Blonde:
The Marilyn Stories (1976
- 1991/Film Chest DVD Set)/Bros.
(2022/Universal Blu-ray w/DVD)/Enormity
Of Life (2022/Bayview
Blu-ray)/The Power Of The
Dog 4K
(2021/Netflix/Criterion 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: C/B & C/B/B Sound: C/B &
C+/C+/B+ Extras: C+/C/C/B- Main Programs: C+/C/C+/B-
The
following dramas may have some comedy, but not always in the usual
way...
With
the controversial, new NC-17 about Marilyn Monroe out for awards
season, we have a new compilation DVD set, Blonde:
The Marilyn Stories
(1976 - 1991) featuring three dramatized attempts to portray the
legend and some interesting extras.
Joyce
Chopra's Blonde
mini-series (2001) is based on the Joyce Carol Oates novel with Poppy
Montgomery as the adult Marilyn and at 165 minutes, it is the longest
program here. It has its moments, but is mixed overall. The actress
playing her is good, but some of this is admittedly fictionalized and
you can tell. It plays that way at times and gets too melodramatic
for its own good. Still, its shot well and the cast also includes
Ann-Margaret, Kristie Alley, Eric Bogosian and Patrick Dempsey, so it
is a curio indeed.
John
Patterson's Marilyn
& Me
(1991) claims it is the tale of the only man Marilyn ever loved,
which is silly, but the premise just the same, with Susan Griffiths
as Marilyn, Jesse Dabson as writer Robert ''Bobbie'' Slatzer and Joel
Grey leading a cast of somewhat unknowns in another mixed program
that also runs about as long as the other mini-series. This may be
pushing the truth much more and has a tendency to run on, but a few
moments still work.
And
finally, we get Larry Buchanan's Goodbye,
Norma Jean
(1976) and it is a full-length theatrical film with Misty Rowe as
Marilyn in the rawest of biopics, somewhat exploitive, yet somehow
still manages to have as many good moments (by accident?) as the
other programs. Rowe is more fearless and the scope frame just lends
itself to this tale. If it looked or played any cheaper, it could be
a XXX film, but it is just a serious R-rated one. Despite its flaws,
it5 is worth a look too.
Extras
include the real Marilyn's first TV appearance on a 1953 episode of
The
Jack Benny Program,
trivia. Photo Gallery, 1967 Legend
Of Marilyn Monroe
documentary, 1986 Marilyn
documentary and thin-but-high-quality illustrated booklet on the
programming in this set.
Nicholas
Stoller's Bros.
(2022) is a Judd Apatow-produced film about a gay male couple (Billy
Eichner and Luke Macfarlane) developing into a couple in love and the
like, in a film that runs almost two hours, but feels longer. The
film did not do well upon original release with one of the
participants complaining about people not going to see it. Besides
very little promotion (unless Universal did some selectively targeted
ones) the problem here is it has all kinds of cliches and is a few
decades after dozens of such films were made and distributed to the
gay movie community at large via companies (like Wolfe and Water
Bearer, et al) that successfully reached their audience.
There
is also nothing new or special here, even with the actors giving it
their best, character development is limited and we get the same few
jokes (can one of them ever get to join a group sex moment) and it
all lacks energy in some odd way, though the director also helmed
Forgetting
Sarah Marshall
and I thought that was pretty overrated too.
Of
course, I did not expect it to be political or revolutionary, which
Dear
Evan Hansen
was not, on top of being a poor musical, showing that representation
alone is not sufficient in breaking ground or leaving an impact.
Compare to the classic A
Very Natural Thing
(1972, reviewed elsewhere on this site) for instance and the limits
become obvious. A small landmark at best, it will only become a
curio when all is said and done, but with room for improvement, we'll
see if the limits of this current cycle of mainstream gay films are
snapped out of. Until then, this is only for the most curious.
Extras
include
(per the press release):
Deleted
Scenes
Gag
Reel
Representation
Matters: Representation matters, especially in a genre such as
romantic comedies which has traditionally been a space for
heteronormative on-screen couples. We sit down with our cast and
key crew members and ask them to tell us why they think this movie
is important, why it's important to be making it now, what it means
to them personally to see representation in this genre, and what
scenes or moments from the film spoke to them.
From
Start to Finish: Get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the
entire process of bringing BROS to life.
Introducing
Bobby and Aaron: Director Nick Stoller and actors Billy Eichner
and Luke Macfarlane introduce us to their characters, the process of
playing them and discuss their on-screen chemistry.
The
Cast and the Cameos: This film features an incredible ensemble
cast, especially those making up the museum board. Through sit-down
interviews and informal stand ups, we hear how they came to be a
part of the project, their thoughts when they first read the script,
their characters, their favorite scenes, and what the process of
filming was like.
The
Art of the Rom-Com with Billy and Nick: What makes a good
rom-com? Using sit-down interview footage with co-writers Billy and
Nick (separately), we dive into what they think makes a good
romantic comedy, and all the ways in which they stuck to, or
subverted classic rom-com tropes for BROS.
The
BROS National LGBTQIA+ History Museum: We learn about where the
idea to incorporate the first LGBTQ+ History Museum into the script
came from, why Billy and Nick landed on certain exhibits, and how it
all came together under the helm of the amazing Production Designer
and her team.
The
Making of a Deleted Scene
Pride
Fight: The Making Of: We do a deep dive into this deleted scene,
how it was made and why it ultimately ended up on the cutting room
floor.
and
Working Out: The Making Of: We talk to Nick and Billy about
the workout scenes, the inspiration for them, what it was like to
make the scenes, and again, the reasons why they didn't make it into
the final cut of the movie.
Eric
Swinderman's
The
Enormity Of Life
(2022) has the underrated Brecklin Meyer, usually known for his
comedy, as a man at the end of his rope literally, who wants to
self-destruct, but he fails at an attempt to do this and finds out he
has just very unexpectedly inherited a small fortune.
His
mother is sick and he wants to use the money to help her too, but he
then meets a down on her luck waitress (Emily Kinney) who can also
use some help and is a single mother. He also starts finding that he
likes her, while his mother is starting to act erratically. What
will he do?
When
I first heard of the film, it looked like Meyer might be doing his
first drama, but this still manages to be a comedy with some moments
even early on being really bad. He film never totally recovers and
laughs away many missed opportunities to make a better film. The
rest of the cast is not bad, but I was as unimpressed as I was
disappointed and Meyer plays it safe staying in the comedy genre when
it was time for him to take a risk. Oh well.
Extras
include a behind-the-scenes featurette (when it was under its older
title, Anhedonia)
and a trailer.
Jane
Campion's The
Power Of The Dog 4K
(2021) is a western at a time when they are very dead, either
regressive (proto fascist and/or just phony or about phonies, by
phonies, many of which who do not realize they arr or do not care if
viewers know how phony they are in real life) or want to actually
deal with the West (think Kevin Costner's Yellowstone series) or are
revisionist/realist tales like this one.
Tough,
obnoxious Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his brother George (Jesse
Plemons) have been running the family ranch for decades, even though
they are often opposites and have different ideas on how to do so.
When he meets young Rose (Kristen Dunst) running a local eatery the
brothers and company go to dine at, he becomes more interested than
anyone sees and Phil eventually catches on and is unhappy, seeing
this as a disruption and more.
Also,
she has a son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee) who is not very ranch-wise,
but book-wise and well-mannered, leading to instant rejection of him
by the ranch workers (gay slurs included, though they have zero proof
or knowledge of anything about him, par for the course in such
situations) and no one helps him or defends him. Phil is not a fan
and in increasing friction, is not keen on helping his brother greet
the Governor (Keith Carradine) or his wife (Allison Bruce) in an
important visit.
More
twists and turns are at hand, but I'll stop there, but Campion is
mostly interested in characters and to be honest, this could have
taken place in any other time period, but she chose this one in 1925
Montana, isolation and masculinity are the only two reasons she did.
The result is as much a melodrama as anything, but (without any
spoilers) a little disappointing, despite taking some risks. The
film can also be very brutal, especially in the way animals are
treated, so be warned.
Frances
Conroy also stars.
Extras
include (per the press release) another high quality paper pullout on
the film with illustrations, art, tech info and an essay by film
critic Amy Taubin, while the disc adds an interview with Campion
about the making of the film
Program
featuring interviews with members of the cast and crew and
behind-the-scenes footage captured on location in New Zealand
Interview
with Campion and composer Jonny Greenwood about the film's score
Conversation
among Campion, director of photography Ari Wegner, actor Kirsten
Dunst, and producer Tanya Seghatchian, moderated by filmmaker Tamara
Jenkins
New
interview with novelist Annie Proulx
and
a Trailer.
Now
for playback quality. The 2160p HEVC/H.265,
2.28 X 1 (yes, you read that correctly,) Dolby Vision/HDR (10; Ultra
HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image on Dog
is an all-Ultra HD shoot that looks good, has fine compositions and
is the best performer on the list, but even in this superior
presentation, it cannot compete with the classic images of the best
film-shot Westerns. That is especially in the case of scope-produced
films. Color is good, but can be limited and the 1080p Blu-ray also
included is fairly good, but flatter by comparison. The lossless
Dolby
Atmos 11.1 (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems) soundmix on
both discs is also the best sonic presentation here and definitely
has its moments when not dealing with dialogue-based scenes.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image on the Bros.
Blu-ray is an HD shoot that looks fine for that, but nothing special,
while its DTS-HD MA (Master Audio)
5.1 lossless mix is competent and always has a soundfield of some
sort. This is well-recorded, but nothing more than that. The
anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image on the included DVD is softer
and flatter, while the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 fares a bit better,
but is not as warm or clear as the Blu-ray's lossless DTS.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer on Life
is also an HD shoot and also fares well enough, even with a few soft
spots, but the sound for some reason is only lossy
Dolby Digital 5.1 when it should have been a lossless format. Too
bad, because that would have made this more involving.
The
Marilyn
set offers most of its programming in 1.33 X 1 framing, including the
Blonde
mini-series, while Marilyn
& Me
is here in anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 framing and the
Techniscope-shot Goodbye,
Norma Jean
is here in anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 aspect ratio that looks
accurate enough. Unfortunately, they are all off of older video
masters and are soft, second generation presentations, so their sound
suffers as well being a little softer than it should be in lossy
Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono in all cases. Be careful of volume switching
and high volume playback on them and all the extras here.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
