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Girl
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
It's amazing that, with the amount of films geared towards teen audiences that are released today, that there are more of them that never even see much of a release, if any. And these films do contain fairly big names. "All I Wanna Do", which was sent to video a few months ago, starred Kirstin Dunst and Rachel Leigh Cook; "Girl" stars Dominique Swain("Lolita"), Tara Reid("American Pie") and a few other names many will recognize who are familiar with the newest generation of actors and actresses.
"Girl" is not a particularly great film, but it does manage to provide a few moments of entertainment and a good performance from actress Swain, who plays Andrea Marr, a girl who lives a pretty uneventful life - gets straight A's, generally is well-off. But it's the last year of high school, and she worries about staying a virgin. One day she finds herself watching a local band and falling for the lead singer (Sean Patrick Flanery), and trying to impress him in various ways. She's become what she previously disliked - a groupie. She even ditches her friend, Darcy(the always wonderful Selma Blair - although Swain does well in the lead, I think Blair could have done better with the comedy).
The film relies far too much on narration from Swain's character and corny music in the background. Speaking of Swain, the movie would fall apart completely if not for her enjoyable comedic/dramatic performance. She makes even some of the weaker dialogue(and believe me, there is quite a few instances of that) believeable. Attempts at humor aren't funny; dramatic or serious moments either fall flat or are unintentionally silly.
Films like this seem like a somewhat weak attempt to get product to the teen market. 11 producers credited to a film like this doesn't do much for confidence. The film's release even seems odd; I saw the film on cable a couple of months ago, and yet it is now coming out on video and DVD - sort of a backwards plan. The main fault here is the screenplay, which isn't terribly well-written, nor does it develop characters that feel like real teens.
Again, the film is very lucky to have the actors it does. Swain is very good in the lead role, and Blair is fine as her friend, although I would have liked to have seen the two switch roles. Tara Reid is somewhat miscast as a punk girl, and Portia De Rossi("Ally McBeal") appears now and again, looking much like her character in "Stigmata".
"Girl" is not a complete flop, but it certainly isn't among the stronger teen films that have been released in the past few years.
The DVD
VIDEO: Even with smaller films, Columbia/Tristar still gives a fine effort, and that's illustrated here. Sharpness is consistent and strong, detail is strong, and clarity is never lacking. Although this is a fairly low-budget effort, I didn't find too much to complain about.
The print used is impressively clean; free of dirt, scratches and all but one or two very minor marks. Pixelation and shimmering aren't apparent, and the picture is very consistent and pleasing. Colors are solid as well, looking natural and bold, with no visible problems.
Another very good effort from the studio, offering what we've come to expect from them in terms of quality.
SOUND: The sound for "Girl" is really a very basic production that could be better than it presents the material. Yes, the film is mainly dialogue, but the music in the film could have been somewhat stronger that it sounds in the film's Dolby Surround audio.
The audio comes mainly from the front, and isn't terribly dynamic or remarkable. Surround use is pretty minimal and not terribly effective. Dialogue is clear and easily understood, and never really was overshadowed by music or anything else. An audio presentation that is pretty limited in scope due to the smaller budget.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus with film-themed images.
EXTRAS:.
Commentary: This is a commentary from director Jonathan Kahn and actress Dominique Swain. The two are recorded together, but it's Kahn that does most of the talking. It's a good commentary, an instance where I enjoyed hearing about the making of the film more than I enjoyed watching the film itself. Although some of the commentary isn't exactly entertaining since it simply narrates the on-screen events, there are times when it becomes more informative, talking about what had to be done due to budget problems - such as, lack of budget.
Swain mainly contributes the occasional back-up comment to what Kahn says, or if he asks her what it was like to play a scene or two. Also, it was refreshing to hear Kahn say occasionally what he would have done differently had he had the chance to do things over again. There are a few pauses and a few slow moments, but overall it's a fun commentary that I enjoyed listening to.
Trailers: Trailers for other Columbia/Tristar titles, a few of which I would recommend over "Girl"; first up is "Go"(Dolby Digital 5.1), which I thought was one of 1999's best films; "Whatever It Takes"(decent film, not particularly great - Dolby Digital 5.1); the very funny "Can't Hardly Wait"(Dolby Digital 5.1 and having a few scenes in the trailer that weren't in the movie) and finishing it up, there's the very weird trailer for "Bandits"(5.1), the trailer for "Idle Hands"(5.1) and "Girl"(suprisingly, in 5.1).
Also: A short promotional featurette and talent files.
Final Thoughts: Although I have no complaints with Tristar's DVD edition, I do have a couple of complaints about the movie, which may be worth a rental if you're in the target audience.
It's amazing that, with the amount of films geared towards teen audiences that are released today, that there are more of them that never even see much of a release, if any. And these films do contain fairly big names. "All I Wanna Do", which was sent to video a few months ago, starred Kirstin Dunst and Rachel Leigh Cook; "Girl" stars Dominique Swain("Lolita"), Tara Reid("American Pie") and a few other names many will recognize who are familiar with the newest generation of actors and actresses.
"Girl" is not a particularly great film, but it does manage to provide a few moments of entertainment and a good performance from actress Swain, who plays Andrea Marr, a girl who lives a pretty uneventful life - gets straight A's, generally is well-off. But it's the last year of high school, and she worries about staying a virgin. One day she finds herself watching a local band and falling for the lead singer (Sean Patrick Flanery), and trying to impress him in various ways. She's become what she previously disliked - a groupie. She even ditches her friend, Darcy(the always wonderful Selma Blair - although Swain does well in the lead, I think Blair could have done better with the comedy).
The film relies far too much on narration from Swain's character and corny music in the background. Speaking of Swain, the movie would fall apart completely if not for her enjoyable comedic/dramatic performance. She makes even some of the weaker dialogue(and believe me, there is quite a few instances of that) believeable. Attempts at humor aren't funny; dramatic or serious moments either fall flat or are unintentionally silly.
Films like this seem like a somewhat weak attempt to get product to the teen market. 11 producers credited to a film like this doesn't do much for confidence. The film's release even seems odd; I saw the film on cable a couple of months ago, and yet it is now coming out on video and DVD - sort of a backwards plan. The main fault here is the screenplay, which isn't terribly well-written, nor does it develop characters that feel like real teens.
Again, the film is very lucky to have the actors it does. Swain is very good in the lead role, and Blair is fine as her friend, although I would have liked to have seen the two switch roles. Tara Reid is somewhat miscast as a punk girl, and Portia De Rossi("Ally McBeal") appears now and again, looking much like her character in "Stigmata".
"Girl" is not a complete flop, but it certainly isn't among the stronger teen films that have been released in the past few years.
The DVD
VIDEO: Even with smaller films, Columbia/Tristar still gives a fine effort, and that's illustrated here. Sharpness is consistent and strong, detail is strong, and clarity is never lacking. Although this is a fairly low-budget effort, I didn't find too much to complain about.
The print used is impressively clean; free of dirt, scratches and all but one or two very minor marks. Pixelation and shimmering aren't apparent, and the picture is very consistent and pleasing. Colors are solid as well, looking natural and bold, with no visible problems.
Another very good effort from the studio, offering what we've come to expect from them in terms of quality.
SOUND: The sound for "Girl" is really a very basic production that could be better than it presents the material. Yes, the film is mainly dialogue, but the music in the film could have been somewhat stronger that it sounds in the film's Dolby Surround audio.
The audio comes mainly from the front, and isn't terribly dynamic or remarkable. Surround use is pretty minimal and not terribly effective. Dialogue is clear and easily understood, and never really was overshadowed by music or anything else. An audio presentation that is pretty limited in scope due to the smaller budget.
MENUS:: Basic, non-animated menus with film-themed images.
EXTRAS:.
Commentary: This is a commentary from director Jonathan Kahn and actress Dominique Swain. The two are recorded together, but it's Kahn that does most of the talking. It's a good commentary, an instance where I enjoyed hearing about the making of the film more than I enjoyed watching the film itself. Although some of the commentary isn't exactly entertaining since it simply narrates the on-screen events, there are times when it becomes more informative, talking about what had to be done due to budget problems - such as, lack of budget.
Swain mainly contributes the occasional back-up comment to what Kahn says, or if he asks her what it was like to play a scene or two. Also, it was refreshing to hear Kahn say occasionally what he would have done differently had he had the chance to do things over again. There are a few pauses and a few slow moments, but overall it's a fun commentary that I enjoyed listening to.
Trailers: Trailers for other Columbia/Tristar titles, a few of which I would recommend over "Girl"; first up is "Go"(Dolby Digital 5.1), which I thought was one of 1999's best films; "Whatever It Takes"(decent film, not particularly great - Dolby Digital 5.1); the very funny "Can't Hardly Wait"(Dolby Digital 5.1 and having a few scenes in the trailer that weren't in the movie) and finishing it up, there's the very weird trailer for "Bandits"(5.1), the trailer for "Idle Hands"(5.1) and "Girl"(suprisingly, in 5.1).
Also: A short promotional featurette and talent files.
Final Thoughts: Although I have no complaints with Tristar's DVD edition, I do have a couple of complaints about the movie, which may be worth a rental if you're in the target audience.
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