Housesitter Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Housesitter Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 21, 2019

Housesitter is one of those movies that works well enough as a broadly entertaining Comedy with some staying power but lacks the chops to solidify itself as a genre classic. Director Frank Oz's (Little Shop of Horrors, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) film pairs two of its era's biggest stars in a domestic comedy showcase that plays it straight rather than angle to do anything different with the story. It follows predictable lines to expectedly humorous result, much of which comes thanks to the cast. Oz doesn't work much magic on this one, rightly relying on Martin and Hawn and the increasingly complex charade to carry the film. He simply frames the action for his actors, offering a steady but invisible hand on the other side of the lens.

Architect Newton Davis (Steve Martin) has two big dreams: marrying his longtime sweetheart Becky (Dana Delany) and earning a much-deserved promotion at work. He decides to combine his passions when he builds a beautiful home and asks Becky to marry him. She turns him down. The house sits empty for three months, the grass overgrows, and Davis' life prospects seem down the toilet. Things change when he meets a spunky and sharp waitress named Gwen (Goldie Hawn). The two share a passionate night which Davis assumes to be a one-time fling. The next morning, however, and armed with some inside knowledge of Davis' sob story, Gwen takes it upon herself to travel to Davis' once-dream home. She finds herself in a cozy, idyllic Massachusetts small town where she claims to be Davis’ wife. One of the first people she bumps into is none other than Becky. And it’s not long before she meets Davis’ father George (Donald Moffat). Neither of them, of course, have any clue that Davis has "married" Gwen. She settles into town, moves into Davis' home, and takes it upon herself to furnish the house -- all without his knowledge and on his tabs around town, of course -- all while posing as Mrs. Davis, who was swept off her feet and talked into a whirlwind marriage.

Davis is understandably flabbergasted when he pulls up to the house with a for-sale sign in the back of his Mustang. He’s even more surprised to find Gwen inside. It’s an awkward situation and a big lie to overcome, and considering that Gwen has already charmed her way into the hearts of half the people Davis knows, he has little choice but to go along with the gag. But Davis, the whip-sharp man that he is, concocts a scheme to use Gwen’s lies as an avenue to get Becky back and advance his career at the same time. But the story grows bigger and more preposterous and the process only seems to bring them closer together, at least “closer” as in “bickering married couple,” rather than closer as in "newlywed bliss."

The film's humor stems not from the setup but rather how the lie spirals out of control. That Gwen concocts such a fantastic story with so little knowledge of the man she has supposedly married, the house in which she supposedly lives, the town she knows nothing about is quite something, and it's so elaborate that she ultimately convinces the entire town -- and maybe even herself -- that she is actually Mrs. Newton Davis rather than a nobody waitress. The lie grows so large that she eventually has to find a couple to play the part of her parents, which yields some of the funniest moments when her "father" repeats his "war story" even if it doesn't jive with historical fact. The film follows a linear trajectory that suddenly grows exponentially absurd, but it's ways kept grounded by manicuring a tale that spirals out of control to the point that it always seems salvageable somehow, some way, until the proverbial straw inevitably gets added to bring the whole thing down. When that comes isn't a surprise but maybe it's how and why and what will happen after that keeps the viewer drawn into the story.

Martin and Hawn embrace the chaos and maintain control, even in the most out-of-control moments. Both actors thrive on the madness and both do a great job of verbally rolling with the increasingly large snowball of lies and fending off the avalanche of truth. The physical work is excellent, too. Martin is tasked with more of it, while Hawn maintains a more even keeled equilibrium in her dealings. Martin brings a screwball humor to the movie, and the part fits into his wheelhouse, allowing him to yell and scream and flail about while holding steady in the more dramatic moments, too. Hawn is likewise very well cast, playing up the lie in the early stages and gracefully building on it even as the cracks appear and the foundation begins to crumble.

Housesitter Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Universal's 1080p Blu-ray presentation of Housesitter is fundamentally sound. Imperfect, but fundamentally sound. The random pop or speckle appears here and there but never to debilitating or distracting density. Grain is generally well handled. It can push a little heavy and dense but usually lends a nice filmic appearance to the picture. Details present handsomely. There's no look of noise reduction, and critical facial and environmental details are spot-on. Basic skin definition reaches acceptable complexity, the house and the idyllic small town look sharp, and a few city details are handsomely dense and organic. Colors are not super lively but there's not a feel for major fading either. Natural greens please, primaries pop with relative ease, but the image does lack the nuance and depth of superior transfers. Skin tones and black levels are fine. No major source or encode flaws are immediately apparent. This is a good performing catalogue release from Universal.

Housesitter Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Housesitter's two-channel DTS-HD Master Audio lossless soundtrack handles its duties well. Music plays with commendable width, taking full advantage of the limited channels at its disposal to draw the listener into the music as fully as is possible. Clarity is good, not perfect, but individual notes and core instrumental details over the fairly varied opening title music, for instance, are impressive. Crowd din at a gathering minutes into the movie is appropriately wide and bustling, while dense city atmosphere in chapter seven is also fluid and full. The track has little of significant depth and high yield delivery on tap, but those few moments muster enough in quality of delivery to please. Dialogue propels the film, and the detailed and well prioritized words manage to image to the center in organic fashion.

Housesitter Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Housesitter contains no extras. There is no top menu screen and the pop-up menu offers only options for toggling subtitles on and off. No DVD or digital copies are included. This release does not ship with slipcover.

Housesitter Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Housesitter is a fun, breezy Comedy that works because of enthusiastic and steady performances, not because of any dramatic surprise or unexpected paths to the end. Martin and Hawn are a perfect pair and the script plays to their strengths. Universal's featureless Blu-ray delivers good video and audio presentations. Both are just a smidgen rough around the edges but work quite well in the aggregate. Recommended.