I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 5, 2014

Pedro Almodovar's "Los amantes pasajeros" a.k.a "I'm So Excited!" (2013) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Pathe/20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers for the film; stills gallery; and standard featurettes. In Spanish, with imposed English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Carlos Areces, Raul Arevalo, and Javier Camara

While flirting with each other, two airport workers (Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz) seriously damage the landing gear on a Spanish jet bound for Mexico City. Somewhere over Toledo, the pilot and co-pilot (Antonio de la Torre and Hugo Silva) ask the three gay stewards (Javier Camara, Raul Arevalo, and Carlos Areces) to improvise as best as they can to keep everyone relaxed while air traffic control searches for a runaway somewhere in Spain. The passengers in Economy Class are quickly drugged, while the passengers in Business Class are entertained by the surprisingly talented stewards.

Eventually, the bad news is leaked and people panic. A round of expertly mixed mescaline-laced cocktails, however, quickly changes the mood in Business Class. Soon after, the bisexual captain and the slightly confused co-pilot also join the party. Then everyone becomes so friendly that a giant orgy almost becomes a reality.

Spanish maestro Pedro Almodovar’s latest film isn’t for viewers who are easily offended by colorful language. If you happen to be one of them, look for your daily dose of entertainment elsewhere because this film is as politically incorrect as a mainstream film can possibly be.

The overwhelming majority of the film feels like a very bizarre AA meeting where people bare their souls to strangers whom they have started to like and trust because they are just as twisted as they are. But all of these confessions are delivered amidst a sea of homophobic jokes that are anything but funny. In fact, some are so poor that it is hard to believe that they managed to sneak in an Almodovar film.

There are random segments that introduce additional characters on the ground who are related to some of the passengers. And things on the ground are just as wild as they are on the plane – Spain is in the middle of a massive economic crisis that has forced just about everyone to behave as foolishly as the poor souls on the plain. Needless to say, there are a ton of 'surprises', some of which should be funny, that do not work at all.

Camara, Arévalo, and Areces’s group dance is without a doubt the highlight of the film. It has the right flavor and their body language is excellent. There is also a good scene with the confused co-pilot which thankfully ends exactly where it must. The rest, however, is quickly and easily forgettable.

Lensed by Almodovar’s regular DP, Jose Luis Alcaine, the film overflows with bright and lush colors. The set designs, quite a few of which are very original, were also created by award winning production designer Antxon Gomez (Steven Soderbergh’s Che Part 1 - The Argentine and Che Part 2 - Guerrilla; The Skin I Live In).

The appropriately diverse soundtrack was created by award winning composer Alberto Iglesias (Fernando Meirelles’ The Constant Gardener, Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy).

The very appropriate but also ironic title of the film is borrowed from the famous '80s hit by The Pointer Sisters.

I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Pedro Almodovar's I'm So Excited arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Pathe/20th Century Fox Entertainment-UK.

Shot with the Arri Alexa camera, the film looks simply beautiful on Blu-ray. During close-ups image depth is consistently very impressive, while the panoramic shots boast outstanding clarity (see the finale where the camera zooms over the entire plane and then moves away from it). Virtually the entire film also looks remarkably crisp, but without ever appearing artificially sharpened. It is the wide range of lush and extremely well saturated colors, however, that will make the biggest impression on casual viewers. There are no purely transfer-specific anomalies to report in this review. Indeed, the compression and encoding are outstanding. Finally, there are absolutely no stability issues whatsoever. All in all, this is a very impressive technical presentation of I'm So Excited, which comes very close to what I would typically consider to be 'reference quality' presentation. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Spanish DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Pathe/20th Century Fox Entertainment-UK have provided imposed English subtitles for the main feature. (They cannot be turned off).

Music has a very important role in this film. Fortunately, the lossless track opens up all of the key sequences where the extravagant stewards sing and dance exceptionally well. Depth and especially clarity are outstanding, while the terrific overall dynamic intensity will likely surprise quite a few viewers. For a film without any major action sequences, the active sound design is indeed fantastic. The dialog is crisp, stable, and very easy to follow. Also, there are absolutely no pops, cracks, audio dropouts, or distortions to report in this review.

I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Making of - a standard featurette with raw footage from the shooting of the film. In Spanish, with imposed English subtitles. (6 min).

• Making of the VFX - a quick look at the special effects used in the film. Without sound. (2 min).

• Creation of the Airplane Crash - a sped-up look at the unique set that was used to film the finale. Without sound. (3 min).

• Photo Gallery - a collection of production stills and stills from the film. With music. (2 min).

• Theatrical Trailer - original Pathe trailer for I'm So Excited. In Spanish, with imposed English subtitles. (2 min).

• Teaser Trailer - original Pathe teaser trailer. In Spanish, with imposed English subtitles. (1 min).

I'm So Excited! Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Despite the impressive cast and the excellent work of acclaimed cinematographer Jose Luis Alcaine, Pedro Almodovar's latest film left me seriously underwhelmed. It was clearly an attempt to reintroduce to a new generation of viewers the quirkiness and edgy humor that made the likes of Dark Habits and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown so special, but a lot of boundaries are crossed in this film for no particular reason. See I'm So Excited! if you have been a long-time admirer of the Spanish director's work, but rent it first. Order the Blu-ray only if you have seen the film and liked it. RENT IT.