7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
An opinion pollster finds a town which is a perfect mirror of U.S. opinions.
Starring: James Stewart, Jane Wyman, Kent Smith (I), Ned Sparks, Wallace FordComedy | Insignificant |
Romance | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
None
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
One of the most amazing phenomena that cropped up during the 2012 Presidential election was the pooh-poohing of polls by a number of analysts, mostly, if not entirely, limited to those on the right side of the political spectrum. While most national polls showed things amazingly close in the closing days of the Obama-Romney competition, a lot of right leaning analysts outright dismissed any poll which put Obama even slightly ahead. That phenomenon became almost surreal on election night when none other than Karl Rove, the so-called “architect” who had designed George Bush’s victories, refused to believe the ultimate poll—actual election returns. Rove’s mini-meltdown on Fox News became an overnight internet meme as well as fodder for expected comedy routines by the likes of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Polls of course can often be wrong, to the point where the iconic picture of President Truman holding up the newspaper proclaiming his defeat at the hands of Thomas Dewey has become indelibly imprinted on even those who couldn’t care less about American history in general. The science of polling has become considerably more scientific over the past couple of decades, and “poll averaging” sites like Nate Silver’s famous FiveThirtyEight Blog have taken the analysis to heretofore unimagined heights of insight (it’s fascinating to realize that Silver’s background was in baseball statistics analysis). Back in the “Dark Ages” of the 1940s, however, pollsters were a more “up close and personal” lot, often going door to door to interview subjects and compiling their data in similarly old fashioned ways. Magic Town is a charming comedy that could have come from the hand of Frank Capra which deals with a pollster who discovers an amazing little bellwether town which doesn’t just predict elections accurately but seemingly is almost like a fractal image of America at large, a microcosmic recreation of our nation’s opinions on just about everything. Could greed and the nefarious influences of rampant Capitalism be far behind?
Magic Town is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. This is one of the nicer looking recent catalog releases we've had from Olive, one with virtually no damage in the elements, and one which boasts exceptionally strong contrast. Gray scale is very nicely modulated, whites are crisp without blooming and blacks very solid with no attendant crush. Fine detail is quite good, with an overall very sharp and precise looking image. As with most Olive releases, there hasn't been any evident digital tweaking to the image, and so grain is fully intact. One thing that the superior resolution of this high definition presentation does do is make the painted backdrops in many of the scenes very noticeable. While there was obviously some second unit location shooting for some master shots, a lot of this film was obviously done in the studio.
Magic Town features a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that has its fair share of pops and clicks but which has no really egregious damage that prevents the track from being completely listenable. Dialogue is relatively cleanly presented (other than the aforementioned pops and clicks). There's a low grade hiss on the high end that is more noticeable in quieter moments. Fidelity is very good, though dynamic range is rather limited.
No supplements are offered on this Blu-ray disc.
If Riskin had simply revisited his third act in Magic Town, he may have had another blockbuster on his hands. A lot of Magic Town is hugely enjoyable. The basic set up is brisk and innovative, and the interplay between Stewart and Wyman follows in the grand tradition of hate at first sight, true love to inevitably follow quickly behind. The supporting cast here is full of stellar bits by the likes of Donald Meek (as the wonderfully named Mr. Twiddle), Kent Smith as a war buddy of Rip's who helps him infiltrate Grandview, and a hilarious Ned Sparks as Smith's main aide, a cigar chomping cynic who sees right through Rip's greed. But there's something missing here, some indelible spark of energy that keeps the film from ever completely igniting. Still, with expectations perhaps lowered appropriately, there's quite a bit about Magic Town to enjoy, if not to love. This Blu-ray features excellent video and very good audio and comes Recommended.
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