5.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Harold, a professional gambler, and his girlfriend Bonita, a lounge singer, follow Willie, a young blackjack dealer, around the western U.S. Harold has a jinx on Willie and can't lose with him. Bonita and Willie meet and fall for each other and plot to do away with Harold and collect on his life insurance.
Starring: Bette Midler, Ken Wahl, Rip Torn, Val Avery, Jack ElamComedy | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
None
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Don Siegel's "Jinxed!" (1982) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films. The only bonus feature on the disc is an original theatrical trailer for the film. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
The girl who had a plan
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Don Siegel's Jinxed! arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films.
I was very much looking forward to see how light/shadow and colors are reproduced because Vilmos Zsigmond's preference for lighter nuances and earthy contrast is practically lost on the old R1 DVD release. I am happy to report that even though the release is sourced from a pre-existing master the film looks lovely in high-definition. Indeed, color balance and especially fluidity are very convincing (see screencaptures #1, 5, and 7). There are a few sequences where density does fluctuate a bit -- the most notable example is the sequence in which Bonnie asks Willie to kill her man -- but the effect is actually produced by very light natural wear and it never becomes distracting. Depth and clarity are consistently pleasing. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Grain is present throughout the entire film and appears quite well resolved. Also, there are no traces of recent sharpening adjustments. A new scan certainly would have introduced some improvements in terms of depth and shadow definition would have been more convincing, but the current master never disappoints. Image stability is very good. There are a couple of tiny flecks, but there are no distracting cuts, damage marks, stains, or torn frames to report in our review. All in all, there is certainly room for some minor improvements but this is a very solid and generally well balanced presentation of Jinxed! that makes it enormously easy to enjoy the film and appreciate the artistic vision for its creators. My score is 4.25/5.00. (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).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.
Plenty of music is heard throughout the film, but its role is secondary. In fact, the film has a fairly simple organic sound design that reminds of Robert Altman's early work. Balance is good but occasionally some natural unevenness can be noticed during the mass scenes (see the casino footage). There are no audio dropouts, pops, background hiss, or digital distortions to report in our review.
Don Siegel's final film, Jinxed!, is a quirky gem oozing the type of atmosphere that is frequently found in Robert Altman's 1970s work. I loved its sense of humor and the static energy that exists between its main protagonists. They make it look very fresh and quite unpredictable. Olive Films' technical presentation of the film is wonderful. My only criticism is that the release does not have any interesting supplemental features. Regardless, if you enjoyed The Rose, consider adding this release to your collections. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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