Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Secret Admirer Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 17, 2023

David Greenwalt's "Secret Admirer" (1985) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary with David Greenwalt, cowriter Jim Kouf and associate producer Lynn Kouf, and ciritc Daniel Kremer, as well as vintage promotional materials for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles fo the main feature. Region-A "locked".

A perfect nostalgia fix, this is what Dawid Greenwalt’s Secret Admirer is. This film does not just have the special genes of the 1980s, the 1980s are alive and well in it. I miss these types of films so, so much. They were made without filters and now their sense of humor feels almost euphoric. They did not always get everything right, but when they went all in on the fun, unafraid that their characters might say or do something that could trigger the watchdogs, they turned out irresistible. It is how they managed to make the silly attractive and the crude hilarious.

In Secret Admirer, the fun begins when high-school student Michael Ryan (C. Thomas Howell) receives an anonymous love letter and shortly after misplaces it. This very sincere and moving love letter then reaches several individuals that become inspired by it to pursue a romantic relationship with its creator. The girl Michael has a huge crush on, Deborah Anne Fimple (Kelly Preston), is the first to experience the love letter’s magic but is forced to improvise because she is already in a relationship with a ‘mature guy’ that understands what younger women want. The letter then awakens the dormant romantics in Michael’s father (Cliff De Young) and Deborah’s mother (Leigh Taylor-Young) and they go out on a secret date. While spying on them, Michael’s mother (Dee Wallace) and Deborah’s father (Frank Ward) connect, too. Eventually, the love letter resets the life of its creator, Toni Williams (Lori Loughlin), Michael’s best girlfriend, but not as she had hoped it would.

Greenwalt made his directorial debut with Secret Admirer in 1985 and during the next three decades chose to contribute almost exclusively to various TV projects. I think that Secret Admirer remains his best work. This film received an R rating but oozes such incredible positive energy that its flaws become almost unrecognizable. As a result, it is virtually impossible to dislike it.

The other key strength of Secret Admirer is the outstanding chemistry of its terrific cast. Indeed, the young and older actors appear equally inspired by their characters, so once the fun begins their age difference becomes a nonfactor and their chemistry becomes far more important than the various twists and turns in their romantic adventures. This particular development does the most to make it appear as if Secret Admirer has a portal to a place where the 1980s never ended.

The comedy material is neither edgy nor tame. It produces hilarious situations that feel just right and keep the energy up. If a character experiences disappointment there is another that feels inspired to make a correction which quickly reveals a better outcome. As a result, the emotional ups and downs of the characters do not interfere with the film’s positive attitude.

Like most such 1980s films, Secret Admirer becomes a bit silly, too. Seasoned connoisseurs of these films know that this is unavoidable because some of the very best laughs in them are a byproduct of the silliness. Interestingly, but perhaps not surprisingly, in Secret Admirer the best such silly material features an older actor, Ward, who plays an overworked, oversuspicious, and abnormally jealous husband and father.

While rather small, the soundtrack is a 1980s classic. It features several top tracks by Don Felder ("She's Got a Part of Me"), Tony Carey ("First Day of Summer"), Van Stephenson ("You've Been Lied Before"), and Timothy B. Schmit ("Leaving it Up to You), as well as original music by Jan Hammer (TV's Miami Vice).

Secret Admirer Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Secret Admirer arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

When Secret Admirer made its high-definition debut with this release from Olive Films in 2016, its visuals looked a bit dated. This release is sourced from an exclusive new 2K master that was struck from an interpositive.

I like how Secret Admirer looks now a lot. There are only two areas where meaningful improvements can be made. First, density levels can be better. In several darker areas, backgrounds can appear a bit loose and the grain begins to look a tad powdery. On a larger screen, you will most likely notice this loosening of the visuals. Some encoding optimizations could have helped, but masters that are struck from interpositives tend to retain this limitation. Second, some darker areas could reveal superior darker nuances by avoiding crushing, but this master handles darker areas very nicely. The rest I like a lot. For example, color balance is outstanding. All primaries look very nicely saturated and just perfectly balanced. A few supporting nuances, mostly darker ones, could be a tad better, but only because in darker areas there are some source limitations. Image stability is very good. I noticed a few nicks, but there are no distracting large cuts, debris, 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).

Secret Admirer Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional Engish SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The 2.0 track is a frustrating one. While the quality of the audio is very good, the 2.0 track is dual mono, not stereo. It is strange because there must have been a proper 2.0 stereo track to include on this release since Olive Films' release had one. I did not encounter any hiss, distortions, pops, or dropouts.

Secret Admirer Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by David Greenwalt, cowriter Jim Kouf and associate producer Lynn Kouf, and is moderated by critic and filmmaker Daniel Kremer. I listened to the entire commentary immediately after I viewed the new 2K makeover of Secret Admirer. It is essentially one big trip down memory lane with great information about the history of the film and the various people that came together to make it during the 1980s.

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Secret Admirer. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• TV Spots - a couple of vintage TV spots for Secret Admirer. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• Cover - a reversible cover with vintage poster art for Secret Admirer.

Secret Admirer Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

You can't fake great chemistry, and when it happens before a film camera, the end product is always a very good film. In Secret Admirer, the great chemistry between the young and older actors quickly becomes far more attractive than the romantic adventures of their characters, so despite having some silly moments, it is a lovely film. It is a terrific '80s time capsule, too. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a wonderful new 2K master and features a very nice exclusive audio commentary with director David Greenwalt, cowriter Jim Kouf and associate producer Lynn Kouf, and ciritc Daniel Kremer. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. (If you decide to pick up Secret Admirer for your collection, also consider Class, another very good '80s film. Several people that conceived and made the former were involved with the latter as well).