Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Sleepless in Seattle Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 5, 2018

Sony has released the timeless, fan-favorite Romantic Comedy 'Sleepless in Seattle' to Blu-ray. The film was previously released as a limited edition to the high definition format from Twilight Time. This disc adds a few new deleted scenes. Note that I do not have access to a copy of the Twilight Time disc and cannot offer a direct comparison of the video and audio qualities of each disc; A/V reviews below are based solely on this disc.

Destiny, love, and fate: these are the ideas and connective tissues that make Romantic Comedies work so well. It seems like millions of Rom-Coms exist out in the wild and almost universally the best use an element of fate or destiny to drive both their plots and the romances that grow from them. Sleepless in Seattle is one of the best examples. Borrowing part of its plot from the beloved An Affair to Remember, Director Nora Ephron's film draws its two main characters together over the course of the story and over vast distance and doesn't see them meet until the very end. And it's brilliant construction. It eschews genre convention -- doing away with the awkward or disastrous first date, the montage depicting the characters falling in love -- and settles for paralleling character stories playing with notions of fate with incredible depth and power. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan shine as the star-crossed lovers that are separated by distance but drawn together by destiny.

The story follows a recent widower named Sam Baldwin (Tom Hanks) who, with his son Jonah (Ross Malinger), has moved from Chicago to Seattle in an effort to start anew following the death of his beloved wife. Annie Reed (Meg Ryan) is engaged to marry allergic everyman Walter (Bill Pullman) but finds herself drawn to Sam's story after hearing him discuss his road to revery with a call-in radio therapist. The death of a wife, certainly a heartbreaking, darkly tragic event, seems an odd starting point for an otherwise light Rom-Com. The film is challenged with the need to build up the relationship between Sam and his deceased wife, presented almost exclusively off-screen and told through a grieving widower's understandable lethargy and sadness, all the while building enough cheer and character goodwill to allow the eventual romance to flourish and build toward happily-ever-after.

Hanks shines in his role as the troubled widower, struggling to take care of his son while mourning the loss of his wife. He's at once both a tragic hero and a fun loving guy who slowly emerges from his sadness as the relationship blossoms with Annie and he rediscovers the joys of true quality time with his son. As he returns to dating, frustrations with failed encounters with various women dampen his prospects but only reinforce the notions of true love and destiny that rise above the noise. Ryan's character is also carefully crafted. Though she's engaged, she doesn't seem fully satisfied with her romance, or lack there of. She craves more than a wheezing, allergic man who is certainly very nice but not really the stuff of love's legend, the kind of romance she's read about and seen in the movies. She's settled for security and safety with the predictable and boring but dependable Walter. When she first hears Sam on the radio, she can't shake the powerful, raw emotions he and his story stir inside, and she finds herself wanting -- desperate -- to pursue a relationship with the mystery widower instead. Ryan works well with her character's off-kilter ways and indecisiveness in love, down to little things like her facial expressions when dealing with Walter as she dreams of Sam. Together, Hanks and Ryan make for a believable romantically frustrated pairing, each easily moving in and out of light humor and deep introspective character drama, even as they operate independently for most of the film.

While the entirety of the supporting cast helps bring the film together, Bill Pullman, Rosie O'Donell and Ross Malinger shine the brightest. Pullman works hard to suck the life from the allergic Walter and craft a personality so dull as to be the perfect safe haven relationship for Annie and the perfect foil for the grieving and much more complex Sam. After watching him in other genre films, such as the charming While You Were Sleeping, it's impressive work to transition from the handsome hero to the weakly would-be groom. O'Donnell plays Annie's best friend whose sole purpose is to help her friend pursue whichever of the men that she desires. Her humorous take on the entire affair adds a necessary levity to the dark-seeded romantic origins and the relationship's distance. Ross Malinger steals the show as the motherless child who seeks his father's happiness and sets the entire affair in motion, though he disapproves of every potential mate Sam dates. He essentially plays fate itself and does a great job of it, too, matchmaking to his heart, not to his eyes or ears. Malinger's yearning for a mother for himself and a spouse for his father comes off as believable and sincere, and his interactions with Hanks come effortlessly and naturally whether in the film's darker open, its more cheerful middle, or its romantic conclusion.

For another take on the film, please see the review for the Twilight Time release here.

Sleepless in Seattle Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sleepless in Seattle is certainly not a flashy movie that was made to dazzle on any format -- theatrical exhibition or home video presentation -- and Sony's 1080p transfer reflects its fairly meager, often bleak, visuals. Overall, the image is pleasant within its context and confines. Opening title blacks are severely faded and the palette in general lacks vitality. It's fairly dull and a little drained but effectively so considering the more dour mood that hangs over part of the film, particularly early on. Essential colors are adequately saturated, such as Christmas decor seen in a dinner table scene in chapter two, but viewers should not expect a lively, intensely colorful and explosive viewing experience. Textural qualities are not exactly lighting the format on fire, either. Basic skin and clothes are fine, revealing good baseline details, but the image lacks the crisp filmic bonafides of the best the formats (35mm film or Blu-ray) have to offer. Basic environmental clarity is fine and focus is never an issue. No significant source or encode flaws are apparent. Sleepless won't leave viewers up at night fretting over the image quality, but this is not one to dream on, either.

Sleepless in Seattle Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sleepless in Seattle is not a film with significant audio requirements; its sound needs are relatively simple and straightforward. The included DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack delvers the picture's meager sound elements with satisfactory clarity. What music there is plays with commendable front-end width and solid, if only essential, clarity. Light environmental atmospherics help solidify various scenes, recreating essential details with modest width and trace depth, though nothing springs out as particularly necessary beyond little niceties. Dialogue propels the story forward, of course, and the presentation is fine, boasting good center positioning, fine clarity, and of course no problems with prioritization over what are comparatively piddly support elements.

Sleepless in Seattle Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Sleepless in Seattle contains all of the extras from the Twilight Time disc, minus the isolated score track, and adds in a few new deleted scenes. Please click here for coverage of the other supplements. Sadly, no digital copy is included.

• Audio Commentary: Nora and Delia Ephron.
• NEW! Deleted Scenes (1080p, 6:04): Includes Opening Gifts, Guest at the Door, Fishing, and Airport.
• Love in the Movies
• Music Video: "When I Fall in Love."
• Theatrical Trailer

Sleepless in Seattle Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sleepless in Seattle is an unequivocal classic and one of the great standard-bearers for its entire genre. It's charming, sweet, moving, purposeful, and encompasses everything that makes the movies, and the human heart, so amazing. Sony's Blu-ray isn't on the cutting edge, but the audio and video presentations are decent enough. Supplements largely repeat from the previous release, but a few new deleted scenes are included. This is absolutely a film deserving of a UHD makeover, and why Sony didn't just release it on that format this deep into the Blu-ray lifespan is a bit of a mystery (well, beyond the role the bean counters undoubtedly play in such decisions, anyway). Maybe sometime in the future. Until then, fans should pick this one up. Recommended.