Reviews & Columns |
Reviews DVD TV on DVD Blu-ray 4K UHD International DVDs In Theaters Reviews by Studio Video Games Features Collector Series DVDs Easter Egg Database Interviews DVD Talk Radio Feature Articles Columns Anime Talk DVD Savant Horror DVDs The M.O.D. Squad Art House HD Talk Silent DVD
|
DVD Talk Forum |
|
Resources |
DVD Price Search Customer Service #'s RCE Info Links |
Columns
|
|
Nashville
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
Robert Altman's "Nashville" is five days in the lives of twenty-four unforgettable people. That's a lot of characters, so listen closely. Lily Tomlin is a gospel singer who strays just a bit when she has a one-night stand with Keith Carradine, a hot young rock singer. Ned Beatty is her husband, who doesn't suspect a thing. Henry Gibson is the number one country-western singer who's being tempted to run for governor. His sidekick, Barbara Baxley, drinks a bit and talks a lot, and his son, Dave Peel, is sort of attracted to Geraldine Chaplin, who plays a star-struck reporter from BBC-TV. Ronee Blakely is the adored singing star on the verge of a breakdown. Allen Garfield is the husband trying to save her life and her career. Scott Glenn is the quiet soldier who worships her from afar. Karen Black is the rival singer who dresses like a sweet little prom queen, but don't let that fool you. Michael Murphy is the campaign manager who'll promise anything, especially to Gwen Welles, a waitress who dreams of being in the spotlight amd may have to do a lot of things she never dreamed to get there. Robert Doqui is the one man who tries to tell her the truth. Shelley Duvall is the wide-eyed groupie, doing what all groupies do so well. Keenan Wynn is the uncle who doesn't understand the wild girl in sequined hot pants. David Hayward is the sensitive young boy who answers the room-for-rent sign and who has a big surprise in store for everyone. Cristina Raines is a female singer from a trio who's married to one of them, Allan Nicholls, but spends a lot of time with the other one. And David Arkin is the chauffeur who knows all the inside stories...and he's ready to tell them. Timothy Brown is a black singer who's made it, but not everybody's happy about that. Jeff Goldblum's the cycle freak who's everywhere the action is. Barbara Harris is the would-be singer who's running away from husband Bert Remsen, who's chasing her through the wilds of Nashville. "Nashville" is about a lot of things and a lot of people. See all 24 of them and the outrageous things they do in Robert Altman's "Nashville". Robert Altman's "Nashville" -- for movie lovers -- the damndest thing you ever saw.
Yes, "Nashville" is about a lot of things and a lot of people, and I could think of a better way to summarize it than to quote the theatrical trailer, which I'll shower with love and affection in the Supplements bit of this review. "Nashville" manages to flesh out all of these intertwining characters reasonably well, and despite its lengthy running time of nearly three hours, the film rarely seems to drag. On one level, the film student in me was able to appreciate the film, the artistry, and the oft-imitated ingenuity on "Nashville". On another, the side of me that likes to watch people get cut up and eaten, I didn't feel as sucked in as I probably would've. I'm tempted to watch "Nashville" again before writing this review on the likelihood that my opinion on the film would change a bit having taken it in some more. Maybe I'll revisit this review sometime in the near future, but here are my thoughts as things stand...
Video: This widescreen-enhanced 2.35:1 transfer on "Nashville" was taken from a hi-def master, so this is as good as it's going to get till HD-DVD takes over. Though not as stunning as other Paramount releases, "Nashville" looks better than it probably would if any other studio had put together this disc. The image is sharp and colorful -- but almost too colorful. A couple of parts look a little faded, and since it came from a hi-def master, I was hoping all dusts, specks, and scratches would have been removed, though these certainly aren't present enough to pose a problem. The transfer deserves high marks, and although I admittedly had never seen "Nashville" before, it's pretty safe to say that this is the best the film has ever looked.
Audio: "Nashville"'s Dolby Digital 5.1 track seems more like a stereo mix that'll occassionally pump some music into the rears, something my receiver tends to do with stereo tracks anyway. The dialogue seemed reasonably well-balanced in the mix, and some of the music comes through exceptionally well. Marginally above-average, overall.
Supplements: I watched "Kentucky Fried Movie" and "Nashville" back-to-back, and although that's an admittedly odd combination, I was impressed by how superior the trailers for those films are to virtually everything I saw in the '80s and '90s. Both managed to grab my interest (as much as my interest can be 'grabbed' considering I already owned the discs) and provide a reasonable amount of insight into what each film has to offer without giving away an excessive amount. Oh, I guess the point of that rant is that the theatrical trailer is on the disc, and it's also widescreen-enhanced. Altman contributes a commentary track as well, which started off well, but drags on near the end. I guess this is understandable, since it's not that easy to talk about one subject for that length of time. In case I didn't already drive this point home, "Nashville" is an extremely long movie. For those interested in the information but unwilling to sit through the commentary, most of the highlights are covered in an interview.
Conclusion: When watching "Nashville", I couldn't shake this feeling that I knew I was watching something good, yet I didn't really enjoy it. I'm not saying that I disliked it...it's more ambivalence, I guess, as if I were in neutral, slowly being moved along in a car wash. I'm probably going to think that analogy is pretty stupid later (actually, it seems stupid now), but I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you like "Nashville" already and want to know if the quality of the DVD is any good, the answer is 'yes'. Otherwise, it's rental territory. Recommended, 'cause that's the perfect middle ground between "highly recommended" and "rental".
--"Nashville" trailer, or at least, as close as I could transcribe it
Yes, "Nashville" is about a lot of things and a lot of people, and I could think of a better way to summarize it than to quote the theatrical trailer, which I'll shower with love and affection in the Supplements bit of this review. "Nashville" manages to flesh out all of these intertwining characters reasonably well, and despite its lengthy running time of nearly three hours, the film rarely seems to drag. On one level, the film student in me was able to appreciate the film, the artistry, and the oft-imitated ingenuity on "Nashville". On another, the side of me that likes to watch people get cut up and eaten, I didn't feel as sucked in as I probably would've. I'm tempted to watch "Nashville" again before writing this review on the likelihood that my opinion on the film would change a bit having taken it in some more. Maybe I'll revisit this review sometime in the near future, but here are my thoughts as things stand...
Video: This widescreen-enhanced 2.35:1 transfer on "Nashville" was taken from a hi-def master, so this is as good as it's going to get till HD-DVD takes over. Though not as stunning as other Paramount releases, "Nashville" looks better than it probably would if any other studio had put together this disc. The image is sharp and colorful -- but almost too colorful. A couple of parts look a little faded, and since it came from a hi-def master, I was hoping all dusts, specks, and scratches would have been removed, though these certainly aren't present enough to pose a problem. The transfer deserves high marks, and although I admittedly had never seen "Nashville" before, it's pretty safe to say that this is the best the film has ever looked.
Audio: "Nashville"'s Dolby Digital 5.1 track seems more like a stereo mix that'll occassionally pump some music into the rears, something my receiver tends to do with stereo tracks anyway. The dialogue seemed reasonably well-balanced in the mix, and some of the music comes through exceptionally well. Marginally above-average, overall.
Supplements: I watched "Kentucky Fried Movie" and "Nashville" back-to-back, and although that's an admittedly odd combination, I was impressed by how superior the trailers for those films are to virtually everything I saw in the '80s and '90s. Both managed to grab my interest (as much as my interest can be 'grabbed' considering I already owned the discs) and provide a reasonable amount of insight into what each film has to offer without giving away an excessive amount. Oh, I guess the point of that rant is that the theatrical trailer is on the disc, and it's also widescreen-enhanced. Altman contributes a commentary track as well, which started off well, but drags on near the end. I guess this is understandable, since it's not that easy to talk about one subject for that length of time. In case I didn't already drive this point home, "Nashville" is an extremely long movie. For those interested in the information but unwilling to sit through the commentary, most of the highlights are covered in an interview.
Conclusion: When watching "Nashville", I couldn't shake this feeling that I knew I was watching something good, yet I didn't really enjoy it. I'm not saying that I disliked it...it's more ambivalence, I guess, as if I were in neutral, slowly being moved along in a car wash. I'm probably going to think that analogy is pretty stupid later (actually, it seems stupid now), but I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you like "Nashville" already and want to know if the quality of the DVD is any good, the answer is 'yes'. Otherwise, it's rental territory. Recommended, 'cause that's the perfect middle ground between "highly recommended" and "rental".
|
Popular Reviews |
Sponsored Links |
|
Sponsored Links |
|
Release List | Reviews | Shop | Newsletter | Forum | DVD Giveaways | Blu-Ray | Advertise |
Copyright 2024 DVDTalk.com All Rights Reserved. Legal Info, Privacy Policy, Terms of Use,
Manage Preferences,
Your Privacy Choices
|