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Single Girl, A
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
While watching "A Single Girl", I was reminded somewhat of another film I'd watched in recent months, Cleo From 5 to 7. Although they were made years apart, both films take a slice of the character's life and follow them around to capture each emotion.
"A Single Girl" stars Virginie Ledoyen, who many may remember from her first major role with Leonardo Dicaprio in The Beach. She plays Valerie, who the film follows, in real time, for the entire film. She has just found out that she is pregnant, and has to inform her boyfriend, Remi. She is starting a new job as room service at a local hotel, and while the film goes onward, she has to answer the question many ask themselves often - where do I go from here?
The film is successful due to a handful of things. First is Ledoyen, who didn't have much of a character to work with in "The Beach"; here, she shows that she is capable of a smart, emotional performance. I also liked the film's constant keeping with the premise of following Valerie, not cutting away for a moment, and keeping it all in real time. Walking, chatting, looking. Everything is on-screen. As many minor moments and details as they are, "A Single Girl" is a fairly tightly paced film and goes quickly through it's 90 minutes which is good since more than that might have started to slow up the film.
It all wraps up in an enjoyable final sequence, and all-in-all, I found "A Single Girl" to be an entertaining and well-acted slice-of-life film.
The DVD
VIDEO: This is passable treatment for the film; it doesn't seem like any additional effort was taken to clean up the existing elements - luckily the film isn't too old and manages to look mostly pretty respectable. Taking the low budget into consideration, most scenes look fairly pleasing on this 1.85:1 non-anamorphic transfer. Sharpness is fair - some scenes could use slightly stronger clarity. Detail is pretty much the same - fair, but not too great, and varied throughout. The colors are the one thing that really do manage to be pretty consistent throughout the entire film. Colors aren't terribly bold or vibrant, but they do have an enjoyably natural look to them, and seem nicely saturated. Flesh tones are natural, and black level is generally good.
Where the transfer goes wrong is print issues. Although grain is apparent throughout many scenes in the film, it's light and not even that noticable at times. The main problem is scratches and marks on the print used, some of which are fairly large and distracting. There is also some dirt noticable. The other issue that I didn't really care for was that the subtitles are not optional, and their white letters get lost in the background once or twice during the film. Thankfully, pixelation and shimmering are not a problem here. Not a stunning transfer, but watchable.
SOUND: The soundtrack is essentially mono, although the audio isn't too bad for a film of this budget and nature. I generally noticed no background hiss or distortion, and the audio is, if not crisp and sharp, at least pleasantly clean-sounding. Ambient sounds are captured with clarity and although I don't speak French, the dialogue comes through with pleasing clarity.
MENUS:: Bland menus that simply use the cover art once again. No effort.
EXTRAS: basic filmographies and production credits. No trailer.
Final Thoughts: I liked "A Single Girl" very much, although Fox Lorber's DVD edition doesn't help my recommendation - the picture quality could have been better, and the sound quality is fair. Extras are certainly lacking, as well. The film deserves better treatment than this.
While watching "A Single Girl", I was reminded somewhat of another film I'd watched in recent months, Cleo From 5 to 7. Although they were made years apart, both films take a slice of the character's life and follow them around to capture each emotion.
"A Single Girl" stars Virginie Ledoyen, who many may remember from her first major role with Leonardo Dicaprio in The Beach. She plays Valerie, who the film follows, in real time, for the entire film. She has just found out that she is pregnant, and has to inform her boyfriend, Remi. She is starting a new job as room service at a local hotel, and while the film goes onward, she has to answer the question many ask themselves often - where do I go from here?
The film is successful due to a handful of things. First is Ledoyen, who didn't have much of a character to work with in "The Beach"; here, she shows that she is capable of a smart, emotional performance. I also liked the film's constant keeping with the premise of following Valerie, not cutting away for a moment, and keeping it all in real time. Walking, chatting, looking. Everything is on-screen. As many minor moments and details as they are, "A Single Girl" is a fairly tightly paced film and goes quickly through it's 90 minutes which is good since more than that might have started to slow up the film.
It all wraps up in an enjoyable final sequence, and all-in-all, I found "A Single Girl" to be an entertaining and well-acted slice-of-life film.
The DVD
VIDEO: This is passable treatment for the film; it doesn't seem like any additional effort was taken to clean up the existing elements - luckily the film isn't too old and manages to look mostly pretty respectable. Taking the low budget into consideration, most scenes look fairly pleasing on this 1.85:1 non-anamorphic transfer. Sharpness is fair - some scenes could use slightly stronger clarity. Detail is pretty much the same - fair, but not too great, and varied throughout. The colors are the one thing that really do manage to be pretty consistent throughout the entire film. Colors aren't terribly bold or vibrant, but they do have an enjoyably natural look to them, and seem nicely saturated. Flesh tones are natural, and black level is generally good.
Where the transfer goes wrong is print issues. Although grain is apparent throughout many scenes in the film, it's light and not even that noticable at times. The main problem is scratches and marks on the print used, some of which are fairly large and distracting. There is also some dirt noticable. The other issue that I didn't really care for was that the subtitles are not optional, and their white letters get lost in the background once or twice during the film. Thankfully, pixelation and shimmering are not a problem here. Not a stunning transfer, but watchable.
SOUND: The soundtrack is essentially mono, although the audio isn't too bad for a film of this budget and nature. I generally noticed no background hiss or distortion, and the audio is, if not crisp and sharp, at least pleasantly clean-sounding. Ambient sounds are captured with clarity and although I don't speak French, the dialogue comes through with pleasing clarity.
MENUS:: Bland menus that simply use the cover art once again. No effort.
EXTRAS: basic filmographies and production credits. No trailer.
Final Thoughts: I liked "A Single Girl" very much, although Fox Lorber's DVD edition doesn't help my recommendation - the picture quality could have been better, and the sound quality is fair. Extras are certainly lacking, as well. The film deserves better treatment than this.
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