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THE MOVIE
Despite a strong cast and director Paul Mazursky at the helm, I had never heard of the movie Faithful before getting in on DVD, and actually had to look it up on the internet to discover that it was made a few years back (1996) and had a dismal run at the box office (it only pulled in a little more than 2 million in its theatrical run).
Given these facts, I was expecting a rather lame film – but I was pleasantly surprised. Cher stars as a rich, but lonely, housewife, who on the day of her 20th wedding anniversary discovers that her cheating husband (Ryan O'Neal) has sent a hitman (Chaz Palminteri) to their house to kill her.
The movie is supposed to be a dark comedy, but there are really few laugh-out-loud moments. But that doesn't mean it's not fun to watch. The vast majority of the film is made up of Cher and Chaz talking to each other about male-female relationships, and both the script and the acting are well-done.
Faithful is based on a play that Palminteri wrote (he also wrote the screenplay for the film) and the movie really seems like watching a play – dialogue heavy, with most of the action taking place in only a few different locations.
The biggest impact I got from watching Faithful is that I had forgotten how good of an actress Cher can be. It's a shame she doesn't do film more, as she's one of the few singers turned actors that are worth paying your movie dollar to see.
THE DVD
Video:
The movie is presented in widescreen anamorphic in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The overall picture is fairly good, although I detected just a hint of "softness" to the overall video quality. There are a few instances of dirt on the print, but not many.
Audio:
Viewers will have the option of listening to a 5.1 Dolby track, or a 2.0 Dolby track. The 5.1 track sounds clear and crisp – but keep in mind that most of the movie is dialogue-heavy, so there's not a lot of opportunity for the soundtrack to show it's aggressiveness.
Extras:
There's not much in the way of extras on this DVD. Viewers will get to see the Theatrical Trailer for Faithful, plus three Trailers for other films: National Lampoon's Senior Trip, Head Above Water, and Heart Condition.
Other than a Chapter Selection, that's it in the way of extras on this DVD.
THE BOTTOM LINE
With the lack of bonus features, this one makes for a good rental. It's a movie that's enjoyable to watch, but not one you are likely to want to view over and over again. |
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