ellen would begin a relationship with someone who is the same age as her son and why she will stay in it. The film then shows that the sex is nothing more than a form of therapy which for a short period of time helps the two feel better.

The funniest scenes are the ones where Jonathan and Ellen are completely forced out of their comfort zones. Here they pretend to be other people and follow their instincts but their actions are very awkward. The saddest scenes are the ones where they no longer pretend to be other people and suddenly become incredibly vulnerable. The transitions between them can be quite abrupt but the cycle is actually a familiar one. It is part of a game that is played daily by millions of people who willingly wear masks and lie to each other. What the film tells us is that at some point the game always ends, just as it does for Jonathan and Ellen, and that the players are always left with wounds to remind them about their poor decisions.

In addition to McCarthy, three future stars made their acting debuts in Class. The first is John Cusack, who plays Roscoe, one of Skip’s best buddies. The second is Virginia Madsen, who plays the beautiful party girl Lisa. A very young Lolita Davidovich also appears in a short scene.

Class Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Lewis John Carlino's Class arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films.

The release is sourced from a pre-existing master, but the film has a pretty good organic appearance. The majority of the well-lit close-ups, for instance, boast decent depth. During the darker footage clarity is also good, though shadow definition should be better managed. (A new master would undoubtedly produce an overall better balanced image). Contrast levels remain stable. Fluidity is good, but occasionally some light unevenness pops up. Grain is present throughout the entire film, but it could be better resolved. Still, despite some very small fluctuations there are no troubling anomalies. There are no traces of recent sharpening adjustments. Colors are stable and natural, but some small nuances are missing. Overall image stability is very good. There are no large debris, cuts, stains, damage marks, or warped frames to report in our review. To sum it all up, there is room for some improvements and a brand new master would have certainly given the film a fresher appearance, but this is a fine organic presentation that makes it easy to enjoy it even on fairly large screens. My score is 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Class Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The audio has not been recently remastered, but depth and clarity are very good. In fact, in the segments where Elmer Bernstein's score has a prominent role depth and balance are surprisingly good. The dialog is clean, stable, and easy to follow. I have to mention here, however, that optional English SDH subtitles should have been included as there are plenty of people that would find them useful.

Class Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original theatrical trailer for Class. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Class Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Lewis John Carlino directed only three films and Class is his best work. It is about a naive student who begins a relationship with an older woman and in the process learns a lot about the games people like to play. If you have heard that it is a quirky comedy from the '80s and decide to see it, you are almost certainly going to be disappointed. It is a pretty serious film that has quite a few meaningful things to say in a way a lot of similarly themed contemporary films no longer can. The film looks good in high-definition, but I would have loved to see a nice selection of supplemental features. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.