6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
During the 1930s, a New York City illegal gambling house owner and his associates must deal with strong competition, gangsters, and corrupt cops in order to stay in business.
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx, Danny Aiello, Michael LernerComedy | 100% |
Period | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
German: Dolby Digital 2.0
French: Dolby Digital 2.0
Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH, French, German, Japanese
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
In the years leading up to the production of 1989’s “Harlem Nights,” star Eddie Murphy was viewed as basically unstoppable. He was young, hilarious, and participated in major box office hits, including the top-grossing movie of 1984, “Beverly Hills Cop.” Hollywood quickly learned Murphy could put butts in seats, even for mediocre endeavors, such as 1986’s “The Golden Child,” and he managed to turn a stand-up comedy feature (1987’s “Raw”) into event cinema. Murphy was everything, especially to Paramount Pictures, who looked to the actor to generate blockbusters, including 1987’s “Beverly Hills Cop II,” and especially 1988’s “Coming to America,” which wasn’t warmly received by critics and not expected to reach a large audience by the studio, but it became a word-of-mouth smash, proving Murphy didn’t need a gun or a fast mouth to inspire ticket sales. By 1989, Murphy could make any project he wanted to, and he did, putting himself in charge of “Harlem Nights,” which marked his directorial debut. Suddenly, the superstar was the principal creative force for a period gangster film, generating a major ego-stroke effort that also happens to be incredibly entertaining, periodically hilarious, and loaded with outstanding talent both in front of and behind the camera.
The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation of "Harlem Nights" is sourced from an older scan of the feature. Detail is softer, but some facial particulars retain texture, and achievements in costuming are mildly appreciable. Dimension isn't ideal, losing expanse with street tours and interiors, which are loaded with decorative additions. Color handles adequately but not remarkably, lacking snap with period hues and interior tours. Clothing carries a bit more potency. Brighter lighting sources are generally clipped. Delineation is acceptable. Grain looks processed, with some chunkier stretches. Source is in decent condition.
The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix delivers a clear understanding of dialogue exchanges, defining the assortment of acting choices here, with the loose, improvisational nature of some scenes remaining intelligible. Music tends to dominate, offering a sharp jazz sound with crisp percussion and horns, and scoring cues provide mild support in the surrounds for this primarily frontal listening event. Sound effects supply crisp gunshots, and while low-end response isn't significant, some weight is understood with explosions and body blows. Atmospherics handle crowd bustle adequately.
Murphy looks to tangle up the second half of "Harlem Nights," cooking up a scheme for Sugar and the crew, where they take on Bugsy's control of the city, looking to disrupt his operations during a major boxing fight featuring champ Jack (Stan Shaw), whose stutter is played for laughs, exposing some unnecessary mean-spiritedness from the production. Plot replaces the casual atmosphere of the feature, with Murphy trying to give the endeavor a memorable conclusion, working with gangster cinema tradition and his large cast to spotlight a major effort to undermine Bugsy's operations. It connects as intended, but it also identifies the occasional tonal divide in "Harlem Nights," which isn't cohesive, but remains engaging due to the power of the acting and the slickness of technical achievements. Murphy (who hasn't directed anything since 1989) isn't a tremendous stylist, but he knows to get out of the way at times, letting the cast bring their own special personalities to the picture. This is definitely an Eddie Murphy movie meant to play up the screen appeal of Eddie Murphy (his awkward love scene with Guy, which would've been cut by any other helmer, is proof of that), but there's a lot of charm here, and hearty laughs.
2017
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