Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.0

Thank God It's Friday Blu-ray Movie Review

Friday Night Fever

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 11, 2018

When the Columbia lady gets down to boogie, it’s definitely Friday night! Thank God It's Friday comes a day earlier but released a year later than the John Travolta Disco classic Saturday Night Fever, but either way it's still a dollar short. The film crams many stories into a compact 90-minute runtime, following a number of individuals who have gone out for a night on the town at a hot-and-happening disco club called "Zoo." The film keeps their stories simple, and when one or two only earn five or ten minutes of screen time, they don't feel short changed. It's not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, but it's approachable, simple, and keeps the beats rolling, character beats and Disco beats alike.

The film follows several individuals and couples throughout the night. Sue (Andrea Howard) drags her kicking-and-screaming husband Dave (Mark Lonow) to the club. He’s a stuffy accountant who wants no part of “standing on line and listening to loud music.” She wants to break loose and have some fun. Club owner Tony (Jeff Goldblum) makes a bet with his DJ (Ray Vitte) that he can pick up Sue, who slowly falls for Tony’s charms while an irritated Dave finds himself drawn to a club regular, Jackie (Marya Small). Two underage girls, Frannie (Valerie Landsburg) and Jeannie (Terri Nunn), are booted out of the club and attempt to make their way back in. Their goal: to win a dance contest to score a couple of tickets to a KISS concert. Carl (Paul Jabara) and Ken (John Friedrich) are on a girl hunt. Jennifer (Debra Winger) and Maddy (Robin Menken) are looking for a good time. Aspiring singer Nicole (Donna Summer) tries to weasel her way into the club in hopes of getting her demo heard. Gus (Chuck Sacci) and Shirley (Hilary Beane) meet on a blind date to disastrous result. The film also follows Floyd (DeWayne Jessie), the one person who is not in or within the immediate vicinity of the club, who is trying get the band "The Commodores" equipment to the club on time for the performance but runs into obstacles along the way.

Thank God It's Friday has little of truly dramatic interest to offer. It's slim pickings as far as narrative meat is concerned. It boils down to the film offering multiple snapshots of one night in the lives of a handful of people who want to boogie at Club Zoo, though each, of course, has their own motive for doing so. The film's interest comes in witnessing how each story evolves and resolves, whether any will interconnect, and if a more prominent purpose ever materializes. Or maybe it's just meant to be a fun, easy look into the glitz and sometimes not-so-glamorous world of Disco era clubbing. Either way, it's left to the viewer's imagination to decide if this is a typical or atypical night at Zoo, if there are always strained couples, eager young bodies, veteran attendees, big name bands, and people just looking for a big break all milling about, working the system in the search of fun and excitement under the big, reflecting ball.

Essentially, the viewer is dropped into the club with a ground-level, all-acecss pass to every interesting angle in the club on one particular Friday night. The viewer assumes the role of omnipotent eavesdropper, first getting a lay of the land and following various characters as their evenings take a number different turns as the records keep spinning and the lights keep flashing. Otherwise...yeah. No themes, no character studies, there's not much here to dissect. To the film's credit, there are no dud stories to be found, and no performance that stands out as particularly bad. And it's some of the lesser stories, the ones that earn the least amount of screen time, that wind up being the most enjoyable, such as the turbulent "first date" between a tall woman and short man with an even shorter fuse. The two were paired up by a computer somewhere, apparently, though it takes them a while to realize why. The reason Short eventually falls for Tall is silly, but in a movie that's nothing but silly, it makes it easier to just roll with the punches. But every story holds the viewer's interest, and even as there's little depth to any of them, the variety and bite-sized approach makes them work even without the benefit of dramatic purpose or memorable resolutions powering them forward.

Thank God It's Friday Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Thank God It's Friday doesn't look particularly great on Blu-ray, but at the same time it doesn't look particularly awful. Grain appears inorganic, sometimes practically frozen in place, and like there's a very thin, nearly transparent, meshy overlay atop the image. There's a mildly processed appearance about the whole thing. The good news is that detailing is not ruined, and there are some fairly crisp clothing and environmental textures around Club Zoo to be enjoyed. Skin textures lack precision and occasionally appear pasty and flat, but generally enjoy a moderate amount of visible detail. Light print wear -- mostly some momentary splotching -- and occasionally light blockiness deteriorate the image. Colors are fairly strong, certainly lacking the precision, nuance and intensity of a newer production or an older film given a thorough restoration, but the palette generally pleases as it explores period-colored clothes and all of the lights and decorations around the club. It's very watchable overall, but fans shouldn't expect anything close to perfection.

Thank God It's Friday Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Thank God It's Friday features an LPCM 2.0 uncompressed soundtrack. The lack of any musical or environmental immersion by way of surround channels limits the track's abilities to soar and really pull the listener into the movie and its otherwise sound-intensive environment, a shame since music, and the energy and beat it produces in the club, is so vital to the movie's dramatic rhythm. As it is, the track is a hit-or-miss affair. Music can be solid, but it also struggles with tonal balance when Nicole brazenly takes the stage around the 70-minute mark. Uneven vocals, music, and crowd ambience alike don't play up to the scene's potential. On the contrary, when The Commodores perform, it's a bit more substantial, clear, and balanced. There is some very tinny-sounding reverb around the 65-minute mark and busy location din can be a bit sloppy. Dialogue is generally clear and always well prioritized above the surrounding club din.

Thank God It's Friday Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mill Creek's Blu-ray release of Thank God It's Friday contains no supplemental content. The main menu consists only of "Play" and "Subtitles: On/Off" buttons.

Thank God It's Friday Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Thank God It's Friday is not a movie for anyone looking for substance. This is about as thin as moviemaking gets, but the stories are agreeable in proportion and mostly fun in execution. The characters are well developed for the time allotted, and there are several moments when the audience will want to cheer and several when they'll want to scream at the screen in hopes of preventing someone from doing something stupid. It's a fun little escape of a movie that works well in its context and confines. Mill Creek's Blu-ray is sadly featureless and video and audio really only rise to the level of "passable," but this a fun enough film to warrant a buy at a bargain price. Recommended.