5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Lighthearted comedy chronicling the exploits of the employees at a record store.
Starring: Leonard Barr, Ed Begley Jr., Sorrell Booke, Dennis Bowen (I), Ruth BuzziComedy | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
BDInfo
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
To best appreciate anything “Record City” has to offer, one has to secure their 1977 glasses on tight. Painfully tight. Everything in the picture comes from a different era of entertainment, when variety shows where common entertainment on television, and jokes weren’t concerned with political correctness, embracing all sorts of stereotypes and dismissive attitudes, finding targets instead of punchlines. In the Wild West of the 1970s, director Dennis Steinmetz and writer Ron Friedman hope to tap into the post-“Car Wash” zeitgeist by offering a wacky comedy set inside a record store, where the hits are distributed to the public every single day, and the staff can’t seem to stay out of one another’s business. “Record City” is as loosely plotted as a movie can get, going episodic as a series of characters spend the day getting into all sorts of shenanigans, dealing with crime and sex as an amateur talent contest happens outside. Friedman serves up the silliness, and Steinmetz tries his best to shape something sellable out of the high jinks, occasionally interrupting a whirlwind of iffy behavior with musical performances and comedy acts.
As far as I know, "Record City" never made it past VHS in terms of a wide physical media release, making the Blu-ray a special event for the picture's fans. A warning is presented at the start of the viewing experience, with Scorpion Releasing sharing how the disc uses only the "best elements from several different sources" to create the AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation (which is billed as a "Brand New HD Master"). Surprisingly, the production was actually captured on video(!) before being transferred to film for its theatrical release (there's very little information about this decision, which is sure to confuse those new to the movie), keeping things muddy and jaggy. While work has clearly been put into the transfer to do something with an extremely limited source, there's nothing here that's truly HD, with colors also suffering, lacking any sort of natural appeal. And forget detail, as 1977 video cinematography technology wasn't built for that. Of course, without this Blu-ray, there would be no release of "Record City," and it's clear this is best the feature is ever going to look due to its obscurity and extraordinary technical limitations. It's not a pretty disc, but it's the only disc.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix is also restrained by the source, offering fuzzier highs on dialogue exchanges. Intelligibility isn't lost, as performances remain intact, greeting a myriad of thespian choices and disparate levels of emphasis (and yelling). Music does fine without true precision, finding vocals appreciable, while percussion and bass registers with mildness, helping to identify the funky mood.
A few appealing elements break through the tedium of the "Record City" viewing experience, with Lange giving his part everything he's got, singing, dancing, and joking his way with welcome enthusiasm. It's a shame the entire film isn't about The Wiz and his interactions with customers and staff. This energy is only periodic in the picture, which is mostly whiffs with wackiness, often trying way too hard to be mediocre. The feature doesn't work, but for those who enjoy time capsule entertainment, there are few movies as distinctly 1977 as "Record City."
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