Neighbors Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 8, 2017

Welcome to the end of the road.

Director John G. Avildsen's (The Karate Kid) Neighbors (not to be confused with the 2014 film film of the same name), based on the book of the same name by Author Thomas Berger, is a peculiar film, a zany film, a tonally unique film that tells two stories, one the basic overreaching this-to-that plot of new acquaintances getting to know one another through the course of a night and the other a much more layered, secretive, almost tonally mismatched Horror/Mystery that practically drives the main character mad, played like a fiddle at best and left to play the fool at worst. It also leaves the audience just as much confused as to what, if any, motivations really drive the characters and the story. A Twilight Zone theme fiddles with the viewer's expectations and cunningly crafts the movie's direction -- or does it? -- as it builds towards and thrives on oddities and absurdities that blend together the straightforward narrative with something that seems just a little off that the viewer can immediately feel but not peg.

The neighbors.

Everything seems just fine in Earl's (John Belushi) life. He has a nice little house on a quiet cul-de-sac and a loving wife, Enid (Kathryn Walker). One day, he notices new neighbors moving into the empty house next door. And they're not shy about making themselves right home -- in his house. Vic (Dan Aykroyd) and Ramona (Cathy Moriarty) have seemingly decide to spend their first night in town at their neighbors' house. And they're not typical houseguests. Ramona throws herself all over Earl, alluringly seducing him at every turn. Vic offers to go grab dinner, for which Earl pays, become suspicious, and follows Vic to the "restaurant:" the kitchen in the house next door where Vic whips up an Italian meal and wraps it in to-go packaging. As the night ensues, shenanigans and mayhem follow as the truths about the new neighbors come to light, and Earl makes some self-realizations of his own.

Whatever successes the movie finds and enjoys -- a little more up than down -- comes from several factors that decidedly work in its favor. One is the air of misdirection and uncertainty and the pleasure of watching it unfold, feeling, knowing, that something isn't right, that Vic and Ramona aren't as they seem. Or are they? As the film explores sanity and insanity and all the shades of gray in between, it finds a largely mesmerizing cadence of back-and-forth shenanigans that pull the viewer through the linear story -- things like how Vic acquires dinner or what happens to his car -- while it much more slyly explores the characters' mental and emotional states that evolve and are revealed throughout the night. The movie is a cunning little thing, gradually turning the tables on both Earl and the audience with a series not of misdirections but rather curious developments and guileful manipulations. More than the cruder details, the movie's fun factor and success stem from how it works everything through the course of the film and where it winds up. Right up until the end one cannot be certain of all of the how's or why's. The movie must cross every "T" and dot every "I" to fully appreciate and get to its final destination. It's never a cruise control movie but rather one where only the final lifted veil reveals its destination, which could also be interpreted as merely a starting point.

It sounds heavy and mysterious and whatnot, but it's really light on its feet. That's what's so much fun about it: its duality. That said, the core components aren't quite as gripping. The story's overt machinations help define its surface and are necessary to shape it in the manner the story demands, but there are times when the overriding story crudities just don't hold up all that well. The film's pacing can be sluggish, even at what should be a breezy 90 minutes there's sometimes a forced momentum and struggle to keep up appearances. Various scenes feel repetitive, basic actions can be dull, and some jokes can fall flat, even considering the enormous talent on the screen (in what would be John Belushi's final film). The movie sometimes feels as if it's leaving various little plot details hanging, maybe details that aren't explicitly critical to the greater purpose but that do leave the audience wondering "what was that all about?" when the credits roll. On the other hand, performances are quite good. Belushi is terrific in the part that will leave more contemporary audiences thinking "Jack Black" the whole way through. His transformation throughout the film is the big key, and his ability to flow with it and find both the big turning points and ever-expanding gradual graces that mark the transition show a masterwork of the craft. Aykroyd is likewise fantastic as the more flamboyant Vic, a character who seems more mysterious, and in some ways is, and in some ways is not. He carries the character very well, from the unique look to his ability to hold truths close to the vest. Cathy Moriarty is wonderful as the seductive Ramona. She oozes a warming sensuality throughout the film that feels both irresistibly tempting and playfully evil at the same time.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

For all the hand-wringing and anger and pessimism and skepticism, Neighbors' 1080p transfer isn't actually all that bad. For those that may have missed the lengthy thread in the Blu-ray.com forums or the initial news posting (which was, admittedly, updated with a key fact much later...Sony was slow to answer the elephant-in-the-room question and, in full disclosure, has promised, but not delivered, screeners; this review, and others coming, are based on off-the-shelf purchases), the "Choice Collection" is a series of films released "on demand" via BD-R disc. They come housed in basic Blu-ray cases (some double width; more on that in other reviews) and with minimal disc artwork.

Despite the minimalist approach, the end product isn't bad. The transfer retains a natural grain structure, perhaps a bit blotchy at times but fairly even, organic, and attractive. Light artifacts and minor signs of print wear are evident throughout, but never to a debilitating or even annoying level. Detailing is kept at honest levels. Upholstery in the living room shows tactile texturing, woods are well defined, a grimy garage pay phone is nicely complex. Clothing material shows a decent level of complexity, and skin textures are satisfyingly revealing. Colors are pleasing, capturing a positive interior nighttime warmth but really popping in the last 30 minutes or so when the action switches to daytime. A loud red jacket, a duller red tow truck, and natural greens appear nicely saturated, though not completely expertly refined. Black levels are by-and-large genuine and deep with only a touch of crush evident in some of the more challenging shots. While hardly up to the standards of Sony's absolute finest 1080p presentations -- such as Jerry Maguire or Talladega Nights -- Neighbors fares rather well for a product much in doubt and in deep contention since its announcement. The only major downside is that the disc isn't priced to reflect what is clearly a budget nature.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Neighbors arrives on Blu-ray with a straightforward DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack that features little sense of stretch out to the edges. Much of the material sounds pushed towards the middle. Musical range isn't completely suffocated, but the track doesn't make an effort to really find the corners of the stage. Clarity is decent, allowing basic instrumental and some of the movie's quirky effects cues to come through with adequate presence. A few shotgun blasts don't hit very hard, but there's at least a semblance of push and weight to them. Dialogue drives the vast majority of the film, and it's presented with a "phantom center" placement, fine clarity and always-on prioritization.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Sony's "Choice Collection" Blu-ray release of Neighbors contains no supplemental content. No top menu is included. Only a crude in-movie pop-up menu is included, its only option to toggle the included English subtitles on or off.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Neighbors is an interesting film that doesn't always hit, particularly when it comes to its cruder plot movements, but its finer character developments and performances carry it far. It's a good, unheralded sort of movie and one that's not to be missed. As for the Blu-ray, it's not terrible. Though featureless and offering only a bland straightforward soundtrack, the video presentation carries it to base satisfaction. Ultimately, after watching and hearing all the heated debate about how the release is put together and packaged, it's probably about the quality of a very good, if not amongst the best, Sony catalogue title released through Mill Creek in terms of overall presentation, i.e. very good-not-great video, effectively straightforward lossless audio, and no supplements. Recommended, though best to wait for a sale more in-line with Mill Creek and budget prices.