7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Cheryl is a video-store clerk and aspiring director whose interest in forgotten Black actresses leads her to investigate an obscure 1930s performer known as the Watermelon Woman.
Starring: Cheryl Dunye, Guinevere Turner, Christopher Mann (II), Orion McCabeDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
As a white CIS male raised in a mid-Atlantic protestant family, I genuinely feel inadequate in putting words to screen reviewing writer/director Cheryl Dunye's fascinating, complex dramedy, The Watermelon Woman. Cry "woke" all you'd like (I take it as a compliment) but I hardly feel suited to analyzing, much less criticizing, a film so personal, at-times so vulnerable, so immersed in the black lesbian experience. I'm not scared I'll offend. I think I've learned by now when to speak and when to let others speak, or when it's best to not only keep opinions to myself, but to not form opinions in areas my input isn't needed or invited. No, I'm a visitor here. A passenger on someone else's journey. A student stepping into someone else's shoes and being actively educated about what another race, gender, sexuality and culture thinks and feels. In short, a dude trying to take it all in. I know a great movie when I watch one, and The Watermelon Woman is a great independent feature. I also know when I'm ill-equipped to fully relate or empathize with a filmmaker or protagonist simply because I haven't lived, experienced or felt the things playing out before me. And so I remain a curious, fully engaged observer, longing to reach a point in our culture when artists like Dunye aren't marginalized but are accepted and appreciated for their true selves and all they have to offer society.
Presented in a faithful 1.33:1 aspect ratio and presented in a 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer created from a 2K director-approved digital restoration (itself sourced from the original 16mm A/B negatives), The Criterion Collection release of The Watermelon Woman is beautifully resolved and accurate to Dunye and cinematographer Michelle Crenshaw's intentions. The uninitiated by scoff when the film first begins intercutting rough-hewn standard definition interview footage with more striking high definition photography, but don't be fooled. It's all presented here as it's meant to be seen. Colors are rich and vibrant, with natural fleshtones and excellent contrast. Detail is top notch, bolstered by a pleasingly filmic veneer of consistent grain that only adds to the texture of the film. Edges are refined and clean as well, and close-ups reveal every smoothness, imperfection and nick on an actress or actor's skin. Better still, the only blocking, banding, halos and stair-stepping you'll spot are in the standard definition segments. The HD portions of the film never falter. The Watermelon Woman couldn't feasibly look much better than it does here.
True to the film's original sound design, The Watermelon Woman is presented with a solid DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 mix. Dialogue is clean, clear and precise, and effects are carefully prioritized in the soundscape. There isn't any rear speaker or low-end channel output but that doesn't mean the experience lacks power or immersive qualities. The mix doesn't sound tinny or thin (except in low-fi street interviews, as it should) yet still retains the fly-on-the-wall traits of its indie roots.
The Watermelon Woman is a strong indie feature; one I wish I had discovered long before now. (It debuted in 1996.) Better late than never, I suppose. Even at nearly 28-years old, the film felt relevant and more than timely, inspiring questions I realized I needed to ask myself today. Criterion's Blu-ray release makes it that much easier too with an excellent video transfer, solid DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 mix and a decent selection of supplemental materials. Recommended.
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