Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 22, 2022

Richard Donner's "Salt and Pepper" (1968) and Jerry Lewis' "One More Time" (1970) arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include archival episode of Trailers From Hell and vintage trailers. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for both films. Region-A "locked".

The exuberant energy of the Swinging Sixties is immediately felt in Richard Donner’s Salt and Pepper (1968), but there is something crucial missing in this film. It can be identified as quality material, but this is a very broad and misleading description. Why? Because Michael Pertwee’s screenplay provides a good story with plenty of interesting twists and turns and Donner’s direction is predictably solid. It is the relationship between Mr. Salt (Sammy Davis Jr.) and Mr. Pepper (Peter Lawford) that is lacking a wide range of quality elements to make the film exciting. For example, the screenplay leaves it to Davis Jr. and Lawford to supercharge the cliched situations where they get in trouble and produce the crucial comic fireworks, but they visibly struggle. Their chemistry is mostly fine, it is just that their improvisations before Donner’s camera are not very appealing -- and yes, it is awfully easy to tell that they do a lot of improvising. Their character arcs are incomplete as well. Should this be considered a flaw in a genre film like Salt and Pepper? Well, proper character arcs were needed because they were supposed to enrich the comic fireworks.

The most underdeveloped area of Salt and Pepper is the most surprising one. It is the depiction of London, which does not at all look like the most exciting European city that supposedly was during the Swinging Sixties. Donner shoots it like any other European metropolis that knew how to appear pretty at night. A few shots with bright neon lights, a couple of fancy cars, young people rushing to get to their favorite nightclub. These images could have been from the Seventies. It just does not look or feel like London is in a party mood and everyone is out to have a good time as if the world is coming to an end.

Instead, the screenplay places the spotlight on a conspiracy involving a group of revolutionary nuts who have initiated a complex operation to overthrow the British government while threatening to unleash a nuke from a submarine in a giant warehouse. After discovering the body of a beautiful Asian spy in their nightclub, Davis Jr. and Lawford accidentally become aware of their intentions and do their best to prevent a nuclear disaster, but no one takes them seriously.

Jerry Lewis reunited Mr. Salt and Mr. Pepper in One More Time (1970), which is undoubtedly the better of the two films simply because it produces more laughs. Interestingly, these laughs are not all made possible by a superior screenplay. The crucial difference is in the notably better chemistry between Davis Jr. and Lawford. After they are given a week by a local judge to pay a hefty penalty, the two nightclub owners visit the latter’s very wealthy twin brother, Lord Pepper, but he refuses to help unless they permanently leave England and shortly after mysteriously dies. Lawford then assumes his identity without telling his partner and, while enjoying the various perks of his newly acquired lordship status, realizes that he has become a moving target for a ruthless criminal organization controlling the illegal diamond business.

Most of the on-screen rivalry between the two stars appears to have been modeled after the one from Ralph Levy’s classic Bedtime Story. However, Lewis’ very heavy touch quickly transforms its final phase into an average parody. The most underwhelming material features small bits with a couple of horror icons that are simply out of sync with the rest of the film. This is unfortunate because while Davis Jr. is under the impression that he has lost his partner and best friend the comedy works well.

Pertwee provided the screenplay for the sequel as well.

Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in their original aspect ratios of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 and granted 1080p transfers, Salt and Pepper and One More Time arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

Both films have very similar organic appearances, though early press materials indicated that One More Time would be sourced from a new 2K master. I did not see any notable discrepancies to point out in our review. Some visuals, on both films, look slightly softer than they should, but there are no troubling anomalies. Delineation ranges from decent to good, clarity is pleasing, and depth is mostly good. Both films have convincing color schemes. On my system, the primaries looked very nicely saturated, though One More Time tends to have a slightly better overall color balance. Image stability is good. I noticed a few small blemishes and white nicks, but there are no distracting large cuts, debris, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Both films can be viewed with an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for each film as well.

I viewed both films on the same night and thought that the quality of their audio was excellent. The dialog was always clear, sharp, and easy to follow. Balance was good as well. Dynamic activity was very good, though I would say that the first film has a much more diverse soundtrack with more effective dynamic contrasts. Can the audio be improved? I don't think so. At best, there is room for minor cosmetic improvements, but they will not alter the overall quality of the two tracks that are offered on this release.

Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers From Hell - presented here is an archival episode of Trailers From Hell with producer/writer Larry Karaszewski (The People vs. Larry Flynt). In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Trailer One - presented here is a vintage trailer for Salt and Pepper. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Trailer Two - presented here is a vintage trailer for One More Time. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Salt and Pepper / One More Time Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Salt and Pepper and One More Time promise plenty of good laughs and occasionally deliver a few. However, it is very easy to conclude that these films lack a lot of quality elements -- great atmosphere, perfect star chemistry, wit, etc. -- that could have transformed them into groovy gems. I had not revisited them in a very long time. I think that the sequel is slightly more entertaining, but it isn't fair to declare that it is a better film. If you choose to add this release to your library, get it only when it is heavily discounted.