6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
In the summer of 1986, three sixteen year old friends spend their Saturdays sneaking into movies at the local multiplex. But when one of the guys also invites the girl of his dreams to see the latest comedy, each of the teens learn more about life and love.
Starring: Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, Ken Jeong, Diedrich Bader, Jason LeeComedy | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy
DVD copy
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The eighties seem to be the new sixties or seventies, or whatever the last decade to be revisited in a nostalgia fest of a film might have been, at least judging by the kind of hilariously simultaneous release of this film from Lionsgate and 1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever! from MVD Visual. The 4:30 Movie is the latest quasi- autobiographical effort from Kevin Smith, and it takes place just a few years after the retrospective from MVD, namely 1986, following a young male named Brian David (Austin Zajur), a fill in for Smith himself, as Brian navigates those nascent teen years when hormones probably interfere with rational thinking more often than not. It's always been kind of interesting to me how widely variant reactions to Smith's filmography can be, and not necessarily (perhaps understandably) with regard to his more outré outings like Tusk, but even his ostensibly "sweeter" films based at least in part on his own life experiences like Clerks I-III Complete Movie Collection . As Ken Jeong mentions in an interview included as a supplement on this disc, The 4:30 Movie may be Smith's "most personal film yet", and as such, my hunch is reactions will probably reflect how viewers responded previously to efforts like the Clerks films.
The 4:30 Movie is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. As of the writing of this review, the IMDb doesn't really offer any substantial technical information, and none of the shots of cameras in the making of featurette on this disc provided a clear view of brands and/or models, but in the completely unscientific category, I did find an Instagram post by colorist Frederik Bokkenheuser mentioning the film with tags for both Arri and Blackmagic cameras, for what that's worth. There is also a very brief interview with Kevin Smith enterprising Googlers can find where he discusses how (speaking of Bokkenheuser) color timing played an important role in the look of the film, along with what he terms the "halcyon glow" of 80s movies. This does have a (digitally created) organic texture to it, and a just slightly diffused feeling which I guess might be what Smith refers to as a "halcyon glow". The digital grain and diffusion can both make things look just slightly fuzzy at times, though on the whole detail levels remain nicely intact. There's an almost elegiac burnished yellow tone suffusing a lot of the presentation, as perhaps befits this nostalgic memory piece that is perhaps being viewed through rose (or saffron) colored glasses. Shadow detail is also surprisingly good in some of the blue / purple lit interior theater scenes where the boys are catching a flick (or at least a trailer for a coming attraction). Those trailers are typically intentionally distressed and as a result actually kind of look more like 16mm than 35mm.
The 4:30 Movie features Dolby Atmos track that certainly provides at least intermittent surround activity, but which simply may not offer a ton of opportunity for showy sonics a la more "explosive" features with Atmos audio. This is often a noticeably front heavy mix, to the point that only the center channel can be utilized for some dialogue. The side and rear channels are occasionally engaged by both ambient environmental sounds and the perhaps surprisingly few source cues (including the well remembered "I Can't Wait" by my hometown Portland friends Nu Shooz). I'd actually be hard pressed to mention any really obvious use of the Atmos speakers, though some of the noisier theater scenes probably come closest. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.
One of the best things about The 4:30 Movie is how sweetly heartfelt it is. One of the worst things about The 4:30 Movie is how overindulgent Smith can be. If you liked at least the first Clerks movie, you may be predisposed to like this one, too. I found the positives to outweigh the negatives in the long run. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements engaging. With caveats noted, Recommended.
2018
2019
2017
2013
2016
2018
Collector's Edition
2012
Growing Pains
1984
2016
1983
1980
2014
1992
2009
2014
2007
2019
2006
2014
30th Anniversary
1989