I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 7, 2020

This Mill Creek Blu-ray release of 'I'm Not Rappaport' is currently only available as part of a double feature with 'Dad.' As it is, the two share a single disc.

The plot revolves around two elderly gentlemen. One is Nat Moyer (Walter Matthau) who might these days be considered something of a "social justice warrior." He fondly remembers his younger days, the days of union battles, and these days he takes it upon himself to lead grocery shoppers in rebellion against exorbitantly high, and ever rising, prices. His daughter Clara (Amy Irving) fears for his safety and wishes to see him placed in a retirement home rather than roam the dangerous city streets and parks. One day, he meets one his peers, the partially blind Midge (Ossie Davis). The two almost immediately hit it off, talking up the old days and the ways of the world, but their relationship ultimately leads them to a crusade to clean up the streets.

The movie works as well as it does because Davis and Matthau are too charming to resist. Their grasp of life's simplicities and complexities -- and the often intermixing of the two, literally blurring the line in Midge's case -- and discussions thereof make for compelling stuff. The film is based on Herb Gardner's play which ran on Broadway through the mid-1980s (Judd Hirsch and Cleavon Little played Nat and Midge, respectively). Gardner reworked the plot for the screen and directed, perhaps controversially expanding the premise and scope, taking away from what works and crafting an adventure-comedy. The film shines when it's just Matthau and Davis doing what they do best -- sharing life with one another -- but it grows too long, too stale, and too generic when Gardner opens the floodgates to take attention away from the camaraderie.

I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

I'm Not Rappaport's 1080p transfer is, surprisingly, quite good, even as it's sharing precious disc space with Dad. The picture holds firm to an organic film-like texturing, maintaining a relatively light grain structure that's flattering and complimentary. The picture is sharp throughout, boasting intricate facial textures, vital in appreciating the characters' advanced age and revealing all of the spots and lines and wrinkles on both faces. Clothes and environments are likewise full of life. Colors are robust and true, with special mention of the natural greens that are so prominent in many scenes. Skin tones are accurate and black levels are true. The source shows a few spots and speckles but is otherwise in fine shape. No major compression artifacts are in evidence, either.

I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The video quality is quite good in the aggregate, but the companion DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack is note quite as rich and robust. It's not poor -- the track is limited in what it can accomplish with the movie's pedestrian sound design -- but it's not at all aggressive at reference volume and sounds a little flat as it is. Dialogue images well enough to the center, with only sporadic misses that leave it sounding a bit further out to the middle. Dialogue clarity is decent, too, but again it's a bit dull and flat with a few moments of raised voices a little more natural. Chanting crowds in a supermarket near film's start stands as one of the more robust moments in the movie. Engagement is fair across the front but clarity is a little muddled, though. Light natural ambience -- general background odds and ends during the lengthy "getting to know you" exchange between Nat and Midge in the first act -- fill the scene but offer little of sonic interest. Music does not stretch too far out to the edges; a merry-go-round at the 37-minute mark doesn't appear to stretch all that far from the imaged middle portion. In summary (or TL;DR, again in modern parlance): it's passable. Expect little, get little. No other audio options are included on the disc. Only English SDH subtitles are available.

I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Unfortunately, no supplemental content is included on this disc.

I'm Not Rappaport Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I'm Not Rappaport delivers when Matthau and Davis are left alone, but the film struggles with pace and coherence when their burgeoning friendship, worldview talk, and personal chatter is interrupted by all the excess stuff thrown their way. It's still worth watching, though, because its high points soar. Mill Creek's featureless Blu-ray delivers quality video and a 2.0 lossless audio track that gets by. Recommended.