Hustler White Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Hustler White Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf April 14, 2015

Co-writer/co-director Bruce La Bruce infuses 1996’s “Hustler White” with a love of classic Hollywood movies and street culture. Even if he’s not completely able to achieve his visual goals with a no-budget production, La Bruce retains a sense of mischief and kinky exploration with this graphic motion picture. Opening with a homage to “Sunset Boulevard,” “Hustler White” is off to the races, following Montgomery Ward (Tony Ward) through the ups and downs of hustling, avoiding some and engaging others as he tries to make money in the big city.

“Hustler White” has an “Alice in Wonderland” approach, chasing vignettes with other hustlers, pornographers, and johns as they seek payment and extreme forms of pleasure. Sex is everywhere, along with fetishes and violence, but La Bruce and fellow filmmaker Rick Castro keep the effort relatively light, focusing on this myriad of colorful characters, which keeps the movie on the move. Slowing down would only amplify the feature’s shortcomings, and the production is wise to focus on lustful content, exploring unusual encounters that trigger surprise, shock, and, when it comes time to explore amputees, a little rewinding for clarification. “Hustler White” is certainly unpredictable, which eventually becomes its greatest asset.

Hustler White Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Refreshed for its HD debut, "Hustler White" arrives with an AVC encoded image (1.34:1 aspect ratio) presentation, and it looks impressive. Clumps of debris periodically pop into view, and some judder is detected, but sharpness is retained (with the exception of a few focus-challenged shots), delivering an encouraging amount of fine detail -- as much as the low-budget cinematography will allow. Street life is pauseable, and L.A. textures are communicated without trouble. The feature's substantial amount of nudity remains intact, with creases and cuts holding definition. Colors are fresh and lively, with sharp primaries and accurate skintones. Delineation is never a problem, with deep blacks and crisp distances.

Hustler White Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix arrives in secure shape, but limitations inherent to the original design of the track threaten to deceive. Dialogue exchanges are stitched together from a number of sources, and while the choppy quality is distracting at times, the disc handles oddity without distortion, keeping performances as clean as possible. Soundtrack selections aren't pronounced, but they support as intended. Atmospherics are reproduced sharply.

Hustler White Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "2014 Introduction with Bruce La Bruce" (24:13, HD) visits the Toronto Film Festival, where the co-director of "Hustler White" chats about his inspirations, production challenges (making the picture for $50,000), and his philosophy on independent moviemaking.

• "Letter to 'Hustler White'" (54:08, SD) is as close to a commentary track as this BD gets, watching La Bruce view the film with two hustlers during the VHS era. Information is shared, cocaine is snorted, and fellatio is attempted.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included.

Hustler White Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Hustler White" is random, and monetary limitations are easily spotted. However, inspirations are varied, and the picture retains a scrappy independent spirit. Providing a glimpse of underground cinema as it was once defined, La Bruce and Castro create a playful, intimidating snapshot of hustler life. Whatever they lack in technical proficiency, they make up for it in sheer audacity.