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Importance of Being Earnest (2002)
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment // PG // November 12, 2002
List Price: $29.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
While not exactly a necessary remake, "Importance of Being Earnest" still seems like a pleasant way to spend 90 minutes and change, thanks to both Oscar Wilde's dialogue and the kind of stellar cast that Miramax Films usually proves themselves capable of rounding up. While I'm not entirely familiar with all of the details of Wilde's play, some modernizations have taken place in director Oliver Parker's new film. While they don't seem entirely worthwhile, the actors - especially Rupert Everett - seem to be overjoyed at the chance to work with this dialogue.
The film revolves around Jack Worthing (Colin Firth), who calls himself Jack in one place and goes by his alter ego, Ernest, in others. Jack's friend, Algernon Moncrieff (Rupert Everett), sees this is as a perfect opportunity. One day, he pops up at Jack's place in the country, claiming to be Jack's long-lost brother Earnest. Once there, he starts to romance Cecily (Reese Witherspoon), who Jack is looking after. Meanwhile, Gwendolyn (Frances O'Connor), Jack's fiancee from the city, is coming out to the country house - only she thinks she's marrying a guy named Earnest. Somewhat obvious mistaken-identity stuff, but Wilde's dialogue is marvelous. Some odd choices, including putting Witherspoon in the occasional fantasy sequence, don't work, but aren't wrong-headed enough to make the movie suffer too terribly.
As one might expect, the cast offers terrific performances, especially Everett and Judi Dench as Lady Bracknell. Also quite good are Francis O'Connor, Tom Wilkinson and Colin Firth. Although non-Brit Reese Witherspoon doesn't seem like much of a fit in this kind of part, she offers a light, confident performance and a good accent. Technically, this is a stellar-looking production, with gorgeous cinematography from Tony Pierce-Roberts, impressive locations and solid production design. While the budget was reportedly $15 million, the picture has a more costly appearance.
While not without a few concerns, "Earnest" provides better entertainment than most recent comedy fare, moving quickly through its 95 minutes and offering effective performances from an award-winning cast.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Importance of Being Earnest" is presented by Miramax in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. Although not entirely without fault, I found the majority of this transfer to be simply beautiful, with a rich, film-like appearance. Sharpness and detail are nothing short of superb, as the the film boasted a crisp, smooth appearance and fine detail.
The only real fault that I noticed throughout this transfer were a couple of instances of slight edge enhancement. These instances were minor and certainly not very bothersome. Other than that, I found everything to be perfectly top notch, with no pixelation and a spotless print.
Best of all is this transfer's reproduction of the film's incredibly rich and vivid color palette. This is a film with remarkable production design and locations, all of which show off some very deep and well-saturated colors, which appear crisp and without any faults here. Black level also remained solid, while flesh tones looked accurate and natural. This is fine, fine work from the studio.
SOUND: The Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation is less impressive, although it's largely understandable, due to the material. Certainly a dialogue-driven picture, audio stays within the front speakers for what seemed like 99% of the picture. Still, dialogue and occasional instances of score were presented with enjoyable clarity.
MENUS: Basic, non-animated menus with elegant, film-themed images as backgrounds.
EXTRAS: Extras include an audio commentary from director Oliver Parker, "Sneak Peek" trailers for other Miramax titles and two featurettes - one running 7 minutes and another 14.
Final Thoughts: "Importance of Being Earnest" is light, fluffy art-house fun that boasts fine performances from a talented cast. It's not perfect, but it's quick, witty and entertaining. Buena Vista's DVD edition offers very good audio/video and a decent handful of supplements. Recommended.
While not exactly a necessary remake, "Importance of Being Earnest" still seems like a pleasant way to spend 90 minutes and change, thanks to both Oscar Wilde's dialogue and the kind of stellar cast that Miramax Films usually proves themselves capable of rounding up. While I'm not entirely familiar with all of the details of Wilde's play, some modernizations have taken place in director Oliver Parker's new film. While they don't seem entirely worthwhile, the actors - especially Rupert Everett - seem to be overjoyed at the chance to work with this dialogue.
The film revolves around Jack Worthing (Colin Firth), who calls himself Jack in one place and goes by his alter ego, Ernest, in others. Jack's friend, Algernon Moncrieff (Rupert Everett), sees this is as a perfect opportunity. One day, he pops up at Jack's place in the country, claiming to be Jack's long-lost brother Earnest. Once there, he starts to romance Cecily (Reese Witherspoon), who Jack is looking after. Meanwhile, Gwendolyn (Frances O'Connor), Jack's fiancee from the city, is coming out to the country house - only she thinks she's marrying a guy named Earnest. Somewhat obvious mistaken-identity stuff, but Wilde's dialogue is marvelous. Some odd choices, including putting Witherspoon in the occasional fantasy sequence, don't work, but aren't wrong-headed enough to make the movie suffer too terribly.
As one might expect, the cast offers terrific performances, especially Everett and Judi Dench as Lady Bracknell. Also quite good are Francis O'Connor, Tom Wilkinson and Colin Firth. Although non-Brit Reese Witherspoon doesn't seem like much of a fit in this kind of part, she offers a light, confident performance and a good accent. Technically, this is a stellar-looking production, with gorgeous cinematography from Tony Pierce-Roberts, impressive locations and solid production design. While the budget was reportedly $15 million, the picture has a more costly appearance.
While not without a few concerns, "Earnest" provides better entertainment than most recent comedy fare, moving quickly through its 95 minutes and offering effective performances from an award-winning cast.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Importance of Being Earnest" is presented by Miramax in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. Although not entirely without fault, I found the majority of this transfer to be simply beautiful, with a rich, film-like appearance. Sharpness and detail are nothing short of superb, as the the film boasted a crisp, smooth appearance and fine detail.
The only real fault that I noticed throughout this transfer were a couple of instances of slight edge enhancement. These instances were minor and certainly not very bothersome. Other than that, I found everything to be perfectly top notch, with no pixelation and a spotless print.
Best of all is this transfer's reproduction of the film's incredibly rich and vivid color palette. This is a film with remarkable production design and locations, all of which show off some very deep and well-saturated colors, which appear crisp and without any faults here. Black level also remained solid, while flesh tones looked accurate and natural. This is fine, fine work from the studio.
SOUND: The Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation is less impressive, although it's largely understandable, due to the material. Certainly a dialogue-driven picture, audio stays within the front speakers for what seemed like 99% of the picture. Still, dialogue and occasional instances of score were presented with enjoyable clarity.
MENUS: Basic, non-animated menus with elegant, film-themed images as backgrounds.
EXTRAS: Extras include an audio commentary from director Oliver Parker, "Sneak Peek" trailers for other Miramax titles and two featurettes - one running 7 minutes and another 14.
Final Thoughts: "Importance of Being Earnest" is light, fluffy art-house fun that boasts fine performances from a talented cast. It's not perfect, but it's quick, witty and entertaining. Buena Vista's DVD edition offers very good audio/video and a decent handful of supplements. Recommended.
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