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A DVD Review of...
  
Images (C) Buena Vista, 2003 |
Genre: Comedy
Cast: Queen Latifah, Steve Martin, Eugene Levy, Joan Plowright, Missi Pyle
Synopsis: Peter Sanderson is a divorced, straight-laced, uptight, workaholic attorney whose become smitten with a brainy, bombshell barrister he's been chatting with online. But when she comes to his house for their first face to face, he quickly discovers she isn't refined, isn't Ivy League, and isn't even a lawyer.
Instead, it's Charlene, a prison escapee who's proclaiming her innocence and wants Peter to help clear her name. But Peter wants nothing to do with her, prompting the loud and shocking Charlene to turn Peter's perfectly ordered life upside down, jeopardizing his efforts to get back with his wife and woo a billion-dollar client..
Film Review: A few years ago, Warner Bros. released "Three to Tango" - a Matthew Perry comedy in which he's
mistaken for being gay and so is hired to 'watch out' for the mistress of a rich bastard and of course falls
in love with her. Many just brushed it off as yet another dud of a Matthew Perry comedy (which it was) but one of
the few reasons it sticks in the memory is that the homophobic and rather 'unenlightened' tone about homosexuality
felt like something out of a bad and dated 70's movie rather than a major studio release of 1999. If it weren't for
a wonderful supporting turn by Oliver Platt and the admittedly good chemistry between Perry & Neve Campbell this would
otherwise have only been remembered as a flat studio comedy which was in many ways insulting to the gay community.
Four years on and little has changed except the minority. As 'Tango' was to the gay community, 'House' is to the African-American community - a bland studio comedy which despite a few laughs and good lead characters, is nevertheless shockingly dated and even racist in regards to its material. Comedy based on race is rarely funny but can be pulled of if cleverly handled and with good quality writing, sadly that ain't present here - characters like Betty White & Joan Plowrights which would be funny if played as satire are done with such a straight face its actually creepy. Its a shame really as the setup is kind of fun and while the script resorts to cliched subplots (ignored kids, fawning over ex-wife) there's still some memorable sequences.
The cast is what keep this baby upright, with Steve Martin returning to the old fashioned physical comedy he hasn't done
in a while, whilst Queen Latifah just cooks every moment she's on screen - matching and out doing Martin at almost every
turn. This is a duo many wouldn't have thought to put together, but the pair play off each other extremely well whilst
Eugene Levy lends solid support. Even the ubiquitous family members from the gorgeous ex-wife to the rather sidelined young kids make an impression. This is truly a shining example of how a solid cast of actors can take even the blandest of material and make it shine. In particular Latifah just dazzles with every moment she's there.
The racial humour gags rarely work, as demonstrated by an embarassing nightclub scene towards the film's end, yet when it tries for other humour it catches fire. Martin & Latifah have a great fun 'learn how to dance' scene, whilst her ultra-violent catfight with Missi Pyle is one of the most brutal fights you'll see on screen all year yet works perfectly for the material. Pyle & Martin also have some great word sparring over Pyle's taste in men (ie. elderly millionaires about to die) and his lack of a life. The score, like the material, is peppy but again rather retro in tone. Tighter writing and this could've been a worthy recommendation, but sadly the dated material and all too frequent soggy parts don't compensate enough for what are some great highlights. Here's hoping Martin & Latifah pair up again, but next time lets hope its in something with a bit more street cred.- Garth Franklin
"Bringing Down the House"
DVD Details In Brief (Region 1)
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 105mins
Versions: 16:9 Enhanced Widescreen, 4:3 Letterboxed
Aspect Ratio: 2.35: 1
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
Language & Sub-Titles: English, French
Audio: Commentary by Director Adam Shankman and Screenwriter Jason Filardi.
Documentaries: Two Featurettes
Clips: Deleted Scenes, Music Video, Gag Reel, Trailers
Region 1 vs. Region 4: No R4 Available |
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DVD Review: A massive success at the box-office this year, Universal puts out its comedy in a quite well stocked single disc set. BVI does their
usual high standard of transfer work - colours and 'blacks' are excellent, detail level is awesome although the edge enhancement may get a bit overt but is mostly
not present. The soundtrack is solid though undistinctive - surround is barely used but dialogue is nicely clear and music is better than expected. The commentary track
by Director Adam Shankman and Screenwriter Jason Filardi is surprisingly dull - the two guys talk and talk, mostly kissing ass and finding fun in not much at all. Kind of separate from everything is a little video clip "The Godfather of Hop" which looks a U.G.-Levy (aka. Eugene Levy) and has him and his co-stars all talking about the actor's prowess and coolness (love Latifah's line - "three words and all my clothes came off). Its a fun three-minute piece played purely for silly laughs and it works.
The biggest extra is the 16-minute "Breaking Down Bringing Down the House" with standard interviews and clip segments but it does some nice examination of the early production including coming up with the right tone of something that's funny without crossing the offensive line. Certainly more fun than the seven deleted scenes, most of which the context is easy to follow but feel somewhat odd and different from the final product (and I ain't just talking the low quality video) although there's one good sequence where Martin is pushing Latifah to try on dresses in a high-class clothing store. Queen Latifah's music video for "Better than the Rest" is completely forgettable - awful song and dud video though the girl can sing. The short gag reel is fine but nothing special or even more laugh inducing than a mild giggle. Finally there's some trailers for the likes of "Chicago" and "Freaky Friday" to close out the disc which handles its film and extras better than the filmmakers in this case.- Garth Franklin
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