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Guilty As Charged
Columbia/Tri-Star // R // January 27, 2004
List Price: $24.96 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie
If you've seen more than two movies in your life, then you know that there's no way to predict a film's quality prior to viewing it. Judging a film by its cast is one of the biggest mistakes that people make. Films such as 1991's Guilty as Charged, which is coming to DVD later this month, may be full of familiar faces, but that should not imply that the movie will be worth watching.
Veteran actor Rod Steiger stars in Guilty as Charged as Ben Kallin, a man whose private persona is very different from his public one. By day, Kallin runs a successful meat company. But, at night, he dispense vigilant justice in the basement of his warehouse, were he has constructed jail cells and a functional electric chair. Claiming that he is on a mission from God, Kallin captures criminals who have been turned loose by "the system" and conducts his own executions, with the help of his assistants Aloysius (Isaac Hayes) and Deek (Irwin Keyes).
Meanwhile, Senator Mark Stanford (Lyman Ward) is running for governor, but he hides a dark secret that only his wife, Liz (Lauren Hutton) knows. Kimberly Adams (Heather Graham), an intern with probation and parole, begins volunteering for Stanford's campaign. Kimberly has noticed that many of her clients are missing and takes this information to Stanford. Kimberly's curiosity and Stanford's dark past will soon collide with Kallin's mission.
Columbia/Tri-Star Home Video's publicity website lists Guilty as Charged as a comedy. Really? Because there is nothing funny in this movie. Actually, the movie doesn't deliver on any level. The only clever thing in the movie is the title, otherwise there is no "comedy" to be had. The characters are all one-dimensional stereotypes. There is no suspense, even during the "twist" finale, and there is no drama. The film may carry a political message concerning capital punishment, but it gets lost in the nothingness. Director Sam Irivin (Elvira's Haunted Hills) brings some nice camera angles to the movie, and attempts to keep things moving along briskly, but he can't overcome the narrow script from writer Charles Gale (Ernest Scared Stupid). If the crime is inciting boredom, then this film is certainly Guilty as Charged.
Video
Guilty as Charged jumps onto DVD courtesy of Columbia/Tri-Star Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.85:1 and the transfer is enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. The image looks fairly good, as it is clear and free from overt grain. There are some occasional defects from the source print, appearing as small white spots. Edge enhancement is noticeable, as haloes appear around Steiger's black suit. However, artifacting is kept to a minimum. Overall, the transfer is acceptable.
Audio
The DVD features a Dolby Surround audio track. This track provides clear, audible dialogue with no indication of hissing or distortion. Stereo effects are put to very good use on this track and the front speaker separation is evident throughout. The surround effects come mostly in the form of musical cues and bold sound effects. This servicable track is very good for a non 5.1 mix.
Extras
There are no extras on the DVD save for bonus trailers advertising other Columbia/Tri-Star releases.
Guilty as Charged could have been a decent movie if it had chosen one path and stuck to it. As it stands, it doesn't deliver on any level. But, if you're in the mood for a film in which Rod Steiger (who was 66 when the film was made) plays an older, more religious version of "The Punisher", then this may be the movie you've been looking for.
If you've seen more than two movies in your life, then you know that there's no way to predict a film's quality prior to viewing it. Judging a film by its cast is one of the biggest mistakes that people make. Films such as 1991's Guilty as Charged, which is coming to DVD later this month, may be full of familiar faces, but that should not imply that the movie will be worth watching.
Veteran actor Rod Steiger stars in Guilty as Charged as Ben Kallin, a man whose private persona is very different from his public one. By day, Kallin runs a successful meat company. But, at night, he dispense vigilant justice in the basement of his warehouse, were he has constructed jail cells and a functional electric chair. Claiming that he is on a mission from God, Kallin captures criminals who have been turned loose by "the system" and conducts his own executions, with the help of his assistants Aloysius (Isaac Hayes) and Deek (Irwin Keyes).
Meanwhile, Senator Mark Stanford (Lyman Ward) is running for governor, but he hides a dark secret that only his wife, Liz (Lauren Hutton) knows. Kimberly Adams (Heather Graham), an intern with probation and parole, begins volunteering for Stanford's campaign. Kimberly has noticed that many of her clients are missing and takes this information to Stanford. Kimberly's curiosity and Stanford's dark past will soon collide with Kallin's mission.
Columbia/Tri-Star Home Video's publicity website lists Guilty as Charged as a comedy. Really? Because there is nothing funny in this movie. Actually, the movie doesn't deliver on any level. The only clever thing in the movie is the title, otherwise there is no "comedy" to be had. The characters are all one-dimensional stereotypes. There is no suspense, even during the "twist" finale, and there is no drama. The film may carry a political message concerning capital punishment, but it gets lost in the nothingness. Director Sam Irivin (Elvira's Haunted Hills) brings some nice camera angles to the movie, and attempts to keep things moving along briskly, but he can't overcome the narrow script from writer Charles Gale (Ernest Scared Stupid). If the crime is inciting boredom, then this film is certainly Guilty as Charged.
Video
Guilty as Charged jumps onto DVD courtesy of Columbia/Tri-Star Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.85:1 and the transfer is enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. The image looks fairly good, as it is clear and free from overt grain. There are some occasional defects from the source print, appearing as small white spots. Edge enhancement is noticeable, as haloes appear around Steiger's black suit. However, artifacting is kept to a minimum. Overall, the transfer is acceptable.
Audio
The DVD features a Dolby Surround audio track. This track provides clear, audible dialogue with no indication of hissing or distortion. Stereo effects are put to very good use on this track and the front speaker separation is evident throughout. The surround effects come mostly in the form of musical cues and bold sound effects. This servicable track is very good for a non 5.1 mix.
Extras
There are no extras on the DVD save for bonus trailers advertising other Columbia/Tri-Star releases.
Guilty as Charged could have been a decent movie if it had chosen one path and stuck to it. As it stands, it doesn't deliver on any level. But, if you're in the mood for a film in which Rod Steiger (who was 66 when the film was made) plays an older, more religious version of "The Punisher", then this may be the movie you've been looking for.
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