'High Fidelity' is worth a spin

By STEVE PERSALL

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 21, 2000

Here is what we thought of this week's new video releases back when they were released on the big screen. Second thoughts include hindsight about the movies, what they'll be like on video and suggestions about who might want to rent them.

New releases

High Fidelity (R)

John Cusack plays Rob, a record store owner and compulsive listmaker delving into his Top 5 romantic breakups of all time. With appropriate musical accompaniment, of course. Two mildly crazed clerks (Jack Black, Todd Louiso) don't help matters with their pop music obsessions and hilariously poor customer relations. High Fidelity is arrested development you can dance to.

First impression: "Cusack is one of the few actors capable of the nonchalant desperation (this film) needs. His characters age, but Cusack still preserves a touch of puppy love in his movie romances. He can still say anything to get the girl and our sympathies.

"The problem with High Fidelity is that Cusack is asked to say almost everything . . . with past-tense irony spoiling any surprise. There aren't any emotional peaks . . . just a witty drone of pop depression, punctuated by FM wisdom. If nothing else, the movie is worth listening to, for a carefully chosen playlist of bubble gum memories and sonic now." (3/31/00)

Second thoughts: High Fidelity played well as an in-flight movie, so it should transfer easily to home video. Jack Black is one of the most welcomed sights in film comedy today.

Rental audience: Cusack fans; anyone who ever changed a phonograph needle or felt that a pop singer read their love letters out loud.

Rent it if you enjoy: Say Anything..., music trivia or Nick Hornby's cult novel.

28 Days (PG-13)

Newspaper columnist (Sandra Bullock) goes to a rehabilitation clinic after a drunken driving conviction. Resistance to sobriety is overcome with the help of a handsome fellow patient (Viggo Mortensen) and enough Hollywood hospital cliches to fill a snake pit or cuckoo's nest.

First impression: "This movie is as surprising as a calendar, which is remarkable when one considers the inherent volatility of its astoundingly bad concept, a sort-of-feel-good, kind-of-comedic melodrama about drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

"Just toss in a little romance . . . and remove as much of the reality of addiction as possible for a box office-friendly PG-13, and you have one marketable pile of carrion. . . . Bullock somehow manages to stay believable and interesting throughout." (Rick Gershman, Times correspondent, 4/14/00)

Second thoughts: Bullock remains a viewer favorite, despite her questionable role decisions lately. The smaller scope of television could make 28 Days pass quickly.

Rental audience: Anyone who would like to have Bullock as the girl next door.

Rent it if you enjoy: Hope Floats, When a Man Loves a Woman.

Ready to Rumble (PG-13)

Chronic morons (David Arquette, Scott Caan) assist the comeback of their favorite pro wrestling villain (Oliver Platt). Lots of crude humor based on sex and hygiene, plus cameo appearances by World Championship Wrestling stars including Goldberg and Diamond Dallas Page.

First impression: Warner Bros.' decision to shield Ready to Rumble from critics before opening day prevented a Times review.

Second thoughts: After a video viewing, Warner Bros. knew what it was doing. This is an irritating movie -- especially Arquette's portrayal of a doofus -- that even pro wrestling fans will consider preposterous. Platt is amusing, even under these conditions.

Rental audience: Gluttons for punishment, in the wrestling ring or otherwise.

Rent it if you enjoy: WCW Monday Nitro.

DVDs

New and noteworthy for digital players

Appealing classics arrive on DVD

In the same week that Warner Home Video inflicts Ready to Rumble on viewers, it also opens its vault of bona fide classics to DVD consumers. Several titles were originally released by studios other than Warner Bros., but that's what happens in these days of entertainment company mergers and buyouts.

The most appealing re-release may be A Star Is Born, the 1954 version with James Mason and Judy Garland as star-crossed celebrity lovers. George Cukor's film gets crisp digital reproduction surpassing the worn-out images and sound of late night television screenings.

Special features include three alternate versions of Garland singing The Man That Got Away, another song (When My Sugar Walks Down the Street) that was deleted from the original release, and audio of two still-missing scenes. Preview trailers from the 1937, 1954 and 1976 versions of A Star Is Born are here. Footage of the 1954 film's premiere and a filmed message from Warner chief Jack L. Warner round out the set.

42nd Street (1933) arrives on DVD with the second-most extras, including documentaries on composer Harry Warren and backstage peeks at Old Hollywood. The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964) is bolstered by a wide-screen image, preview trailer, costuming documentary and screen tests by eventual co-stars Debbie Reynolds and Harve Presnell.

Other vintage reissues on DVD contain only the movie and preview trailers. They include Bette Davis' Jezebel and Dark Victory, Elizabeth Taylor's Oscar-winning performance in Butterfield 8, and the incomparable pairing of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn in Pat and Mike and Adam's Rib.

REWIND

Videos worth another look

Fashionable films

Women's Fashion Week begins Friday in Milan, Italy, bringing international attention to all sorts of designs that you'll probably never wear. But there's something about slinking down a catwalk while cameras flash that simply screams glamor. The movies know something about that.

Stick to the back racks for better savings, and check out these video selections to get an idea of what you're missing in Milan:

Unzipped -- Isaac Mizrahi was the designer du jour, but that was several jours ago. His flamboyant personality and pop influences make this behind-the-seams documentary constantly amusing.

Ready to Wear (a.k.a. Pret a Porter) -- Robert Altman's multicharacter pattern of filmmaking fit this fashion world satire like a glove. Julia Roberts, Tim Robbins, Sophia Loren and Kim Basinger look smashing here.

Mahogany -- After Lady Sings the Blues, Diana Ross could choose to play any role she wanted. Ross chose this soapy melodrama about an inner city woman rising to the top of the fashion world. Do You Know Where You're Going To? was Ross' hit song from the movie, and a fitting question to ask about her career.

Funny Face -- Audrey Hepburn wearing Givenchy, George Gershwin's music and Parisian beatniks. What an ensemble.

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