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Jail Breakers
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment // R // November 13, 2001
List Price: $32.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
Miramax/Buena Vista seem to have a major catalog of titles that are simply sitting on the shelf, awaiting a boost of popularity for the stars or a new release from someone involved to pair the previously made picture with. Such instances of this include, "Shake, Rattle and Rock", which starred Renee Zellweger and was released around the time of the video release of her "Bridget Jones' Diary".
In the case of "Jailbreakers", I have no idea why this title was suddenly called up from the bench to swing at some minor release. A 1994 Showtime picture, this stars Shannen Doherty and Antonio Sabato and shockingly, was directed by the famed William Friedkin ("The French Connection"). The picture stars Doherty as Angel, a popular student who just happens to fall for a guy from the wrong side of the tracks, Tony (Sabato, Jr.). She's all into the danger aspect, but will it get her into deeper trouble?
The two meet and suddenly (literally - it's a 77 minute picture and things just happen) they've fallen in love with each other. Just as quickly, he's pulled her into crime; she goes free and has to move out of town. She's still in love - and when he gets out of jail, he goes off to find her once again. No points for guessing whether or not she gets in more trouble than she can handle with him. At no time was I at all engaged by any of it, though. Bad dialogue, worse acting and a cheap-looking attempt at a 50's period make for an a seriously boring 77 minutes.
The DVD
VIDEO: As "Jailbreakers" was originally a Showtime picture, this Dimension DVD release again presents the picture in its 1.33:1 full-frame aspect ratio. It's not a particularly great effort; the picture appears rather soft at times and contains a few other concerns worth discussing.
Aside from the slightly soft picture, there's a few minor instances of shimmering, edge enhancement and traces of pixelation. Print flaws didn't appear in the form of specks or marks didn't appear, but there was some minor grain and noise. Aside from the occasionally hazy picture, this is probably equivalent - or maybe a tiny bit better - than the original broadcast quality. Colors were about the least interesting element of the image quality, as they appeared bland and subdued.
SOUND: Presented in stereo, the soundtrack was nothing special, either. The only decently enjoyable element of the sound was the 50's surf-style rock which occasionally comes into the picture. Light ambience is occasionally heard and dialogue/music are balanced decently. Dialogue didn't seem particularly well-integrated.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus that essentially use film-themed images and cover art.
EXTRAS: "Sneak Peek" trailers for other Dimension straight-to-video efforts: "Shake, Rattle and Rock", "The Proposal", "Kiss of Fire" and "Confessions of Sorority Girls".
Final Thoughts: It's certainly a suprise that a director like Friedkin was involved with "Jailbreakers", a picture that's weakly acted, badly edited and generally tough to sit through even at just short of 80 minutes. Doherty actually isn't too bad, but otherwise, the film's essentially lacking in just about every other aspect. As for the DVD, audio/video quality and extras are nothing special - and the $32.99 price tag makes this even more unappealing.
Miramax/Buena Vista seem to have a major catalog of titles that are simply sitting on the shelf, awaiting a boost of popularity for the stars or a new release from someone involved to pair the previously made picture with. Such instances of this include, "Shake, Rattle and Rock", which starred Renee Zellweger and was released around the time of the video release of her "Bridget Jones' Diary".
In the case of "Jailbreakers", I have no idea why this title was suddenly called up from the bench to swing at some minor release. A 1994 Showtime picture, this stars Shannen Doherty and Antonio Sabato and shockingly, was directed by the famed William Friedkin ("The French Connection"). The picture stars Doherty as Angel, a popular student who just happens to fall for a guy from the wrong side of the tracks, Tony (Sabato, Jr.). She's all into the danger aspect, but will it get her into deeper trouble?
The two meet and suddenly (literally - it's a 77 minute picture and things just happen) they've fallen in love with each other. Just as quickly, he's pulled her into crime; she goes free and has to move out of town. She's still in love - and when he gets out of jail, he goes off to find her once again. No points for guessing whether or not she gets in more trouble than she can handle with him. At no time was I at all engaged by any of it, though. Bad dialogue, worse acting and a cheap-looking attempt at a 50's period make for an a seriously boring 77 minutes.
The DVD
VIDEO: As "Jailbreakers" was originally a Showtime picture, this Dimension DVD release again presents the picture in its 1.33:1 full-frame aspect ratio. It's not a particularly great effort; the picture appears rather soft at times and contains a few other concerns worth discussing.
Aside from the slightly soft picture, there's a few minor instances of shimmering, edge enhancement and traces of pixelation. Print flaws didn't appear in the form of specks or marks didn't appear, but there was some minor grain and noise. Aside from the occasionally hazy picture, this is probably equivalent - or maybe a tiny bit better - than the original broadcast quality. Colors were about the least interesting element of the image quality, as they appeared bland and subdued.
SOUND: Presented in stereo, the soundtrack was nothing special, either. The only decently enjoyable element of the sound was the 50's surf-style rock which occasionally comes into the picture. Light ambience is occasionally heard and dialogue/music are balanced decently. Dialogue didn't seem particularly well-integrated.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus that essentially use film-themed images and cover art.
EXTRAS: "Sneak Peek" trailers for other Dimension straight-to-video efforts: "Shake, Rattle and Rock", "The Proposal", "Kiss of Fire" and "Confessions of Sorority Girls".
Final Thoughts: It's certainly a suprise that a director like Friedkin was involved with "Jailbreakers", a picture that's weakly acted, badly edited and generally tough to sit through even at just short of 80 minutes. Doherty actually isn't too bad, but otherwise, the film's essentially lacking in just about every other aspect. As for the DVD, audio/video quality and extras are nothing special - and the $32.99 price tag makes this even more unappealing.
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