6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.1 |
Thank God It's Friday captures the disco era in all of its naive glory. Multiple storylines twine through an enormous nightclub: Two underage girls desperately want in so they can enter a dance contest; the club's owner, Tony, makes a bet with his D.J. that he can woo a beautiful married woman -- whose uptight husband ends up taking drugs and loosening up more than he ever expected; a klutzy girl gets ditched by her best friend and flounders around the club looking for love; and an aspiring singer pleads with the D.J. to let her sing. It ends up being a pretty honest snapshot of the disco era.
Starring: Chick Vennera, Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger, Valerie Landsburg, Terri NunnMusic | 100% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 2.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
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.
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 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.
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 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.
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