Boynton Beach Club (DVD-Video)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C     Film: C+

 

 

After the critical and commercial success of Desperately Seeking Susan, director Susan Seidelman had a few chances to become a constantly-working female director, but Cookie did not work out and She-Devil was the kind of bomb that killed Orion Pictures.  Two decades later, Boynton Beach Club (2006) has her more on track than she has been in a long time telling the tale of intersecting lives at their twilight in a comedy inspired by her parents.

 

Brenda Vaccaro plays a recently widowed woman whose husband was killed when an elderly car driver accidentally backs into him while he goes jogging.  She is one of many struggling with finding happiness in their lives, with age being a big factor.  Dyan Cannon plays a woman who may be having a personal revival in a relationship with the younger Michael Nouri, while Sally Kellerman plays a woman who meets one of her old flames and the script (co-written by Seidelman and Shelly Gitlow from the Florence Seidelman/David Cramer story) mines much humor out of it all.

 

However, it is too much comedy and not enough introspection.  If a Big Fat Greek Wedding was intended, it backfires a bit.  If she could have delved deeper into their lives and the particular womanhood of each situation, this could have been exceptional, but Seidelman only knows how to do more commercial fare and it once again stops her from reaching as far as she could.

 

The anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image is soft and looks like it was shot in digital High Definition.  It can be colorful, but Eric Moynier’s cinematography is not bad.  The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix spreads out what is a very basic soundtrack with dialogue in particular the focus.  Extras include previews for other Sony releases and Seidelman’s feature-length audio commentary.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo