Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 23, 2014

Jonathan Demme currently enjoys one of the most unpredictable careers in the industry, a position of defiance and creativity he’s held for the past four decades. He’s perhaps best known for his disturbing way with 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” a masterful film that showered Demme with awards and amplified his career with significant box office. Less is understood about his work in comedy during the 1980s, with efforts such as “Melvin and Howard” and “Something Wild” developing an unusual but snappy sense of humor. 1988’s “Married to the Mob” is the most successful of the bunch, if only because it takes a tired subject in the mafia and does something original with working parts concerning violence and law enforcement. It’s an oddball picture, playful and sharp, keeping Demme on task as he navigates stereotypes and romantic comedy urges, working toward an overall lightness to a tale that’s pitch black at times. It’s a tonal gymnastics display that doesn’t come around very often, making “Married to the Mob” special, assisted in great part by Demme’s askew vision for this type of story. Only this helmer would make a mob comedy and score it to New Order songs.

Angela (Michelle Pfeiffer) is married to mob hitman Frank (Alec Baldwin) and hates it. A mother to a seven-year-old boy, Angela is stuck in a crime family that’s suffocating her, with the rest of the wives catty and boss Tony (Dean Stockwell) waiting for a chance to make a play for her. His opportunity arrives when Frank is killed, with Tony quickly swooping in for seduction, repulsing Angela, who gives up her worldly possessions and moves to New York City with her child, trying to build a new life with a decrepit apartment and limited job skills. On her tail is F.B.I. Agent Downey (Matthew Modine), a driven investigator trying to take down Tony and his entire organization, finally finding a break in the case with Angela. Accidentally meeting his surveillance target while in her apartment building, Downey discovers chemistry with the happy widow, sparking up a relationship that severely complicates the job at hand, irritating his partner, Agent Benitez (Oliver Platt). For Angela, additional pressure arrives in the form of Connie (Mercedes Ruehl), Tony’s paranoid wife and a woman who’s determined to make sure the pair never sees each other again.

Considering the depths of moral corruption and violence tied to the typical mafia-centric movie, “Married to the Mob” carries itself with a certain snap. The screenplay by Barry Strugatz and Mark R. Burns refuses the invitation to play it straight, having more fun dreaming up darkly comic encounters to exhaust Angela and reinforce the insanity of the family. Demme follows this lead, setting an uneasy tone of everyday business with the opening of the picture, which mixes a bouncy main title sequence with Frank’s nasty line of business, waiting patiently on a train platform with his partner as his latest mark makes his way to his morning commute. Subverting expectations, Demme downplays the gruesome business of murder, providing the impression of violence instead of spraying the screen with blood. It’s a level of restraint that’s returned to throughout “Married to the Mob,” helping to balance out the screenplay’s extremes, keeping the effort approachable even while it details the evil that’s become a lifestyle to these men.

“Married to the Mob” isn’t strictly about Angela’s culpability, but her quest for identity and personal freedom, which welcomes a vibe of panic to amplify the combustibility of the situation. This urgency follows Angela as she takes on the city, realizing that employment isn’t easy to acquire, fighting bad timing and perverted bosses to land a gig that would allow her financial independence. All the while, Downey watches from afar. However, this is no leathered F.B.I. stooge, but an exhaustively prepared soldier who, in one of the film’s best gags, has his suit and pants clothespinned into position beside his bed, allowing him to literally dive into his outfit and speed to a crime scene when the moment calls for haste. He’s a bit of a nut, but a determined one, taking on various stakeout positions (including working a deli counter and singing with a doo-wop group) to keep close to Angela, completely taken aback by her interest in him after they accidentally run into each other in a cramped elevator. In keeping with the tilted nature of “Married to the Mob,” the F.B.I. antics are semi-cartoonish, teasing slapstick without ever indulging it, as Demme would rather keep viewers guessing with these peculiar personalities, enjoying their strange ways.

Demme has his fun with “Married to the Mob,” bringing in Al “Grandpa” Lewis to cameo, and casting stone-faced military movie stalwart Charles Napier in a brief role as Angela’s hair dresser. Singer Chris Isaak also makes his big screen debut as a fast food employee in clown face who isn’t exactly trustworthy. Casting surprises are welcome, and the soundtrack is peppered with unusual artists such as the aforementioned New Order, bringing a different sonic identity to the picture than the usual Sinatra routine. Also of interest is the use of “Goodbye Horses” by Q. Lazzarus during a seduction scene between Angela and Downey. In 1988, hearing such a tune was no problem. In a post-“Silence of the Lambs” world, the moment triggers involuntary chills. Credit the power of Demme, who knew how to extract a pure moment out of a terrific dance song.

Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation does deliver an acceptable viewing experience, but not a remarkable one. Debris is present throughout and grain is light, favoring a slightly filtered appearance. Colors aren't profound, but intended hues register, emerging from costuming and stylized lighting, and skintones are accurate. Blacks are in good shape, with welcome delineation. Fine detail is encouraging on facial responses, which retain aging lines and broad reactions, and set dressing particulars are open for inspection.

Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix carries a hint of hiss but remains satisfactory condition, sustaining dialogue exchanges quite well, managing comedic speeds and accents without losing anything to distortion. Soundtrack selections sound healthy, with New Order's closing tune registering deep and sharp for the limited track. Scenes of violence pack some snap, and atmospherics are adequate. Even with limited reach, the mix captures the rhythm of the movie.

Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Theatrical Trailer (2:10, HD) is included.

Married to the Mob Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It's one thing to dream up shenanigans, it's another to perform it. Thankfully, the ensemble gathered here is excellent, with everyone skilled enough to sell punchlines without losing the material's sense of reality. Impressive is Modine, who captures exaggeration without abandoning his character's humanity, but "Married to the Mob" is truly Pfeiffer's movie, generating a pitch-perfect depiction of unraveling sanity and newfound passion. She's a treat here, maintaining emotional authority and crisp timing as Angela. Demme has it good with this cast and this material, submitting one of his best efforts with "Married to the Mob," which soars at times on sheer invention, making something different out of a genre that's often spinning with repetition.