Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		2.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		2.0

The Out-of-Towners Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 6, 2022

Arthur Hiller's "The Out-of-Towners" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive new audio commentary by critic Lee Gambin as well as vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

It can't get any worse than this.

It is happening. George Kellerman (Jack Lemmon) is heading to New York City to interview for a dream job that will change his life forever. He has earned this opportunity with hard work and discipline, and now he is about to capitalize on it. He is bringing his wife, Gwen (Sandy Dennis), with him too, and as soon as the interview is over, they will begin looking for a new home and the best private school for their children. This is it – success. He will never ever have to worry about money again. As a Vice President of Sales, he will be making double, possibly even triple what they paid him in Twin Oaks, Ohio.

By the way, George has an early treat for Gwen. Even though his interview is tomorrow morning, he and Gwen are landing in New York City tonight and immediately heading to the best restaurant in town. He has already made a reservation and even thought of what to order for both of them. Great food. Great atmosphere. The greatest city in the world. It will be special. Very, very special. Gwen deserves all of it, too. She always supported him, so starting tonight he is going to treat her like a queen.

But because of a massive strike in New York City, George and Gwen land in Boston, together with hundreds, possibly even thousands of other passengers from other parts of the country. When they attempt to pick up their luggage, an airline employee then politely informs them that an odd error had kept it back in Twin Oaks, Ohio.

Determined to be in New York City on time for the interview, George and Gwen then manage to get on the last train heading south, but more troubles complicate what should have been the most exciting trip of their lives.

Directed by Arthur Hiller, The Out-of-Towners is a genuine classic that will never age because it depicts brilliantly a hilarious cycle of misery whose relevance can never be disputed. Don’t roll your eyes. These cycles have always been around and they can be every bit as unpredictable, maddening, and defeating as the one filmed by Hiller.

But there is another important reason why The Out-of-Towners will remain a timeless film. It is its very accurate depiction of the American way of life. Indeed, at the center of its story is a terrific, eye-opening visualization of the pursuit of success and happiness in America, both defined by very particular expectations and highlighting the seemingly crucial but quite trivial triumphs and failures that are associated with them. Some of these expectations could be easy to miss, but they are crucial because without them George and Gwen’s misery would not be initiated.

There is a sequence towards the end where Hiller actually makes it painfully obvious that he prefers to have The Out-of-Towners seen and deconstructed as precisely that kind of an illuminating film. In this sequence, George returns to Gwen and enthusiastically announces that he has aced the job interview and finally everything in their lives is about to come together as it should. Gwen looks genuinely relieved, but then, much to George’s surprise, casually asks him to reconsider his triumph. Listen carefully to what she says there because at that particular moment her audience is much, much bigger.

Lemmon and Dennis earned only Golden Globe nominations for their terrific performances in The Out-of-Towners, which is a great shame because both were undoubtedly worthy of Oscar statuettes.

The Out-of-Towners Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Out-of-Towners arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment.

The release is sourced from an old and unfortunately very, very problematic older master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. Indeed, it appears that at some point in the past, which I assume was during the DVD era, this master was polished with digital tools to make the visuals of the film better balanced. Quite predictably, native detail was immediately lost and various compromising anomalies were introduced in a variety of different places. For example, you will easily see that backgrounds tend to appear soft and smeary, at times even patchy as well. In darker visuals, plenty of analogue-esque noise has replaced the grain too, routinely producing flatness that can be quite distracting (see screencaptures #1 and 5). From time to time, trained eyes will even spot ghosting effects that can contribute to other issues that are compromising the integrity of the visuals. Color reproduction isn't convincing. There are some decent primaries, but saturation isn't proper and most supporting nuances are lost. Darker nuances, in particular, are either very problematic or missing. Image stability is good, but there are a few areas with shaky transitions. Finally, a few small blemishes and marks can be spotted here and there. All in all, it is pretty obvious that The Out-of-Towners needs to be fully restored so that there is master that can produce a proper home video release of the film. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

The Out-of-Towners Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is actually quite good. The dialog is stable, clear, and easy to follow. I did not notice any troubling anomalies in the upper register, where older films usually reveal weaknesses. I think that dynamic intensity is good too, but if the film is fully restored, I have to assume that the audio will be remastered and dynamic balance likely improved a bit.

The Out-of-Towners Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for The Out-of-Towners. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Lee Gambin.

The Out-of-Towners Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Arthur Hiller's The Out-of-Towners is not just a wild comedy about a provincial couple enduring a rather remarkable cycle of misery in the Big Apple. If you adjust your viewing angle just a little bit, you will quickly realize that it actually offers a pretty spectacular commentary on the American way of life. Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis are terrific in it, and I think that in 1970 both should have been considered for Oscar statuettes. Via Vision Entertainment's release is sourced from an older and unfortunately quite problematic master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. I could not wait for it to arrive because The Out-of-Towners is an old favorite of mine, but much to my disappointment, I must write that at the moment there isn't a good enough master for a proper Blu-ray release.