Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Riding in Cars with Boys Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 31, 2017

Penny Marshall's "Riding in Cars with Boys" (2001) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Australian label Via Vision Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an audio commentary by Drew Barrymore and a large gallery of archival featurettes. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

A different woman

I have to make it clear that I have not read Beverly D'Onofrio’s book that inspired Penny Marshall’s Riding in Cars with Boys and do not know if the events that are described in it are properly depicted in the film. In fact, prior to seeing the film I wasn’t even aware of the novel’s existence. However, in a rather odd sort of way I think that this was actually quite helpful because it allowed me to focus on the bigger themes that form the message of the film, rather than on the accuracy of the characterizations and the evolution of the main relationships.

The film frequently jumps back in time and then abruptly moves forward to the present to show how Beverly’s personality was shaped up by the different dilemmas that she faced during the years. At times they were silly, like when as a very young girl she came to the conclusion that the only way to win the heart of the boy she liked was to start wearing a big bra but her father (James Woods) refused to buy her one and she had to come up with a different strategy. Later in her life Beverly had to choose between staying with her husband, Ray (Steve Zahn), a drug addict with a big heart, and leaving him so that she could actually give herself a chance to survive. The point that the film successfully makes is that Beverly’s life was essentially a never-ending cycle of difficult compromises and her frustration nearly forced her to give up on it.

Her son, Jason (Adam Garcia), most likely saved her. Initially Beverly treated his unexpected arrival as an annoying complication, but then gradually accepted the fact that he had a place in her messy life. It was a long and frustrating process that also had an effect on her ever-evolving relationship with her parents and even her best friend, Fay (Brittany Murphy).

The final act introduces the most likeable version of Beverly. Here she is in her late 30s and exuding the type of confidence that women possess when there is a certain type of balance in their lives. In this case, the film reveals that the balance emerged only after Beverly managed to free herself from a life she never wanted.

There are a couple of things that make this film worth seeing and Beverly’s actual transformation is not one of them. What works quite well and leaves a lasting impression is the manner in which Marshall introduces the various hits that begin to crush the young woman’s dreams. It is done so casually that it is actually incredibly disturbing. Indeed, Beverly is not naïve or clueless, but the environment in which she exists basically routinely eliminates her chances to be successful. So as she gets older, her room for errors gradually becomes smaller and she comes closer to the point where the only way out of it is self-destruction.

The thing that never left my mind while watching the film, however, was the fact that very few young women, or men, that are in the same situation are as lucky as Beverly is. Frankly, if you remove some of the silly jokes the film really serves as a blueprint that gives away how the opioid epidemic that is destroying communities all across America in 2017 came to exist.

The leads are all very good, but at the end Barrymore does not look particularly convincing as the mother who is willing to let her son follow his heart. Despite the make-up, it is simply too obvious that she is in fact a lot younger than her character.

Riding in Cars with Boys Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Penny Marshall's Riding in Cars with Boys arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a master that was prepared by Sony Pictures some time ago. It is quite possible that it is the same master that was licensed to various parties during the DVD era. Indeed, some of close-ups look quite good, boasting decent detail and clarity (see screencapture #4). However, elsewhere it is rather easy to see that depth isn't optimal and in some cases shadow definition actually suffers quite a bit. Fluidity also isn't optimal, and the larger your screen is, the easier it will be for you to see that there are also other limitations that are typically present on older masters. (You can see how fine nuances, for instance, are lost in screencaptures #13 and 19). Colors are stable, but saturation should be better and there should be a much wider range of healthy nuances. There are traces of minor denoising corrections, though some of the flatness that emerges was also introduced during the encoding process. There are no traces of problematic sharpening adjustments. Image stability is very good. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Riding in Cars with Boys Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English Dolby Digital 2.0 and French Dolby Digital 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The lossy track is very good. It actually has a very nice dynamic range and balance is outstanding, which leads me to believe that it was most likely fully remastered by Sony Pictures quite some time ago. Obviously, a lossless track would have been preferable, but you should not expect to be disappointed as the lossy track definitely gets the job done. There are no encoding anomalies to report.

Riding in Cars with Boys Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Featurettes - presented here is a rather large collection of archival mini-featurettes with clips from cast and crew interviews that have appeared on previous DVD releases of Riding in Cars with Boys. The most interesting comments come from Drew Barrymore as she address her preparation work and interactions with Penny Marshall during the shooting of the film. In English, not subtitled. (40 min).

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary with Drew Barrymore has appeared on previous DVD release of Riding in Cars with Boys. The actress recalls how she was cast to play Beverly Donofrio, and discusses the shooting of the various sequences, the transformation of her character, some of the dynamics in the major relationships that are followed closely in the film, etc.

Riding in Cars with Boys Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Riding in Cars with Boys is an uplifting film with a number of ugly truths about the demise of small-time America. I want to believe that there are many more young women like Drew Barrymore's character, Beverly Donofrio, that are strong enough and willing to pursue their dreams, but the cynic in me is ready to argue that this may not be the case because the current massive opioid epidemic in our country is pointing to a very different reality. Australian label Via Vision Entertainment has the first Blu-ray release of the film. It is decent release, but at some point in the future the film will probably be remastered. RECOMMENDED.