Company Business Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Company Business Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 20, 2015

The Cold War was big business for writer/director Nicholas Meyer in 1991, with one of his biggest hits, “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country,” managing to rework global tensions to fit a space opera, emerging with a thoughtful, clever sequel, one of the best in the series. Meyer is a little more direct with his political interests in “Company Business,” which offers a traditional take on spy games and government hubris. A Euro-scented buddy comedy that isn’t all that interested in producing laughs, “Company Business” is jumble of ideas from the normally measured Meyer, who scrambles to arrange a puzzle of motivations and secrets that play into an era-specific dismantling of national muscle. Perhaps the least effective effort from Meyer, the feature certainly isn’t lazy, just uninspired, missing secure direction necessary to make this sophisticated mix of attitudes and locations gripping.

Near the end of the Cold War, ex-C.I.A. operative Sam Boyd (Gene Hackman) is stuck in the world of corporate espionage, working overtime without fulfillment. Aging out of the spy game, Sam’s expertise is needed by C.I.A. boss Jaffe (Kurtwood Smith), who’s organizing a secretive prisoner exchange in Berlin, entrusting Sam with a briefcase filled with cash and a prisoner in Ivanovich Grushenko (Mikhail Baryshnikov), a KGB mole who’s being sent back to his bosses. Flying to the meeting spot, Sam forms a tentative friendship with Ivanovich, finding the men commiserating over their obsolete jobs and the loss of their once mighty nations. When Sam senses something off about the exchange, he pulls Ivanovich out of danger, commencing a long week of survival as the men work to identify corruption in play and protect their own interests as both superpowers work feverishly to preserve a shady deal.

Shot under the working title “Dinosaurs,” “Company Business” is primarily about forced obsolescence, with Sam and Ivanovich representing a recently discontinued time in global history, forced to deal with a new generation of relative peace and technological advances. In the movie’s best scene, Sam is confronted with the new wave of spying, realizing that his physical effort to retrieve secret documents in the feature’s exciting opening is unnecessary, faced with the new frontier of computer hacking by skinny, nerdy types. Experience, born from decades of dodging bullets and dealing with a slippery enemy, is outdated, leaving Sam without work and a place in the order of things. The same is true of Ivanovich, who’s watched his homeland change while in captivity, left to process a Russia that no longer belongs to him.

The theme of “Company Business” is ripe for exploration, and Meyer does a passable job with psychological inspection. The screenplay uses time between the spies smartly, building their bond through employment woes, paranoia, and Sam’s newfound love of Russian vodka, and the movie locates a steady offering of personality when it’s away from government influence, watching the men grasp the dangers of the situation and process their expendability, leaving them to pair up as a way to make it to safety. Trouble is, Hackman and Baryshnikov share very little chemistry, making the union a bit too restrained for comfort, even during Cold War tensions. Instead of building a buddy cop tempo, Meyer is herding cats, with behind-the-scenes tensions between the director and his cast registering clearly on camera, leading to a dip where budding camaraderie should be.

“Company Business” tries to encourage a little heat as an actioner, with Meyer orchestrating a few shoot-outs, explosions, and near-misses to spice up the effort. Location changes help as well, moving from Berlin to Paris, where the Eiffel Tower factors into the climatic showdown. A few surges in suspense are appreciated, but Meyer is more comfortable exploring the spy business, with ample screen time devoted to Sam’s bosses back in America, who scramble to silence the loose cannon, fearful that sketchy details surrounding the initial Berlin exchange might be revealed. Humor is present, but supporting characters aren’t shaded in full, leaving a few question marks where secure connective tissue should be. Perhaps the most perplexing development is the addition of a Middle Eastern character Sam comes to for help. Either through troubled screenwriting or judicious editing, the moment misses its mark, adding confusion to a feature that’s already full of bewildering developments.

Company Business Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "Company Business" does an adequate job respecting the original cinematography. Colors aren't overtly faded and remain communicative, and while the palette isn't explosive, hotter urban reds and cooler espionage blues retain their impact. Skintones are generally consistent with a few pinkish extremes. Grain is heavy and noisy at times. The overall viewing experience is filmic, with satisfactory detail on close-ups and set dressing, and costumes retain textures. Delineation manages to survive, though a few evening sequences carry to the brink of solidification. Distances are mostly preserved. Source is a bit tattered, with constant debris and speckling.

Company Business Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix isn't very consistent, failing to build up steam as levels drop without onscreen motivation. It's nothing drastic to ruin the listening experience, but it's just enough to notice. Dialogue exchanges are simple and full, isolating dramatic urgency and friendly banter, though a few passages display a minor amount of damage, likely inherent to the source. Atmospherics are welcoming, adjusting to the bigness of tourist areas and the echo of conference rooms. Sound effects are sharp and effective.

Company Business Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "Our Country 'Tis of We" (6:35, SD) is the official EPK making-of featurette for "Company Business," showcasing interviews (conducted on-set) with Gene Hackman, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Nicholas Meyer. The men are in promotional mode, discussing characterization and story, and all three lack enthusiasm. Interestingly, there's a brief shot of what appears to be the film's original ending (a tropical location) included here.

• Sound Bites gather brief interviews with Hackman (1:55, SD), Baryshnikov (2:27, SD), Meyer (1:31, SD), and producer Steven-Charles Jaffe (1:43, SD). Topics range from creative inspiration to thematic extension.

• Selected B-roll (4:06, SD) gives audiences a fly-on-the-wall view of the "Company Business" shoot, but instead of only offering a peek at the production in motion, the featurette observes banal business as well, watching Hackman chat up a co-star in his chair and spying tour buses in Paris stop to watch the excitement. It's not thrilling, but this type of unvarnished look at the mechanics of filmmaking is always welcome.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (2:02, SD) is included.

Company Business Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Meyer's labor is evident throughout "Company Business," which tries to whip up mood through the use of Dutch angles, wonderfully expansive sets from James Bond stalwart Ken Adam, and a driving score from Michael Kamen. However, by the end of the movie, it feels as though nothing was truly accomplished, with the cast and crew going through the motions to make a spy extravaganza, never feeling it in full. "Company Business" isn't boring, but it's dull, executed by a filmmaker who never seems like he believes in the material, only stimulated by changes in scenery and the occasional moment that suddenly clicks together as a truly suspenseful moment. In 1991, when Meyer made two features about the Cold War, who could've predicted that his most meaningful take on antagonisms would emerge from the "Star Trek" universe. Real world escalation and paranoia just doesn't offer the same political and cultural potency.