Synopsis
Billy Bob and Preacher are two 13-year-old boys, best friends, on the verge of discoveringgirls. They both fall in love with Lily Jane Bobbit, the new girl in town, who dreams ofHollywood and speaks with extremely elaborate diction. Over the course of the summer, LilyJane will transform the entire town. You know how Michael Bay loved to sprinkle Armageddonwith slow-motion, anachronistic Norman Rockwell shots of boys in overalls running throughfields and small towns? Now ima…ine an entire movie dripping with the same false notions ofa simpler, Utopian America. Where the hell is James Ellroy when you need him? Heck, where’sTruman Capote, whose tale, I am given to understand, is utterly betrayed in spirit by this film.Skip this and watch Stand By Me again instead.
Audio
Good sound here. The clarity is beyond reproach, in terms of both dialogue (which is withoutdistortion or buzz), music and effects. The environmental effect isn’t bad, though perhaps a bitlow key. The enveloping sound of rain is particularly well done when it appears on thescene.
Video
On the positive side, the balcks are very good, especially in the night scenes, where thecontrasts are strong and there is no grain or washed-out feel that happens so often on other discs.The colours are, however, a bit murky, with the film looking a bit darker than perhaps it should.As well, the format is fullscreen. Adding insult to injury, the trailer and featurette retain theoriginal 1.85:1 ratio.
Special Features
Nothing here except promotion: the trailer and a standard-issue making-of featurette. Themenu’s main page, intro and transitions are scored and animated, while the second-level pagesare scored.
Closing Thoughts
Sickeningly nice, this is still the ticket if you want utterly defanged family viewing.
Special Features List
- Making-of Featurette
- Theatrical Trailer
