7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.8 |
Self-made billionaire Thomas Crown can buy anything he wants and is irresistible to women. But there are some things that money can't buy: Crown has run out of challenges. When an alarm sounds at a a world class museum and someone walks out with a priceless Monet, Crown is the last person the New York police suspect. Who would steal something he could easily afford to buy and why would he? But one person suspects him: Catherine Banning, the brilliant insurance investigator hired to retrieve the painting no matter what it takes. Catherine loves the chase as much as he does and she's on to his game...
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Rene Russo, Denis Leary, Ben Gazzara, Frankie FaisonRomance | 100% |
Heist | 59% |
Crime | 58% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
Spanish: DTS 5.1
Portuguese: DTS 5.1
German: DTS 5.1
Italian: DTS 5.1
Hungarian: Dolby Digital 2.0
Russian: Dolby Digital 2.0
Thai: Dolby Digital 2.0
Turkish: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Croatian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Indonesian, Korean, Mandarin (Traditional), Norwegian, Polish, Russian, Swedish, Thai, Turkish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
The hype surrounding any remake is usually of the how will it hold up against the original variety, and sure, there was a little of that prior to The Thomas Crown Affair’s August 1999 release. The 1968 film, directed by Norman Jewison, and starring steely-eyed Steve McQueen and hot-to-trot sex symbol Faye Dunaway, has never been revered as an outright classic. A competent heist flick, yes, but its then-novel use of split screen is usually regarded as a case of ambitious style over substance. It’s the sort of film that had always seemed primed for a remake, so there weren’t too many fans up in arms over director John McTiernan’s (Die Hard, The Hunt for Red October) decision to have another go at the Crown caper. The pre-release buzz around this remade Affair had more to do with its steamy sex scenes, with generous coverage of how actress and former model Rene Russo—then, at 45, over the hill by Hollywood standards—was sexier than ever in her nude couplings with British stag Pierce Brosnan. In a way, of course, this is just another form of style over substance—there’s definitely more eye candy than dramatically fulfilling meat.
"Do you want to dance, or do you want to dance?"
The Thomas Crown Affair makes its high definition debut with a surprisingly strong 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer, framed in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. This release handily bests previous DVD iterations of the film, so fans looking to upgrade should have no qualms at all. Color is the first thing that jumps out at you here, as this Affair's palette is rich, warm, and natural, with sultry skin tones and a very balanced, settled look. New York is both autumnal and cool, with leafy avenues, woodsy interiors—like Crown's stately manor—and steely skyscrapers. Crown and Catherine's jaunt to a Caribbean island affords the picture some vibrant hues, with deep green foliage and Catherine's fantastically red sunhat. Deep blacks border on crush on occasion, letting some details slip away into the shadows, but in general the picture has even contrast and good dimensional presence. Clarity is somewhat mixed, but mostly on the up and up. Close-ups display the expected levels of fine detail—the textures of Russo's couture wardrobe, the lines on Bronson's devilishly handsome face—but some medium-to-long shots grow slightly soft. Never distractingly so, however, and I'm sure it has to do with the actual source, not the transfer. The film's grain structure is thin and consistent, with the exception of a few spikes during aerial and darker scenes, and the encode is solid, with no overly apparent compression hitches or other artifacts.
The film's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is just as finely tuned as the visuals, mixing dialogue, ambient sound, cross-channel effects, and Bill Conti's excellent—if a little dated—score with clarity and oomph. The track isn't nearly as immersive, dynamic, or sonically assaulting as what you might find on a similar modern caper flick, but it totally suits Affair's sleek tone and leaves little, audio-wise, to be desired. The surround channels are home to frequent New York City ambience—traffic sounds, mostly—and we get a few standout effects, like security lasers sweeping through the soundfield, helicopter blades beating the air, and a glider swooshing over the New England countryside. The catamaran race scene is particularly impressive, with sailing tack rippling in the wind, the spray and rush of waves, and the slap of the hull against the water. Conti's propulsive score is big and detailed, though I found myself aching for a little more bass to round things out. Dialogue is clear, even the smallest, most seductive whispers, and voices accurately reflect the acoustic qualities of their environments. There's nothing here that you might use to show off your audio system, but this is a strong track with some decent sound design.
Unfortunately, MGM couldn't dredge up any archival material to fill out this release, so the disc arrives with the barest of bones. A commentary track with director Joe McTiernan is included on the DVD copy of the film, but I really don't see why they could've have ported it over to the Blu-ray, especially considering how the film has audio dubs in 10 languages.
So, is the 1999 version of The Thomas Crown Affair better than the original? Personally, I think both films are little more than heist genre gimcracks, but they are fun and sexy and full of double-crossing intrigue. The remake—steamy and icy, more mixed than truly memorable—gets an excellent high definition transfer courtesy of MGM, along with a solid lossless audio track. Sadly, supplementary features are entirely absent, aside from a commentary on the included DVD copy.
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
1966
Reissue
1968
1992
2008
2009-2010
2006
1955
2009
Collector's Edition
1963
2015
Extended Edition
2010
2001
2005
2010
1987
1986
2007
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Warner Archive Collection
1939