Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		2.5

Guest House Paradiso Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 28, 2024

Adrian Edmondson's "Guest House Paradiso" (1999) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include new program with star Simon Pegg; new program with composer Colin Towns; new program with editor Sean Barton; archival documentary; trailers; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

All films like Guest House Paradiso share the same fundamental flaw. They operate with the assumption that vulgarity can be synonymous with comedy. There are plenty of vulgar films that are funny, but they cook up their comedy with a variety of different ingredients, like satire and allegory. Guest House Paradiso works with a single ingredient and periodically supersizes it, which is a proven recipe for disaster.

Somewhere on the British coastline, loopy pervert Richard Twat (Rik Mayall) and his dumber alcoholic partner Eddie Ndingombaba (Adrian Edmondson) run the cheapest and most disgusting hotel in the country. Their only guests are miserable outcasts and clueless outsiders who have accidentally discovered the hotel and decided to give it a chance. Their only neighbor is a giant nuclear power plant that dumps its toxic waste on the opposite end of a tiny beach. That the hotel manages to stay in business is a true miracle, but no one lucky enough to have endured its hospitality has bothered to study it. After paying their final bill, all guests immediately begin erasing all memories of the hotel’s existence.

But on a most ordinary day, a most unexpected, extraordinary guest arrives at the hotel ready to be treated like an ordinary guest. It is Italian superstar Gina Carbonara (Helene Mahieu), on the run from her abusive fiancé, Gino Bolognese (Vincent Cassel), who, overwhelmed by jealousy and having suffered a major nervous breakdown, has vowed to reunite her with her dead ancestors. Richard and Eddie welcome Gina with open arms, but while trying to impress her with proper service, accidentally feed their guests radioactive fish that quickly transforms them into walking puke machines. As Gino enters the hotel and locates Gina’s room several hours later, all hell breaks loose.

It is not at all difficult to notice that Edmondson and Mayall’s screenplay produces material that owes a lot to Dan Ackroyd’s unhinged comedy Nothing But Trouble. However, the quality of the writing and the quality of the acting in Guest House Paradiso and Nothing But Trouble are so drastically different that Edmondson and Mayall’s work seems quite original. Sadly, the content that makes it appear original is shockingly bad.

It is primarily because Edmondson and Mayall’s work drowns in amateurish vulgarity, preventing creativity of the kind that could have made Guest House Paradiso at least somewhat enjoyable. Indeed, the entire narrative of Guest House Paradiso is just different layers of vulgarity that is supposed to be funny but never is, delivered with terrible acting that quickly becomes seriously nauseating. For this reason, the great puke orgy that is initiated at the end seems quite ironic.

Guest House Paradiso looks cheaply made, too. The bulk of it has the shot-in-a-studio appearance that, rightfully or not, tells the audience that someone was closely watching the spending sheets to ensure that everything was done as quickly and as efficiently as possible. (Nothing But Trouble, which is by no means a perfect film, leaves the exact opposite impression. It is much, much better lensed, too).

During the final credits, a bonus sequence brings a proper closure to the vulgar mayhem the audience has been forced to endure for ninety minutes. It may very well be the best one in Guest House Paradiso. It is not outrageously funny and revealing what a great comedy Guest House Paradiso could have been. It is just nicely shot, and, well, not idiotic.

Guest House Paradiso Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Guest House Paradiso arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

Last year, Vinegar Syndrome introduced a 4K makeover of Guest House Paradise sourced from an interpositive with this release. Now, this release brings the same 4K makeover to the United Kingdom.

The entire film looks very healthy, and despite plenty of stylization work, all visuals convey pleasing delineation, clarity, and depth. I think that some darker areas can have more convincing shadow definition, but the impact on clarity and depth will not be dramatic a lot of the lighting is stylized. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. Color balance is excellent, but this is another area where some minor improvements affecting the saturation levels can be introduced. Again, darker areas, like the one this screencapture comes from, can look a tad more vibrant. If they do, the dynamic range of the visuals will be more convincing as well. Image stability is excellent. All in all, the 4K makeover is fine and looks good on Blu-ray. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Guest House Paradiso Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I often switched the two tracks to see how they differ. I suppose the 5.1 track is preferable during the busier footage, like the mayhem in the final act, but elsewhere the two tracks perform equally well. The dialog is clear and easy to follow, but from time to time can be slightly uneven if there is plenty of movement. There are no encoding anomalies to report.

Guest House Paradiso Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Making of Guest House Paradiso - this archival documentary features content from the shooting of Guest House Paradiso and clips from interviews with its creators and stars. In English, not subtitled. (36 min).

• Simon Pegg: Paradiso Pegg - in this recent program, Simon Pegg discusses the effect Rik Mayall's work had on him while he was growing up, his involvement with Guest House Paradiso, and several hilarious experiences he had during the shooting process. In English, not subtitled. (12 min).

• Colin Towns: All the Right Noises - in this new program, composer Colin Towns recalls how he was approached with an offer to score Guest House Paradiso and some of the things he attempted to accomplish with his music. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• Sean Barton: Finely Tuned Madness - in this new program, editor Sean Barton recalls his interactions with the creators of Guest House Paradiso and some of the requests they had and the work he did as the film was put together. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• Tom Brown: Squalid Precision - in this new program, production designer Tom Brown recalls the exact moment when he was hired to work on Guest House Paradiso, which was his first feature film job. Brown also discusses some of the architectural anomalies that are seen throughout the film. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• Outtakes - presented here is a collection of outtakes. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Promotional Materials - in English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Trailer One. (2 min).
  2. Trailer Two. (1 min).
  3. Trailer Three. (1 min).

• Image Gallery - a collection of original promotional materials.

• Booklet - a 40-page booklet with a new essay by Jon Robertson, an archival on-set report, an archival interview with Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and technical credits.

Guest House Paradiso Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Vulgarity could be the glue that holds together the different parts of a zesty comedy, but not when all of the humor in it emerges from supersized vulgarity. It is why Guest House Paradiso does not work. Indicator/Powerhouse Films' release presents Vinegar Syndrome's recent 4K makeover of the film with a fine selection of exclusive new and archival bonus features. If you decide to pick it up for your library, please keep in mind that it is Region-B "locked".