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Coming Soon
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
While watching "American Pie" last Summer, I pondered if there would ever be a version for girls, and why no one had already thought of a similar film for females. Soon enough, here it is. As far as I remember, "Coming Soon" actually attracted interest from major studios who were interested in releasing the film, but a fight with the ratings board later, the film is finally getting to video in the unrated version(originally it did get slapped with the dreaded "NC-17" due to some graphic dialogue.
Essentially, take "Clueless" and move it from Los Angeles to New York, throw in a touch of "American Pie", and you're got "Coming Soon", a cute, smart film that older female teens might definitely find entertaining. The film stars Bonnie Root as Stream, the last girl in her school to lose her virginity, and not that thrilled with the experience. The film may not have ended up a studio picture, but it does look like one. The film boasts good cinematography, a solid cast, a score that's enjoyable and not overused as well as enjoyable looking New York locations.
The film does have its share of sexual discussion between Stream(Root), Jenny(Gaby Hoffman) and Nell(Tricia Vessy), but it's quite innocent and not, in my opinion, something that should have recieved the controversial "adults only" rating. Not that the film only discusses sexuality; the girls also have to worry about getting into college, which is something that I think most teens can relate to. The girls, who act like they're doing things right, finally come to the realization that maybe things aren't going as well as they'd thought.
Performances are from a mixture of familiar faces and new performers. Bonnie Root is very enjoyable in the lead and she manages to carry the film well. Also along for the journey are Ryan Reynolds(Berg from "Two Guys and a Girl"), Gaby Hoffman, Yasmine Bleeth, Mia Farrow and Spalding Grey. The film does have a few slow parts and dialogue that occasionally misses, but certainly, it's a lot better than most of what the teen market is offered these days. Hopefully, director Collete Burson will try again with better luck for her next directing/writing effort and hopefully, "Coming Soon" will find a teen audience on video.
For those who are interested in the film's battles with the MPAA, there are further details on the film's website at: www.comingsoonmovie.com
The DVD
VIDEO: "Coming Soon" is presented in non-anamorphic widescreen in the film's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. While showing a few minor problems, the presentation is still very good. Sharpness is excellent throughout the film, and detail is strong even in the film's few dimly lit scenes. Clarity is never lacking, as well. The film does boast enjnoyable cinematography and New York locations, which look great here.
The few problems are slightly noticable, but not distracting. Some shimmering does appear now and then, but this is not a consistent problem. I didn't see any instances of pixelation, and flaws on the print are kept to a very minor amount; only a couple of small speckles.
Colors are great; the colors of the clothing and the city are bright and bold, looking vibrant and well-saturated. Although it's unfortunate that the film is presented non-anamorphic, the presentation (on a dual-layer disc) looks very good.
SOUND: The film is presented in Dolby Surround and it's quite entertaining. The element that really is the most bold is the music, which sounds dynamic and crisp. The entire presentation is from the front - since the film is pretty much dialogue driven, it doesn't miss that many opportunities. With the enjoyable score leading the way, the Dolby Surround audio is above average. Dialogue is clear and crisp, easily heard throughout.
MENUS:: Menus are non-animated, but generally fun and offering some film-themed images.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: This is a commentary from director Coleen Burson and star Bonnie Root. One of the main topics of discussion on the commentary is the problems that the film had with the MPAA - she points out scenes that the board had problems with, and also early on talks about the fact that a violent film like "8mm" that came out at the same time had less problems with the MPAA in getting an R than this innocent picture.
Besides that, the two of them talk about the styles of the characters and the look of the picture, as well as what it was like to work with the actresses in the film. The two are also very honest about what they would have liked to have done had they been able to do it again. They have fun and occasionally laugh as they remember some funny moments from the set. A good commentary worth a listen.
Interviews: Lengthy interviews with stars Bonnie Root, Gabby Hoffman, Tricia Vessey, Ryan Reynolds, Mia Farrow and Peter Bogdanovich. All of them talk about their characters and the experiences they've had while working on the film. With the exception of Farrow and Bogdanovich's interviews, the rest of the interviews are a little over 10 minutes each - and even the Farrow/Bogdanovich interviews are at least close to that length.
Trailer: The film's trailer in Dolby 2.0
Final Thoughts: "Coming Soon" is definitely recommended as a rental for the older teen/early 20's audience. It's extremely unfortunate that the film had to battle with the MPAA and didn't get a theatrical release. Thanks to Image Entertainment for giving this solid film a release.
While watching "American Pie" last Summer, I pondered if there would ever be a version for girls, and why no one had already thought of a similar film for females. Soon enough, here it is. As far as I remember, "Coming Soon" actually attracted interest from major studios who were interested in releasing the film, but a fight with the ratings board later, the film is finally getting to video in the unrated version(originally it did get slapped with the dreaded "NC-17" due to some graphic dialogue.
Essentially, take "Clueless" and move it from Los Angeles to New York, throw in a touch of "American Pie", and you're got "Coming Soon", a cute, smart film that older female teens might definitely find entertaining. The film stars Bonnie Root as Stream, the last girl in her school to lose her virginity, and not that thrilled with the experience. The film may not have ended up a studio picture, but it does look like one. The film boasts good cinematography, a solid cast, a score that's enjoyable and not overused as well as enjoyable looking New York locations.
The film does have its share of sexual discussion between Stream(Root), Jenny(Gaby Hoffman) and Nell(Tricia Vessy), but it's quite innocent and not, in my opinion, something that should have recieved the controversial "adults only" rating. Not that the film only discusses sexuality; the girls also have to worry about getting into college, which is something that I think most teens can relate to. The girls, who act like they're doing things right, finally come to the realization that maybe things aren't going as well as they'd thought.
Performances are from a mixture of familiar faces and new performers. Bonnie Root is very enjoyable in the lead and she manages to carry the film well. Also along for the journey are Ryan Reynolds(Berg from "Two Guys and a Girl"), Gaby Hoffman, Yasmine Bleeth, Mia Farrow and Spalding Grey. The film does have a few slow parts and dialogue that occasionally misses, but certainly, it's a lot better than most of what the teen market is offered these days. Hopefully, director Collete Burson will try again with better luck for her next directing/writing effort and hopefully, "Coming Soon" will find a teen audience on video.
For those who are interested in the film's battles with the MPAA, there are further details on the film's website at: www.comingsoonmovie.com
The DVD
VIDEO: "Coming Soon" is presented in non-anamorphic widescreen in the film's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. While showing a few minor problems, the presentation is still very good. Sharpness is excellent throughout the film, and detail is strong even in the film's few dimly lit scenes. Clarity is never lacking, as well. The film does boast enjnoyable cinematography and New York locations, which look great here.
The few problems are slightly noticable, but not distracting. Some shimmering does appear now and then, but this is not a consistent problem. I didn't see any instances of pixelation, and flaws on the print are kept to a very minor amount; only a couple of small speckles.
Colors are great; the colors of the clothing and the city are bright and bold, looking vibrant and well-saturated. Although it's unfortunate that the film is presented non-anamorphic, the presentation (on a dual-layer disc) looks very good.
SOUND: The film is presented in Dolby Surround and it's quite entertaining. The element that really is the most bold is the music, which sounds dynamic and crisp. The entire presentation is from the front - since the film is pretty much dialogue driven, it doesn't miss that many opportunities. With the enjoyable score leading the way, the Dolby Surround audio is above average. Dialogue is clear and crisp, easily heard throughout.
MENUS:: Menus are non-animated, but generally fun and offering some film-themed images.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: This is a commentary from director Coleen Burson and star Bonnie Root. One of the main topics of discussion on the commentary is the problems that the film had with the MPAA - she points out scenes that the board had problems with, and also early on talks about the fact that a violent film like "8mm" that came out at the same time had less problems with the MPAA in getting an R than this innocent picture.
Besides that, the two of them talk about the styles of the characters and the look of the picture, as well as what it was like to work with the actresses in the film. The two are also very honest about what they would have liked to have done had they been able to do it again. They have fun and occasionally laugh as they remember some funny moments from the set. A good commentary worth a listen.
Interviews: Lengthy interviews with stars Bonnie Root, Gabby Hoffman, Tricia Vessey, Ryan Reynolds, Mia Farrow and Peter Bogdanovich. All of them talk about their characters and the experiences they've had while working on the film. With the exception of Farrow and Bogdanovich's interviews, the rest of the interviews are a little over 10 minutes each - and even the Farrow/Bogdanovich interviews are at least close to that length.
Trailer: The film's trailer in Dolby 2.0
Final Thoughts: "Coming Soon" is definitely recommended as a rental for the older teen/early 20's audience. It's extremely unfortunate that the film had to battle with the MPAA and didn't get a theatrical release. Thanks to Image Entertainment for giving this solid film a release.
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