Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 14, 2018

It was promoted as a “Video Soap Opera,” using the existing technology of the late 1970s to create a melodrama about a middle-class black family from New York City. 1980’s “Personal Problems” was made for $40,000, created with the intention of selling the endeavor to public television for broadcast, giving screenwriter Ishmael Reed and director Bill Gunn (“Ganja & Hess”) a chance to take their tiny project wherever they wanted, exploring all types of dramatic confrontations and family issues. Divided into “Volume 1” (93 minutes) and “Volume 2” (77 minutes), “Personal Problems” is an experimental dive into improvisation and video-based craftsmanship, with Gunn and Reed using the freedom of the format to examine banalities and insecurities, trying to remain as casual as possible to respect the natural rhythm of life. Sometimes it’s a chore to sit through, but as free-form black cinema goes, there’s a lot to treasure about the effort.

There’s only a loose narrative in “Personal Problems,” and it follows the daily life of Johnnie Mae Brown (Verta Mae Grosvenor), a nurse at Harlem Hospital who’s had it with her shiftless husband, Charles (Walter Cotton). She’s taken on an affair with pianist Raymon (Sam Waymon), embracing his artistic ways and sexual appeal, giving her a relationship she’s always wanted, but domestic issues keep her tied to Charles, who’s also looking beyond the marriage for company. As time passes in the big city, the couple experiences communication challenges, dealing with love and loss as they try to remain upright and manage all the upheaval that’s been suddenly introduced to their routines.

“Personal Problems” opens with an on-camera interview with Johnnie, suggesting some type of documentary is being made about her life. She offers details of her job and passions to the unknown interviewer, exploring her fondness for poetry and procedures found at work, including protocol with gunshot victims. In terms of setting up what’s to come, Gunn flounders mightily with Johnnie’s grilling, which is never addressed or returned to, instead cast aside as more traditional storytelling tries to find its footing, following the nurse’s attraction to Raymon, who wins her over with artful interests and emotive musical abilities, bringing his mistress to tears with his playing.

Structure is a four-letter word to Gunn and Ishmael, who provide basic scene goals for the cast, mostly encouraging the talent to roam around the edges of emotions as they process the conflicts in front of them. “Personal Problems” often eschews a point entirely, with the camera simply acting as a fly on the wall for causal interactions, with one enormous chunk of “Volume 1” devoted to Johnnie’s lunch conversation with her pals, where they dish on personal choices, men, and generally joke around. Those expecting something more defined might be driven mad by the film, as it frequently takes off on tangents and features bizarrely random cutaways to provide editorial support to a production that’s reluctant to snip anything. One could get up and check the mail or fix a sandwich and return to “Personal Problems” having not missed a moment of important exposition or character development. Gunn keeps things as loose as possible for as long as possible, which isn’t always welcome, but it does bring out a unique mood to the movie, which often resembles a filmed play, giving a massive talent such as Grosvenor a chance to carry the entire project with her own abilities, finding no interference from the writer and director.

Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

After decades in storage, believed to be lost forever, "Personal Problems" makes its home video debut on Blu-ray, offering an AVC encoded image (1.30:1 aspect ratio) presentation that's billed as an "HD restoration, reconstructed from the original 3/4" U-matic camera tapes." The two-part movie wasn't made with videographic beauty in mind, and the viewing experience is a bit strange, with aged materials delivering a frighteningly soft, consistently ghosting viewing experience that's inherently grounded by aged camera technology. "Personal Problems" isn't a candidate for a supremely defined HD release, but what's here seems to be the best possible way to view the production nearly 40 years after it was issued. Detail just isn't there, but images preserve their natural harshness, securing that video-style immediacy that's interesting to behold in the day and age of high-res wonders. Colors do what they can, and brighter hues remain compelling, along with skintones. Exterior shots maintain urban flavors, capturing life on the streets. Some wear and tear is encountered, but the source remains in reasonable shape considering its attic storage. Admirers of the project will likely be pleased with such careful handling of the aged tapes, giving the project a second life on Blu-ray.

Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

A simple 2.0 LPCM sound mix supports the visuals on "Personal Problems," putting emphasis on dialogue exchanges, which struggle with recording limitations, finding performances competing with natural sounds and overlapping lines, but total chaos isn't encountered. Scoring fares much better, offering a bright, clean presence with precise instrumentation, while live numbers emerge with proper volume to capture the energy of the room. Hiss comes and goes, quite heavy at times.

Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Booklet (14 pages) contains essays by Ishmael Reed and Nicholas Forster.

• "Continuing a Tradition" (25:21, HD) is the making-of for "Personal Problems," discussing the project with writer Ishmael Reed, and actors Sam L. Waymon and Walter Cotton. Project origins are examined, identifying the endeavor as a response to the rise of Blaxploitation cinema and unrealistic depictions of black life, with the production aiming to revive the tradition of the "race film." Career paths are detailed, including Reed's time as a successful author, with his dream of creating a "meta soap opera" initially realized on Cannon's radio program (in 1977) before the concept of a video was introduced. There's a discussion of the cast and crew effort, with specific attention on director Bill Gunn, who managed enormous amounts of improvisation. Mentioned is the 1979 "preliminary test" shoot of the material, and the condition of the original tapes, which were stored in Reed's attic for the last 35 years, on their way to being lost forever.

• Deleted Scenes include: "Phone Call" (3:56), "Tennis Courts" (2:40), "Bubba in Jail" (8:08), "Bubba's Monologue" (1:56), "Mary Alice's Monologue" (1:49), "Cajun Restaurant #1" (3:25), and "Cajun Restaurant #2" (6:27).

• Extended Scenes include: "The Break-Up" (7:20) and "The Funeral" (1:34).

• Original Radio Drama includes: "Episode 1" (28:02), "Episode 2" (33:19), "Episode 3" (30:48), "Episode 4" (26:58), "Episode 5" (27:10), and "Episode 6" (29:36).

• "Premiere Q&A" (13:33, HD) reunites with Cannon, Reed, and Waymon, who are joined by restoration producer Jacob Perlin to discuss "Personal Problems" with a live audience.

• And a Trailer (1:33, HD) is included.

Personal Problems Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Keeping with genre demands, hysterics, loss, and resentment slowly creep into the tale, though "Personal Problems" isn't a creation that's particularly attentive to continuity. Its strengths reside in its ambition to showcase black life as it is, without violence or absurd amplification, gifting screen time to characters simply trying to work through their daily dose of disappointment. It's a fascinating experiment, but "Personal Problems" isn't built for a casual viewing, best approached as a passion project from artful creators who wanted a different kind of representation, taking control of screen elements using technology that opened the playing field to anyone who had the time and resources to shape their own screen vision.