Free
Guy 4K
(2021/20th Century/Disney 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)/Kinky
Boots
(2018 musical version/Liberator/MVD Blu-ray)/A
Night At The Opera
(1935)/Tex
Avery Screwball Classics, Volume Three
(1941 - 1957/both MGM/Warner Archive Blu-rays)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: B Sound: B+ & B/B/B-/B-
Extras: C/D/B/C- Main Programs: C+/B/B/B-
PLEASE
NOTE:
The A
Night At The Opera
and Tex
Avery
Blu-rays are now only available from Warner Bros. through their
Warner Archive series and can be ordered from the link below.
We
start with the surprise hit of Summer 2021, Shawn Levi's Free
Guy 4K
with Ryan Reynolds as a too-happy bank employee who we catch in the
middle of his life that seems too surreal to be real... and it is!
Instead, he is in a videogame cyberworld without knowing it, at
first, but we have seen this before in other variants (the overrated
Truman
Show,
Benjamin
Buttons
(noted in the dialogue here and The
Matrix,
a version I at least think works functionally enough) though this
will be more like another cycle of films.
They
are the ever-controversial ones where the characters (Space
Jam
films, live-action Josie
& The Pussycats,
etc.) are in a world of globalization that mixes consumer products
(soap, fast food, cars, etc. by brand name) with entertainment
franchises from film, TV, music, etc. and without zero ironic
distance (versus more pointed spoofs in De Palma's Phantom
Of The Paradise,
Russell's feature film version of The Who's rock opera Tommy
and even the strange Sgt.
Pepper's
movie with Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees!) so this cycle often
plays like a feature length string of ad placements than anything
with a narrative or anything entertaining.
The
only thing that makes this work better than most of these average to
horrid productions is that it has some laughs, some chuckles,
Reynolds is funny and we get a few small surprises, but this is all
quickly forgotten once finished unless you are a big Reynolds fan.
Otherwise, this plays lie a stop-gap before the next expected
Deadpool film. Jodie Comer and Taika Waititi are among the welcome
supporting cast, but this will date quickly. For fans only!
Extras
(per the press release) include Deleted and Extended Scenes
Plus
a Gag Reel, Dude
vs. Guy
- Join Ryan Reynolds, director Shawn Levy and the creative and stunt
teams as they reveal the innovative process of creating ''Free
Guy'''s
ultimate showdown between Guy and the wildly amped-up, spray-tanned,
frosted-tipped version of himself known as Dude, Creating
Molotovgirl
- Jodie Comer transforms from a brilliant programmer to her fierce
avatar in ''Free
Guy.''
Watch as the award-winning action star and filmmakers deconstruct
the conceptualization, evolution and execution of bringing
Molotovgirl to life, It's
Taika's World
- ''Free
Guy'''s
outrageous action may exist in a virtual world, but Taika Waititi
makes the real world just as crazy with the over-the-top Antwan. See
him at work in this entertaining showcase of a genuinely talented and
hilarious performer and Welcome
to Free City
- Delve into the reality-skewing universe that is Free City, as
revealed by director Shawn Levy, the cast, and its inventive creative
teams. Find out how they transformed a real metropolis into a
virtual playground where anything is possible.
Back
in 2005, a remarkable British film arrived called Kinky
Boots,
in which a show factory is doomed because it is making shoes no one
wants or wants to pay full price for, but what can the family owners
do? Inspiration arrives in the form of a cross-dresser who is being
attacked one night when the son of the owner, an owner himself, stops
the violence. Eventually, the near-victim suggests footwear that
could save the factory, business and the people in it. Though the
film had a few off moments, it was making a big statement about
Thatcherism, people and a viable future for the U.K. and was a
moderate hit.
Then
it inspired a musical version with a book by Harvey Fierstein and a
music score by Cyndi Lauper. Could they make this work and pull it
off? Fierstein had already made a name for himself by baring his
soul and in an uncompromised manner, never toning down his sexuality
or what that kind of life had and has been for him. He got
criticized and verbally attacked in a way that would not meet with
the silence it got then today, but he was classy about it, is one of
the industry's great survivors and can still write.
Lauper
is one of the great singer/songwriter/performers of our time and all
time, equal to all her contemporaries and still underrated and
underestimated. This disc's production happens to be from the U.K.
stage (tape in 2018) and has some 'Britishisms' that many in the U.S.
might miss that were likely not in the original Broadway stage
version with Billy Porter, but that's a good and important thing here
to address the many things the production wants to deal with and does
so successfully.
It
is about people, love, finding what will work for one best and that
everyone deserves to have their dreams come true and find happiness
in the process. It takes the long way to do this, which makes it
very thorough and that takes it beyond its solid big screen origins.
It also continues the values and messages Lauper has always feature
in her greatest songs and albums, which is why there is still tons of
love and good will for her, her music and talent.
I
do not want to ruin any of the fun, but when we look back, this will
turn out to be one of the great musicals of our time and one of the
few adaptations of a film into a stage musical that will hold up and
endure. Instead of just throwing together something predictable and
putting up on stage, the makers (including Director/Choreographer
Jerry Mitchell) do what you need to do no matter where or when you do
a musical today: reinvent the story from top to bottom. They succeed
brilliantly here (Hairspray
is another rare example of a non-musical movie turned into a great
musical) and I highly recommend it, especially if you live music and
dance with heart and soul.
Matt
Henry and Killian Donnelly lead an exceptional cast of
singer/dancer/actors we really need to see much, much more of. This
is the best of the non-classical music stage musicals on Blu-ray I
have seen in years. See it!
There
are sadly no extras, but here's my review of the 2005 comedy/drama
that this musical is based on, long overdue for a Blu-ray release
itself:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/4438/Kinky+Boots+(Comedy
Sam
Wood's A
Night At The Opera
(1935) is the comeback feature film for The Marx Bros., who almost
threw in the towel after their run at Paramount Pictures ended with
their masterpiece Duck Soup bombing at the box office at the time!
Fortunately, Chico had a good friend at MGM and the result was
remarkable comeback classic where the now trio (Chico left to work
behind the scenes in the business) land up tormenting snobs and
trashing class division in this new-style film for them as they help
a beautiful opera singer (Kitty Carlisle) get together with the opera
singer she loves versus the snob egotist she is doing everything to
avoid while helping themselves to anything and everything they want!
Irving
Thalberg produced this classic, one of his many hits running MGM with
Louis B. Meyer before his sadly, untimely passing and to show you how
smart all involved are, Harpo has an amazing middle sequence on the
deck of a boat (the trio has just driven all of Italy nuts!) as he
plays piano while pretending to keep hurting his hands with a bunch
of children watching. They are actors/extras, but the laughs are
real and that alone would be a great moments, then he moves to play a
harp nearby and no one plays it like him.
Though
he is humorous at times doing this (more so than his classic I
Love Lucy
performance, where it is a total break from the comedy) his panache
and finesse is nothing short of ingenious and his total command of
the instrument unbeatable. Then he finishes and the message is
clear: the arts are for everyone, no matter their mood, temperament,
education, wealth, class, creed or anything else in life. It is
among the many reason this is one of their greatest films and why it
is always celebrated, referenced and beloved, all the way to the
greatest album (one of many!) the band Queen ever recorded. A
Night At The Opera
is a classic, including all of its actual opera sequences that are
not butchered down for time and is a must-0see for all serious film
fans, especially those who want to laugh!
Allan
Jones and Margaret Dumont lead the rest of the great supporting cast.
Extras
include the Remarx
On Marx
documentary, three vintage live-action shorts (Los
Angeles: Wonder City Of The West,
Sunday
Night At The Trocadero
and the comical How
To Sleep,
which won Robert Benchley an Oscar,) an Original Theatrical Trailer,
a 1961 Grouch Marx appearance on The
Hy Gardner Show
and an early, feature length audio commentary track by film historian
and critic Leonard Maltin. He was sometimes bashed for liking films
from the Classical Hollywood period over newer films, but he is one
of a increasingly rare group of critics who actually not only know
about movies, but watch them from all eras and actually love them.
He never sold out or changed his position or backed down and that is
an achievement he deserves more credit for than he gets.
Last
but not least, in speaking of some inspiration for Ryan Reynolds
comedy style, watching the 21 classic animated shorts on Tex
Avery Screwball Classics, Volume Three
(1941 - 1957) reminded me of how just being outright looney with a
certain calculated, reserved approach that still is in your face is
not easy to pull off. Avery was excellent at it and though so many
of the great shorts were already featured in the first two sets,
there are more and this set is as essential as the first two.
The
shorts this time, including more than a few Droopy shorts, include...
BLITZ
WOLF (a WWII short that has some interesting moments)
THE EARLY
BIRD DOOD IT
ONE HAM'S FAMILY
HAPPY GO NUTTY
JERKY
TURKEY
THE SHOOTING OF DAN McGOO
SWING SHIFT CINDERELLA
WILD
AND WOLFY
NORTHWEST HOUNDED POLICE
SLAP HAPPY LION
KING SIZE
CANARY
WHAT PRICE FLEADOM
LITTLE TINKER
SENOR
DROOPY
COCK-A-DOODLE DOG
ROCK-A-BYE BEAR
LITTLE JOHNNY
JET
BILLY BOY
DEPUTY DROOPY
and CELLBOUND
To
new viewers, they will be howling and to those who have seen these a
good few times, this will often be the best screening you have ever
had of any of these cartoons (save if you saw a few on Blu-ray
somewhere before or have been lucky enough to see a fine color film
print) so even if he repeats some of his gags here and there, this
all still works and most of this hold sup well with little to
complain about (though we get the disclaimer if anything offensive
still remains and a few points are problematic, but that also
reflects the time) so definitely consider catching this latest batch
of save and restored animated classics. Yes, some risks do not work
as well as others, but at least Avery was always trying.
The
only extra is the original version of a Warner Bros. animated short
Avery made for them in 1941 entitled Crackpot
Quail.
There apparently were odd, unnecessary changes made to its
soundtrack for some odd reason in later reissues of the short, but it
is here in its original version and looking good.
Now
for playback performance. The 2160p HECV/H.265, 2.35 X 1, HDR (10;
Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image on Free
Guy 4K
is an all-HD shoot and has some serious money in it. It is the best
performer here, just besting the other Blu-rays on the list,
including its own 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition Blu-ray
version with better color range and light values. The 4K disc has a
lossless Dolby
Atmos 11.1 (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems) is
not the best 12-track mix ever, but has its sonic moments and the
regular Blu-ray has as its best soundtrack a DTS-HD
MA (Master Audio) 7.1 lossless mix that is not bad, but is also a
mixdown.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer on Boots
is an HD stage shoot that is a few years old and has some flaws and
minor blur, but plays fine otherwise and has decent color throughout,
while the
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless sound mix is just fine for a
stage program and compares favorably with recent such Classical and
Musical Blu-rays we've reviewed in the last few years.
The
1080p 1.33 X 1 black & white digital High Definition image
transfer on Opera
can show the age of the materials used in a few places, but this is
far superior a transfer to all previous releases of the film and the
best any Marx Bros. film has looked to fate in any video format ever
and they've had a tin of releases since the advent of VHS and Beta,
so that says something. The glossy monochrome of MGM's labs really
shines in many scenes and is sharp and vivid more than you would
expect from a film this or any age. Warner Archive has done an
amazing job of restoring and saving this classic to the point that
some shots exceed my rating, so here's hoping the rest of their films
will get the same impressive treatment and Warner owns a few more, so
hope to see them soon. The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono lossless mix on the film allows you
to hear the dialogue and jokes as clearly as you ever will and I
doubt this will ever sound better than it does here. Nice for a film
of its age.
Finally,
the 1080p 1.33 X 1 digital High Definition image transfers on the 21
Avery
animated shorts can obviously show their age, not counting any
animation style, but they were all created and issued in 35mm
dye-transfer,
three-strip Technicolor film prints, so the color can go from really
good to absolutely amazing depending on the short. The later shorts
are obviously going to be more refined, but some of the color on the
earlier ones will impress. Note how the early MGM shorts have fun
with the color of the ribbon draping the MGM logo and its legendary
Leo The Lion.
All
the shorts are here in DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono lossless
sound mixes and they can vary in quality, but most sound as good as
they ever will and that increases the impact of visual gags, jokes
and much more. The result is a set worthy of its predecessors
performance-wise.
To
order either of the Warner Archive Blu-rays, A
Night At The Opera
and/or any or all three (so far) of the Tex
Avery
sets, go to this link for these and many more great web-exclusive
releases at:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/ED270804-095F-449B-9B69-6CEE46A0B2BF?ingress=0&visitId=6171710b-08c8-4829-803d-d8b922581c55&tag=blurayforum-20
-
Nicholas Sheffo
