Stars: Jim Carrey, Bob Balaban, Brent Briscoe, Jeffrey DeMunn, Amanda Detmer, Allen Garfield, Hal Holbrook, Martin Landau, Rom Rifkin, David Ogden Stiers, and James Whitmore
Writer:
Michael Sloane
Director:
Frank Darabont
Feature
length: 152 minutes
Extras:
Additional Scenes, Movie Within The Movie: Sand Pirates Of The Sahara-The
Complete Sequence, Theatrical Trailer, Cast/Director Film Highlights, Black List
Notes
Languages:
English and French Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:
English Captions and Closed Captions and French Subtitles
Packaging:
Snap Case
Chapter
Stops: 37
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Year
of Theatrical Release: 2001/DVD Release: 2002
Theatrical
Distributor: Warner Brothers Pictures
Home
Video Distributor: Warner Home Video
MPAA
Rating: PG
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
Some
say to it takes a great eye for observation as well as wit and intelligence to
be a comedian and some also say that the best comedians can turn their own
personal and even painful experiences into laughter. Based on these abilities,
some have said comedians have the potential to be great actors. We all know that
comedians can be movie stars, but not all comedians are held in as high regard
as some of the world’s acclaimed actors. Yet some crossover into dramatic
roles and even earn an Oscar® or two. Jim Carrey is a comedian, a movie star,
and an actor, but as is sometimes the case with stars from any background, it is
difficult not to be reminded of their past efforts even when they are doing a
great job at something that might be completely different from what they are
associated with. These public and professional expectations as well as the
reality of politics among peers and fans alike can greatly effect how a star is
perceived in any film.
So
I find it somewhat ironic that Jim Carrey, the movie star and comedian, is cast
as a B-movie screenwriter with aspirations of getting his chance to shine in as
the writer of an A-level motion picture. However past associations from his
college years have made him the victim of the House Un-American Activities and
placed him on the notorious blacklist. His dream swept away, Carrey’s
character drinks his sorrows away at a local pub before driving inebriated and
losing his memory after an auto accident. Discovered in the tiny town of Lawson,
California, he just happens to look exactly like the lost town hero who gave his
life saving his fellow soldiers in World War II. His appearance brings new life
to the town as he discovers a life unlike the one he previously knew, but when
his past slowly intrudes upon his ideal life, the truth is bound to surface.
As
I mentioned earlier, it is easy to look at Carrey and expect to laugh because he
is gifted comedian, but here the trick is can we accept him in a dramatic role?
Something you might expect a young Jimmy Stewart to appear in? Well, Carrey
successfully pulls it off, but not so completely that one can suspend the
disbelief of the premise, which generally asks us to believe that two guys who
happen to look just like each other happen to live in the same state and within
driving distance no less, let alone the same country. It is at this point where
the drama breaks down into something that is perhaps overly sentimental if not
downright fantasy.
So
in the big scheme of things I would say the paradox of “The Majestic” is all
in the casting of Hollywood star and comedian Jim Carrey as a screenwriter who
loses his memory in a town so broken hearted yet too wholesome to even
believably exist is what finally shatters the dramatic suspension of disbelief.
With that in mind, I found “The Majestic” to be a good light drama which met
most of my expectations that I have come to associate with a film by Frank
Darabont, but somehow it just doesn’t gel quite as well as his previous
efforts.
Warner
Home Video presents “The Majestic” on DVD-Video in a beautiful anamorphic
widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio. The transfer is clear and vibrant and free of
any defects and anomalies. The English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Soundtrack is
well rounded and clear. A French Language Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Soundtrack
as well as English Captions and Closed Captions and French Language Subtitles
are also encoded on to the DVD as options.
Extra
features include 7 additional scenes that flesh out the beginning act of the
feature and are presented in a clean widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio with
English Stereo Sound. The scenes can be watched individually or as one 9-minute
reel. The complete “Pirates Of The Sahara” segment, which features non other
than Bruce Campbell, is also presented in its entirety in a beautiful black and
white widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio with English Stereo Sound. The theatrical
trailer is also presented in a widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio with English
Dolby Surround Sound. Some notes on the real Hollywood “Black List” era as
well as filmographies for Jim Carrey, Writer Michael Sloane, and Director Frank
Darabont wrap up the extra features on this DVD.
The
menus are standard interactive still frames that are easy to navigate. “The
Majestic” will debut on DVD-Video on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 from Warner Home
Video.
©
Copyright 2002 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.