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Couch In New York, A
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
"A Couch In New York" takes a very cute idea, but doesn't really do that much with it. William Hurt stars as Henry, a New York City psychoanalyist who feels that it's time to leave for a little while - to get out and see the world. So, he decides to put an ad in the Paris paper to switch apartments. He gets a taker in Beatrice(Juliette Binoche), and the two get to experience life where the other resides.
His patients keep coming although he's not there, and she decides to treat them anyways. While she works in New York, he tries to make a go of it in her funky apartment in Paris, trying to figure her out. Of course, as the two take on the lives of one another they begin to fall in love with each other. All of this is presented in a feather-light manner, and the love the two share isn't very believable.
Both leads do a very enjoyable job trying to make sense of the material, but they aren't very successful. I almost would have rather had them find love in their new homes rather than have the plot try and awkwardly put them together. Still, the basic plot is good and maybe worth taking another shot at in a different movie.
The DVD
VIDEO: Winstar offers "A Couch In New York" in a 1.85:1 non-anamorphic transfer. I've seen only some of Winstar's work in the past, and although it wasn't entirely pleasing, it was an a noticable improvement over their work here. Although it varies throughout, the best this presentation can come up with is still at the lower level of average. Sharpness is fair at best, with some scenes soft enough to become hazy - darker scenes are especially murky.
Some of the daylight scenes are where the picture fares best, with passable detail and sharpness, although where softness exits, another problem enters. There's some noticable marks and scratches on the print used; not a horrific amount, but they are noticable when they do appear. Some scenes are grainy, but not terribly so. There is some minor pixelation and shimmering throughout , as well.
Colors are not terribly remarkable, looking natural but slightly pale at times. This is not unwatchable, although it gets fairly close at times. Winstar has said that they are planning on improving their presentation in future releases; I certainly hope so. A film from 1997 can look much better than this one does.
SOUND: The Dolby Surround audio for the film isn't entirely without simple pleasures; although the film is mainly dialogue-driven, the score does sound very crisp and clear. Much of it does focus simply on the dialogue, which is a little muddy at times, but usually remains clear.
MENUS:: The menus are non-animated, with film themed art.
EXTRAS: Trailer and filmographies.
Final Thoughts: If the DVD was a better presentation, I might have recommended the film as a rental.
"A Couch In New York" takes a very cute idea, but doesn't really do that much with it. William Hurt stars as Henry, a New York City psychoanalyist who feels that it's time to leave for a little while - to get out and see the world. So, he decides to put an ad in the Paris paper to switch apartments. He gets a taker in Beatrice(Juliette Binoche), and the two get to experience life where the other resides.
His patients keep coming although he's not there, and she decides to treat them anyways. While she works in New York, he tries to make a go of it in her funky apartment in Paris, trying to figure her out. Of course, as the two take on the lives of one another they begin to fall in love with each other. All of this is presented in a feather-light manner, and the love the two share isn't very believable.
Both leads do a very enjoyable job trying to make sense of the material, but they aren't very successful. I almost would have rather had them find love in their new homes rather than have the plot try and awkwardly put them together. Still, the basic plot is good and maybe worth taking another shot at in a different movie.
The DVD
VIDEO: Winstar offers "A Couch In New York" in a 1.85:1 non-anamorphic transfer. I've seen only some of Winstar's work in the past, and although it wasn't entirely pleasing, it was an a noticable improvement over their work here. Although it varies throughout, the best this presentation can come up with is still at the lower level of average. Sharpness is fair at best, with some scenes soft enough to become hazy - darker scenes are especially murky.
Some of the daylight scenes are where the picture fares best, with passable detail and sharpness, although where softness exits, another problem enters. There's some noticable marks and scratches on the print used; not a horrific amount, but they are noticable when they do appear. Some scenes are grainy, but not terribly so. There is some minor pixelation and shimmering throughout , as well.
Colors are not terribly remarkable, looking natural but slightly pale at times. This is not unwatchable, although it gets fairly close at times. Winstar has said that they are planning on improving their presentation in future releases; I certainly hope so. A film from 1997 can look much better than this one does.
SOUND: The Dolby Surround audio for the film isn't entirely without simple pleasures; although the film is mainly dialogue-driven, the score does sound very crisp and clear. Much of it does focus simply on the dialogue, which is a little muddy at times, but usually remains clear.
MENUS:: The menus are non-animated, with film themed art.
EXTRAS: Trailer and filmographies.
Final Thoughts: If the DVD was a better presentation, I might have recommended the film as a rental.
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