When I first saw Irreconcilable Differences, I was about the same age as Casey Brodsky (Drew Barrymore), the ten-year-old protagonist. So I first saw it through that prism, as a child of divorce (with a crush on little Drew), and enjoyed it on that level. Seeing it again, for the first time since the mid 1980s, I watched it through completely different eyes--not just as an adult, but as an adult who is much savvier to the story behind the story.

You see, the primary relationship of the film--that of successful film director Albert Brodsky (Ryan O'Neal) and his wife and collaborator Lucy (Shelley Long)--is a very thinly veiled account of the marriage and messy public split of successful film director Peter Bogdanovich and his wife and collaborator Polly Platt. It's so thinly veiled, in fact, that I'm a little surprised the picture wasn't hit with a libel suit; Bogdanovich is even mentioned by name in the film (albeit as a contemporary of Brodsky's, not as the inspiration to his character). If you've read Peter Biskind's indispensible Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, you'll spot all of the parallels--Brodsky's ascension from encyclopedic film nerd to filmmaker, the beautiful young leading lady (Cybill Shepard in real life, Blake Chandler--played by a very young Sharon Stone--here) who broke them up, the musical vanity project that nearly sinks his career (At Long Last Love in real life, the hilarious faux-Gone With The Wind musical remake Atlanta here), the rise of the shunned wife just as his star falls (Platt became a successful screenwriter, production designer and finally producer).

But unsurprisingly, the film was not marketed as an inside-baseball Hollywood gossip-fest. The big marketing hook was, in fact, more of a framing device; the film begins with a divorce attorney (the always reliable Allen Garfield) informing an off-screen client that he's decided to take her case, but wants her to understand how serious and strenuous divorce can be, and so on. Slow reveal that he's talking to... Little ten-year-old Casey! Ho, ho.

Anyway, we then follow the Brodskys into the courtroom (with a quick appearance by a very young David Paymer), where each of them take the stand to talk about how Albert and Lucy met, how they found and lost their fortunes, and how poor Casey was ignored in the process. We see it all in flashbacks, a structure that is less than fresh but still effective, even though the lengthy set-up could definitely use some trims. Screenwriter Nancy Meyers (with and without co-screenwriter/director Charles Shyer) frequently has trouble with brevity, and Irreconcilable Differences is admittedly overlong at 113 minutes.

That's not its only problem--it is plagued by some minor faults typical of the period (the presence of a swishy gay assistant, a hoary easy-listening score), a big courtroom climax that's a little too on-the-nose, and an icky, fuzzy "happy ending." I admire the decision to take the romance and divorce with a modicum of seriousness, but too often, the screenplay tells rather than shows, giving us clunky speeches and obvious dialogue when a look or a well-staged moment will do. There's also some unfortunate foreshadowing; husband-and-wife filmmaking team Shyer and Meyers themselves separated in the late 1990s (so maybe it's not just about Bogdanovich and Platt), and there's an uncomfortable moment where little Drew Barrymore down a full flute of champagne, a habit that she took up off-screen disturbingly soon after making this film.

That's about her only unfortunate moment, however; hers is a finely tuned performance, sweet and likable and mighty sympathetic. O'Neal makes an awfully convincing film geek, and he's quite good with Long, who pulls a believable turn from a likable wallflower to a Hagen-Daaz swilling harpy divorcee to a wealthy, obnoxious bitch. Stone (who is "introduced" in the opening credits) is also pretty good as a vampy, bratty homewrecker, and begins laying claim on her cinematic legacy by going topless (in a PG-rated movie--scandal!)

Much of the Tinseltown satire is well-crafted, particularly an uproariously funny sequence on the set of the horrifyingly ill-advised Atlanta in which we watch egos spin out of control while the budget skyrockets. Laughs about in sequences like that, as well as in some of the smaller, throwaway lines--I particularly liked the moment when Long asks a vapid woman at a Hollywood party if she has any kids, and the woman replies, "Yeah, but I'm not really into parenting right now." The trouble with Irreconcilable Differences is that it doesn't know that a moment like that says more than all of the overwrought melodrama it can muster.

The single-layer Irreconcilable Differences DVD is being released with several other titles as part of Lionsgate's new "Lost Collection" (the series tagline boasts that these are the "best films you totally forgot about," an assessment that might be argued by anyone who has ever seen fellow "Lost Collection" titles like Repossessed and Homer & Eddie). The "Lost Collection" release of Hiding Out apparently utilizes the transfer from that film's previous DVD release; titles new to the format, like this one, don't look to be so lucky.

When I glanced at the case for the disc, my first thought was "Full-frame? Really, Lionsgate?" I had no idea. Not only do we get a 1.33:1 picture instead of the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, but (as with the "Lost Collection" release of Slaughter High) Lionsgate has apparently just digitized the original VHS release of the film--a fact confirmed (hilariously) by the inclusion of that cheesy 80s Vestron Video logo before and after film. If they don't even care enough to cut that out, they clearly aren't even trying. To top that off, the film apparently got a pretty lousy original VHS transfer--it's full of dirt, scratches, occasional tape glitches, and even reel change cigarette burns. The image itself is about the quality you'd predict from a VHS copy, with the expected flickering, softness, pixilation, washed-out colors, and general murkiness (much of the first act consists of scenes of O'Neal and Long driving at night; you can barely make them out in the frame, two beige blobs in the middle of a sea of messy darkness). I've only been writing for DVD Talk for a few months, but this the worst-looking disc I've yet reviewed.

The box promises a 5.1 audio mix, but it's front-loaded with very little separation or directionality, even in scenes of heavy rainfall and other potentially immersive environments. In other words, it's a 2.0 in 5.1's clothing. Dialogue is clear, if a little on the thin side, but the music mix is plenty muddy.

As with the other "Lost Collection" titles, Irreconcilable Differences includes a Trivia Track subtitle option. It's less than entertaining; basically, it amounts to filmography information about the cast and crew in the form of multiple choice and true/false questions. The tidbits are few and far between, and stay up on screen long enough for you to anagram them.

The only other extras are for additional Lionsgate trailers; we don't even get this film's original theatrical trailer.

Irreconcilable Differences is a fairly enjoyable flick, with some funny moments and fine performances, as well as plenty of connect-the-dots for students of 70s filmmaking. It's worth a look, but I'd rather push you to track down a VHS copy at your public library or pawn shop than put any money into the pockets of those responsible for this below-subpar release. If they make coin off of shoddy presentations like this, well, we're only encouraging them.

Jason lives in New York. He holds an MA in Cultural Reporting and Criticism from NYU.