7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
This poignant and offbeat dramedy follows Roary, a man who's been crippled by a recent suicide attempt. After resigning to spending most of his time in a bar full of down-trodden souls, Roary discovers that Jerry the Bartender has just been accepted to play basketball for the Golden State Warriors. As it turns out, helping Jerry train might just be the sort of transcendent therapy Roary and his fellow patrons need.
Starring: John Savage, David Morse, Diana Scarwid, Amy Wright (I), Tony BurtonDrama | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
BDInfo
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Director Richard Donner was in an incredible professional position in 1979. In 1976, he helmed “The Omen,” giving Donner his first major box office and creative success. In 1978, he guided “Superman” to pop culture dominance, emerging with another monster moneymaker and one of the few masterpieces found in comic book cinema. Donner was riding high, electing to cash in some of his power to make 1980’s “Inside Moves,” which is as far away from Satan and Krypton as possible. Dialing down blockbuster sensibilities, Donner aims for a decidedly human story about friendship and community support, taking inspiration from Todd Walton’s novel, adapted here by Valerie Curtin and Barry Levinson. “Inside Moves” is a frustratingly disjointed endeavor, but there’s real passion to the filmmaking, with Donner working hard to share his love for the material and the participants, giving the effort a spiritual boost when basic storytelling is often ignored.
Much like Richard Donner's "Superman," "Inside Moves" is a carefully photographed feature, using a softer look to warm up the material and deal comfortably with difficult characters. Billed as a "New 2019 HD Master," the AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation generally preserves cinematographic intent. Detail comes through during the viewing experience, but sharpness is elusive, delivering more of a general understanding of facial textures, which survey all sorts of sweaty, aged characters, and interior decoration, with Max's Bar filled with all sorts of ornamentation and customers. Costuming also maintains a mild sense of material. Distances are dimensional. Colors are respectfully managed for a film that's not flashy, delivering adequate primaries on clothing, with yellow and red basketball uniforms most striking. Bar signage also has some punch. Skintones are natural. Delineation loses some information with heavy shadows. Source is in decent shape, with mild judder and some faint wear and tear.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix isn't extraordinary to begin with, dealing with basic dialogue exchanges between active characters, keeping group events intelligible, even in rowdy environments such as Max's Bar and inside a sports arena. Loud elements, including game horns and roaring crowds tend to fuzz out highs, but nothing's sustained. Scoring provides adequate support with decent instrumentation. A few sonic anomalies are encounters, but they appear to be inherent to the original track.
Performances manage to survive the erratic editing of "Inside Moves," giving Savage a chance to showcase his ways with internalization, and Morse shines his film debut, able to communicate the emotional churn within Jerry, which the movie itself isn't always entirely clear on. "Inside Moves" is mangled in many ways, skipping on a rich comprehension of character headspace and personal weaknesses, but it's hard to deny Donner's enthusiasm for the material, working extra hard to capture the friendly bustle of Max's Bar and the personal concerns of the staff and customers, striving for community spirit. It's there, but doesn't dominate the work, which often breaks such concentration to deal with hazily defined individuals struggling to find clarity and connection in truncated tangents and relationship asides.
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