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Dick
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
"Dick" didn't do terribly well at the box office and although there are numerous possibilities why, one must think that people didn't find the prospect of going to the theater box office and asking for "two for dick" wasn't an appealing task. Or, the movie could just be plain bad, as I found out while watching it at home.
"Dick" stars Kirstin Dunst and Michelle Williams as Betsy and Arlene, two teenage girls who stumble into being given the job of Nixon's "dog walkers". Soon enough, the girls find themselves becoming a large part of the "Watergate" scandal. Opportunities for smart, funny satire are usually overlooked in the film for either "dick" or various bathroom jokes. Everything has the set-up of a bad "Saturday Night Live" skit; we see the joke coming a mile away, may giggle once or twice, then we become annoyed as the joke goes on far too long. That comparison is only added to by the fact that half the cast seems to be from "SNL". It's simply a combination of uninteresting dialogue and a director who doesn't know when to quit. The filmmakers are cancelling themselves out looking for an audience: you're aiming for the early teen audience with the humor, but as the filmmakers admit in the commentary track and elsewhere, kids at the test screenings didn't understand the history involved.
Had the filmmakers made this film a little smarter and aimed for more clever jokes, maybe it would have found success with some adult audiences. As is, there's not even a character we can sympathize with. The two girls are simply too dumb. They should have played their characters similar to Alicia Silverstone's in "Clueless"; maybe a little out-there, but still having a clue as to what's going on. This film almost set a record, the first time I've almost walked out of my own room while watching a movie. This movie's 94 minutes feel like nearly 4 hours.
The DVD
VIDEO:
The usual from Tristar; a nearly flawless 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer that seems slightly on the soft side at times, but still extremely crisp and clear throughout. The movie provides some intense colors in almost every scene, and they look excellent here, vibrant without any color bleeding. Flesh tones are natural and contrast is very good. Detail is excellent throughout, as well.
A few scenes did have a slight bit of shimmer, but nothing at all distracting. Otherwise, the image is absolutely pristine looking with very few flaws. The colors of course though, are easily the highlight. The picture is smooth and "film-like" throughout in what is easily some of the best work that Tristar has done lately. Excellent work. A full-frame edition is included on the other side of the DVD.
SOUND: There's generally nothing wrong with the sound on this movie and essentially, the songs do sound pretty fantastic with great clarity. The only problem I had is that nothing is put to incredibly good use; surrounds are put to extremely minimal use - everything generally comes from the front. There's no problems with dialogue at all. A pro is that the movie's score is offered up on another isolated track in 5.1.
MENUS:: Again, Tristar only offers menus based on the film art with no animation, but I do give them credit for making menus that are easily navigated.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: I'm not going to give the usual commentary review that lasts three paragraphs this time. I'm simply going to say a couple words for this one: skip it. This disc offers screenwriter Cheryl Longin and director Andrew Fleming providing the discussion for the film; Longin provides some decent details, but Fleming sounds generally quite bored during the commentary. There are a few interesting tidbits offered, but they're not worth listening to the rest of it to get to.
Outtakes: An 11 minute reel of outtakes that's similar to the movie in the way that you have to go through a lot of unfunny stuff to get to a few funny bits as the members of the cast (mainly the two girls) break up an giggle as they try to get their lines out.
Also:: The previously mentioned isolated score, an uninteresting deleted scene, talent files, productions notes, 3 trailers(Spice World, Can't Hardly Wait, Dick) and a featurette that's pretty light on information.
Final Thoughts Recommendation: Skip this "dick", or maybe rent it, if everything else is out.
"Dick" stars Kirstin Dunst and Michelle Williams as Betsy and Arlene, two teenage girls who stumble into being given the job of Nixon's "dog walkers". Soon enough, the girls find themselves becoming a large part of the "Watergate" scandal. Opportunities for smart, funny satire are usually overlooked in the film for either "dick" or various bathroom jokes. Everything has the set-up of a bad "Saturday Night Live" skit; we see the joke coming a mile away, may giggle once or twice, then we become annoyed as the joke goes on far too long. That comparison is only added to by the fact that half the cast seems to be from "SNL". It's simply a combination of uninteresting dialogue and a director who doesn't know when to quit. The filmmakers are cancelling themselves out looking for an audience: you're aiming for the early teen audience with the humor, but as the filmmakers admit in the commentary track and elsewhere, kids at the test screenings didn't understand the history involved.
Had the filmmakers made this film a little smarter and aimed for more clever jokes, maybe it would have found success with some adult audiences. As is, there's not even a character we can sympathize with. The two girls are simply too dumb. They should have played their characters similar to Alicia Silverstone's in "Clueless"; maybe a little out-there, but still having a clue as to what's going on. This film almost set a record, the first time I've almost walked out of my own room while watching a movie. This movie's 94 minutes feel like nearly 4 hours.
The DVD
VIDEO:
The usual from Tristar; a nearly flawless 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer that seems slightly on the soft side at times, but still extremely crisp and clear throughout. The movie provides some intense colors in almost every scene, and they look excellent here, vibrant without any color bleeding. Flesh tones are natural and contrast is very good. Detail is excellent throughout, as well.
A few scenes did have a slight bit of shimmer, but nothing at all distracting. Otherwise, the image is absolutely pristine looking with very few flaws. The colors of course though, are easily the highlight. The picture is smooth and "film-like" throughout in what is easily some of the best work that Tristar has done lately. Excellent work. A full-frame edition is included on the other side of the DVD.
SOUND: There's generally nothing wrong with the sound on this movie and essentially, the songs do sound pretty fantastic with great clarity. The only problem I had is that nothing is put to incredibly good use; surrounds are put to extremely minimal use - everything generally comes from the front. There's no problems with dialogue at all. A pro is that the movie's score is offered up on another isolated track in 5.1.
MENUS:: Again, Tristar only offers menus based on the film art with no animation, but I do give them credit for making menus that are easily navigated.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: I'm not going to give the usual commentary review that lasts three paragraphs this time. I'm simply going to say a couple words for this one: skip it. This disc offers screenwriter Cheryl Longin and director Andrew Fleming providing the discussion for the film; Longin provides some decent details, but Fleming sounds generally quite bored during the commentary. There are a few interesting tidbits offered, but they're not worth listening to the rest of it to get to.
Outtakes: An 11 minute reel of outtakes that's similar to the movie in the way that you have to go through a lot of unfunny stuff to get to a few funny bits as the members of the cast (mainly the two girls) break up an giggle as they try to get their lines out.
Also:: The previously mentioned isolated score, an uninteresting deleted scene, talent files, productions notes, 3 trailers(Spice World, Can't Hardly Wait, Dick) and a featurette that's pretty light on information.
Final Thoughts Recommendation: Skip this "dick", or maybe rent it, if everything else is out.
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