In God We Trust Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		2.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.0

In God We Trust Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 11, 2021

Marty Feldman's "In God We Trust" (1980) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage promotional materials for the film and new audio commentaries by writer Alan Spencer and entertainment journalist Bryan Reesman. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Political films that are as vicious and delusional as In God We Trust may seem like odd creations, but they make perfect sense once you realize that the people that conceived them are devout social anarchists. They view the world we live in as a fundamentally flawed, utterly irredeemable place and absolutely everything they preach is meant to erode its credibility. In their minds, social anarchism equates liberty, and because there is nothing more precious than liberty, they genuinely believe that they have carte blanche to do whatever it takes to promote it.

But social anarchism, especially in its purest form, is a very, very boring game, which is why these types of political films never work. Indeed, the only way in which they can function properly is if they constantly stay on offense, which means that all they have to do is erode. This is a very dull trick, and it gets even duller when it is repeated over and over again to drive home a simple message. In the film business, this practice is a guaranteed recipe for disaster -- always has been.

Marty Feldman was one of the most outspoken and unapologetic social anarchists to ever step in front and behind a film camera and his final directorial effort, In God We Trust, was conceived to be the ultimate condemnation of America. Or at least in his mind it materialized as that kind of an important project, which is the key event that spawned a number of interesting developments. One such development was the emergence of Feldman’s conviction that he had evolved into a brilliant satirist that could camouflage his detestation of America as humor and then sell it as such to the masses. Another was the formation of his belief that during his short stay in America he had learned everything about its social construction and culture to be able to accurately judge it. Under the strong Californian sun, Feldman even acquired the moral strength to clash with the top brass at Universal, which was the studio that had made it possible for him to work in America.

Like all devout social anarchists, however, Feldman was incredibly predictable, which is why his work was so one-dimensional as well. In In God We Trust, he plays the clueless monk Ambrose who is asked to leave the monastery where he has spent his entire life and seek financial help for its survival from a famous donor in LA. During his journey, Ambrose befriends the traveling con man Dr. Sebastian Melmoth (Peter Boyle), falls in love with the goodhearted hooker Mary (Louise Lasser), and eventually confronts the crooked televangelist Armageddon T. Thunderbird (Andy Kauffman). Regrettably but not surprisingly, the journey is simply a ruse used by Feldman to channel a wide range of his delusional ‘truths’ about America and the end product is as dull as an archival DEFA-produced ‘educational documentary’ on social inequality in the West. In one of its most idiotic sequences, for instance, Feldman’s character enters a ‘church’ where the Christian worshipers suddenly pull out their wallets and switch into a trance-like mode while screaming Seek, Hail and raising their hands like Hitler's puppets did. Then the thing inside the advanced electronic system G.O.D. (Richard Pryor) is identified as the driving force behind the big religious circus that Americans supposedly can’t live without. You get the picture. All of this ugly kitsch is supposed to be a brilliant satire from a man so smart you could not even begin to grasp the size of his intellect who, fortunately for you, might be a brilliant comedian as well.

How could you not be impressed?

Despite Feldman’s intention to educate the masses in America, however, neither the critics nor the public were impressed with his efforts. In God We Trust bombed at the box office and Feldman’s career quickly fell apart. The official story of his demise is a bit different, but this is essentially what happened. A vicious and genuinely awful film finished Feldman off.

In God We Trust 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, In God We Trust arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an old and quite weak master that was supplied by Universal Pictures. Excluding a few close-ups where delineation and clarity can be somewhat decent, the rest of the film looks quite bad, at times almost as if it has been upscaled. Density levels are especially problematic and on a larger screen it is quite easy to see how plenty of visuals actually struggle to stay proper (see screencapture #3). Obviously, fine nuances are either extremely weak or lost. Grain looks very, very loose and smeary, and in darker areas begins to evolve into noise. Edge-enhancement is quite easy to spot as well. Colors can be a lot better saturated and balanced. In some areas there is distracting blooming that compromises balance as well (see screencapture #5). Image stability if good. The film looks clean, but a few blemishes can be spotted. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

In God We Trust Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless audio track is very good. I did not notice any distracting imperfections in the upper register and clarity and stability were both solid. From time to time the audio could be a bit 'thin', but this is a common limitation on original soundtracks of older films. So, is there any room for improvement? Perhaps roundness can be expanded a bit so that the thinness I mentioned above is minimized or eliminated, but otherwise I think that the lossless track is already very strong.

In God We Trust Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers - two vintage trailers for In God We Trust.

• Image Gallery - promotional and production stills for In God We Trust.

• Radio Spots - a couple of vintage radio spots for In God We Trust.

• Trailers From Hell - a vintage episode of Trailers From Hell with writer Alan Spencer (Sledge Hammer!). In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Commentary One - in this audio commentary, Alan Spencer has a lot of interesting and, more importantly, factual information to share about Marty Feldman and his career, work in America and the conception of In God We Trust, and the actor's politics. While I disagree with plenty of the personal observations about the quality of Feldman's work, this is a very honest commentary that highlights the good and the bad that define his legacy.

• Commentary Two - this is a typically well-researched commentary from entertainment journalist Bryan Reesman that covers pretty much everything you might want to know about Marty Feldman and his career and legacy. Of course, there is plenty of information about In God We Trust as well as his previous film, The Last Remake of Beau Geste.

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art.

In God We Trust Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Political satires do not get any more amateurish than Marty Feldman's final directorial effort, In God We Trust. Indeed, it is awfully difficult to describe just how utterly clueless this film is yet fully convinced that its unbearably ugly kitsch and viciousness are somehow illuminating. Needless to say, its unanimous dismissal as a terrible misfire by critics and casual filmgoers back in the early '80s was entirely justified. Kino Lorber's release of In God We Trust is sourced from an old and quite weak master that was supplied by Universal Pictures.