Election Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Election Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 16, 2017

Alexander Payne's "Election" (1999) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; exclusive new video interview with actress Reese Witherspoon; audio commentary by Alexander Payne; archival footage from the making of the film; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Dana Stevens and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The best candidate

The dark humor that makes Alexander Payne’s Election attractive comes from the same place where many of Todd Solondz’s films reside. It is an odd place that can make one feel very uneasy, at times even nauseated, but there are a lot of inconvenient truths that can be uncovered there.

The film is set in Omaha, Nebraska, where a local high school is gearing up to elect a new student president. Initially, it looks like the entire process will be a formality and Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon) will cruise to victory. She is smart, energetic, and super-ambitious. She is also the only candidate on the ballot who is actually campaigning to get elected. So, it is only a matter of time before Tracy’s dream of running the student government becomes a reality. She can even feel it -- this is her time to be a star.

But a series of unexpected events slowly begin to chip away from Tracy’s perfect election campaign. One of her teachers, Mr. McAllister (Matthew Broderick), urges a dimwitted football player named Paul Matzler (Chris Klein) to run against her and much to everyone’s surprise he decides to give the challenge a shot. Then Paul’s sister, Tammy (Jessica Campbell), who has recently had her heart broken by another girl, also officially enters the race while vowing to dismantle the student government that for years has been wasting everyone’s precious time. However, Tracy does not panic and begins working even harder to convince undecided voters that she is the right person for the position, though the more laser-focused she becomes on her mission, the more she begins to realize that her opponents are gaining serious momentum.

It is painfully obvious that Election satirizes the country’s electoral process, and for a number of valid reasons. For example, all of the main characters basically mirror a conventional political character that you are bound to discover in any election cycle -- Tracy is the overconfident candidate that voters have to choose because it is her time to win; Paul’s is the clueless plant who is in the race for the thrill, not because he actually has a vision for the future; and Tammy is the angry outsider that just wants to blow up the whole damn system because she thinks that like her everyone else has had enough of it. Sound familiar? Then you have the dirty games and backstabbing that heated elections are known for, though here most of the behind-the-scenes surprises are rather underwhelming. It is the familiar circus that you see covered by the news networks but downsized for local consumption. So, all of the targets are very clear and Payne fires at them with proper ammunition.

The problem with this film is that there are rather large sections of it where the balance between the humor and the awkward becomes unbearably artificial, and when it happens there is typically a ‘gottcha’ moment that feels completely out of sync. The scattered narration and random freeze-frame shots also add an MTV-esque vibe to the story that ultimately make other parts look as if they come from a trendy, slightly unhinged reality show.

Election Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Alexander Payne's Election arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new digital transfer was created in 16-bit 4K resolution on a Lasergraphics Director film scanner from the Super 35mm original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI Films' DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for jitter, flicker, small dirt, grain, and noise management. The 5.1 surround soundtrack was remastered from the original 35mm magnetic track. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were removed using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX.

Transfer supervisors: Alexander Payne, Lee Kline.
Colorist: Gregg Garvin/Roundabout Entertainment, Burbank, CA."

The entire film looks very healthy and boasts an outstanding range of nuances that allow indoor footage where light is restricted as well as daylight/well-lit wider panoramic shots to retain a very pleasing organic appearance (see screencaptures #2 and 3). Depth is also outstanding and on a bigger screen you should notice quite an improvement in overall image quality if you compare the current presentation to that of the release from 2009. The color scheme is stable and convincing. There are no digital anomalies to report in our review. Overall image stability is excellent. (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).

Election Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, the appear inside the image frame.

There are no technical anomalies to report. The audio remains crystal clear and stable throughout the entire film, and there are no dynamic or balance issues. Rolfe Kent's score is given decent opportunities to shine, though this isn't a film that aims to impress with smart use of music themes and effects. There are no audio dropouts, pops, background hiss, or digital distortions to report.

Election Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original U.S. trailer for Election. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• The Passion of Martin - presented here is Alexander Payne's UCLA thesis film, The Passion of Martin, which was screened at the 1991 edition of the Sundance Film Festival. Also included is a director's statement and filmed introduction. Restored. Color. In English, not subtitled. (49 min, 1080p).
  
  1. Director's Statement - in text-format.
  2. Introduction - newly filmed introduction. In English, not subtitled. (11 min, 1080p).

• Reese Witherspoon - in this brand new video interview, actress Reese Witherspoon recalls how she was offered the role of Tracy Flick and discusses the lasting impact Election has had on her career. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in Los Angeles August 2017. In English, not subtitled. (11 min, 1080p).

• Truinside: "Election" - presented here is an episode of truTV's documentary truInside which focuses on the production history of Election. Included in it are clips from interviews with director Alexander Payne, Matthew Broderick, Chris Klein, novelist Tom Perrotta (Election), and producer Albert Berger, amongst others. The episode was broadcast on March 7, 2016. In English, not subtitled. (40 min, 1080i).

• Local News - this vintage TV report features raw footage from the making of Election and was original broadcast on CBS' Omaha affiliate KMTV-TV in 1997. In English, not subtitled. (1 min, 1080i).

• Audio Commentary - this vintage audio commentary features director Alexander Payne and initially appeared on the first DVD release of Election that Paramount Home Media Distribution produced. It was recorded in 1999.
  
  1. Circles, straight lines, and trash
  2. Talent everywhere
  3. Chris Klein
  4. Opticals
  5. Apple theme
  6. Golf theme
  7. Lady Macbeth
  8. Bad haircuts
  9. Essence of the film
  10. Nonprofessionals actors
  11. All-school assembly
  12. Pursued by garbage
  13. Tracy's realization
  14. Airplane version
  15. An honest ending

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring critic Dana Stevens' essay "That's Why It's Destiny", as well as technical credits.

Election Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

When in 1999 Alexander Payne completed Election he was right to target the hypocrisy and lunacy that frequently define national presidential elections, but now, at the end of 2017, the same film can just as easily be used to satirize the wild devolution of various academic institutions across the country. Indeed, this year there has been a seemingly never-ending avalanche of news reports highlighting bizarre behavior and incidents at small colleges and prestigious universities that completely overshadow what takes place in this film. It is really, really sad because if this is the new normal that a majority of young people are forced to accept, a generation or two from now there would be hardly any important academic institutions left that we would be able to recognize, and the country will almost certainly have to choose its leaders from a pool of characters that are even more untrustworthy and unhinged than the ones seen in Payne's film. Criterion's new release is sourced from a very strong 4K master that offers a wide range of meaningful improvements. RECOMMENDED.