Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		5.0

The Big Chill Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 3, 2014

Nominated for three Oscar Awards, Lawrence Kasdan's "The Big Chill" (1983) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; deleted scenes; exclusive new interview with director Lawrence Kasdan; Laurent Bouzereau's documentary film "The Big Chill: A Reunion"; and Q&A session with cast and crew members. The release also arrives with a 22-page illustrated booklet featuring: Lena Dunham's essay "These Are Your Parents" and Harlan Jacobson's "Surviving". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

"They are either married or gay. And if they are not gay, they've just broken up with the most wonderful woman in the world or with a bitch who looks exactly like me."

They have not seen each other in years, but now that one of their own has committed suicide they are all planning to meet at his funeral. They feel a little nervous. Would they meet the same people they knew when they were younger or will they discover a group of strangers who only look like them?

After the funeral ceremony all seven of them gather in a beautiful house. Their dead friend’s girlfriend is also there. They eat and drink and then agree to spend the weekend together.

In the beginning their conversations are too formal, too safe, but eventually the masks fall off. And the more comfortable they become with each other, the clearer it becomes that their lives did not turn out as they hoped they would. They have known it for a while, but did not have the courage to admit it. Now they are ready to do it.

After they graduated from college they all made the right decisions, the smart decisions they were taught to make. For a while they were comfortable because they got the right jobs, they married the right people, and most of them created the families they were expected to have. But then they started wondering if this was what life was all about -- doing the things someone else had determined are right for them. Then they started asking themselves questions and did not like how they felt once they began answering them. Their lives became complicated.

There was a time when their lives were simple. They knew the people they could trust and they knew the people that trusted them. They knew the people they liked and they knew the people that liked them. They also knew the people they loved and they knew the people that loved them. They had simple dreams and simpler ambitions. They felt like they had all the time in the world to do the simple things in life that matter the most.

But that time was years ago.

They are older now and have all the responsibilities they swore would never change them. But they did, and they know it. It hurts to admit it, but they became exactly like the people they disliked while they were in college -- docile followers afraid to speak up their minds.

This weekend they will be different people. They will be bold and honest again. They will judge and forgive as they did when they were in college. And they will say all the things they always wanted to say to each other but felt they shouldn’t. This weekend only they will be young again.

Lawrence Kasdan’s The Big Chill is rightfully regarded as one of the greatest American films from the early 80s. It is brilliantly scripted and directed and impeccably acted ensemble piece that effortlessly captures the pulse of an era which most other similarly-themed films have had a terrible time locating.

The list of truths in The Big Chill is endless. Some are trivial, but some are so delicate that it almost seems unfair that they are uttered. Some can be ignored, at least temporarily, but many will give you the chill Kasdan experienced before he scripted and directed the film.

There is real chemistry between the actors (what a cast!) that becomes obvious as soon as the opening credits roll. There are real conversations, not groups of exchanges, and real feelings and emotions on display.

The film’s soundtrack is legendary. It features tracks by The Rolling Stones (“You Can’t Always Get What You Want”), Creedence Clearwater Revival (“Bad Moon Rising”), Procol Harum (“A Winter Shade of Pale”), The Temptations (“My Girl”), and Marvin Gaye (“I Heard it Through the Grapevine”), amongst others.

The Big Chill 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, Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on a wetgate Oxberry film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative at Cineric in New York City; the color correction was done at Colorworks in Culver City, California, and the restoration at MTI Film in Los Angeles. The entire process was supervised by director of photography John Bailey, and the final result was approved by director Lawrence Kasdan.

The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the original 35mm magnetic tracks. For the alternate 5.1 surround presentation, stereo music masters were used in tandem with elements from the 3-track dialogue, music, and effects stems. The full soundtrack was then remastered and remixed at Chace Audio in Burbank, California, under the supervision of Lawrence Kasdan. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD, AudioCube's integrated workstation, and iZotope RX 3.

Transfer supervisors: John Bailey, Grover Crisp.
Colorist: John Dunn/Colorworks, Culver City, CA."

The technical presentation is outstanding. The film has a wonderfully balanced and very smooth (not digitally smoothed) look that makes it exceptionally easy to appreciate John Bailey's cinematography. Detail is fantastic -- virtually all close-ups boast wonderful depth and clarity while the larger panoramic shots impress with excellent fluidity. Color reproduction is equally satisfying. There is a wide range of nuanced and very healthy colors that support the film's period atmosphere. There are absolutely no traces of problematic degraining or sharpening corrections. Also, because of the high-quality scanning, from start to finish grain is evenly and beautifully resolved. Finally, there are no debris, damage marks, cuts, or stains to report in this review. To sum it all up, this is a fantastic presentation of The Big Chill that should remain the film's definitive presentation on Blu-ray. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

The Big Chill Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

I viewed the film with the original Mono track and was very pleased with it. Depth and clarity are excellent and the music is wonderfully balanced. The dialog is consistently crisp, stable, and very easy to follow. There are no pops, crackle, hiss, audio dropouts, or distortions to report in this review.

I tested select sequences with the 5.1 track and in some areas separation is obviously different. Depth is also improved, but clarity is identical to that of the Mono track. I prefer the Mono track, but you should experiment with both tracks and see which one you like better.

The Big Chill Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for The Big Chill. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Success in the System - in this new video interview, Lawrence Kasdan discusses some of the typical challenges a director would face within the studio system, the types of films he made with the support of the studio system, some of the most important themes in The Big Chill, the films that influenced him (The Rules of the Game, The Awful Truth), etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2014. In English, not subtitled. (13 min, 1080p).

• "The Big Chill": A Reunion - this documentary film by Laurent Bouzereau focuses on the production history and success of The Big Chill. Included in it are numerous clips from interviews with director Lawrence Kasdan, writer Barbara Benedek, editor Carol Littleton, executive producer Marcia Nasatir, Tom Berenger, Clenn Close, William Hurt, JoBeth Williams, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly, and Jeff Goldblum, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (57 min, 1080i).
  
  1. Original impulses
  2. Creating an ensemble
  3. Miles away
  4. Important elements
  5. Key scenes
  6. Music
  7. Memorable moments
  8. The flashback

• Thirteen Anniversary Q&A - presented here is a Q&A session with cast and crew members -- Lawrence Kasdan, Meg Kasdan, Tom Berenger, JoBeth Williams, Meg Tilly, Michael Shamberg (producer), Marcia Nasatir (executive producer), Barbara Benedek (writer), Mary Kay Place, Kevin Kline, and Glenn Close -- of The Big Chill which was held at the 2013 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival. The session was moderated by Variety's chief film critic, Scott Foundas. In English, not subtitles. (44 min, 1080i).

• Deleted Scenes - a gallery of deleted scenes. In English, not subtitled. (10 min, 1080p).

• Booklet - 22-page illustrated booklet featuring: Lena Dunham's essay "These Are Your Parents" and Harlan Jacobson's "Surviving".

The Big Chill Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Criterion's new Blu-ray release of Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill, one of the best American films from the early '80s, is a thing of beauty. In fact, I like it so much that even though it is only August, I can guarantee that it will appear on my Top 10 list at the end of the year. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.