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Jayne Mansfield's Car (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

913 views 0 replies 1 participant last post by  Ralph Potts 
#1 ·


The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )

Film:


Extras:


Audio/Video total rating:

( Max score: 100 )
81





Studio and Year: Anchor Bay - 2012
MPAA Rating: R
Feature running time: 122 minutes
Genre: Drama

Disc Format: BD-25
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4)
Video Aspect: 2.35:1
Resolution: 1080p/24


Audio Format(s): English Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Starring: Robert Duvall, Billy Bob Thornton, Robert Patrick, Kevin Bacon, Ray Stevens, John Hurt, Katherine LaNasa, Frances O’Connor, Shawnee Smith, Ron White
Directed by: Billy Bob Thornton
Music by: Owen Easterling Hatfield
Written by: Billy Bob Thornton & Tom Epperson
Region Code: A

Blu-ray Disc release Date: December 10, 2013
"Torn apart. Driven together"


Film Synopsis:


It’s 1969 in a small Alabama town, and the death of a quirky clan’s long estranged wife and mother bring together two very different families for the funeral. But do the scars of the past hide differences that will tear them apart or expose truths that could lead to the most unexpected collisions of all?

My Take:


The trailer for this film intrigued me. The cast looked exceptional and from what I could tell the plot had lots of potential. Add Billy Bob Thornton’s co-writing/direction to the mix and I couldn’t resist giving it a spin. Set in the late 1960’s in a small Alabama community Jayne Mansfield’s car is an overly busy familial drama the revolves around the Caldwell’s depicted as a fairly typical southern clan made up of patriarch Jim, sons Jimbo, Skip, Carroll, daughter Donna and their respective children/spouses. Years earlier Jim’s wife and family matriarch abandoned them moving to England and falling in love/marrying an Englishman/widower named Kingsley Bedford, who had two children, Phillip and Camilla.


Jim, is a WWI veteran having been a medic and has an unusual interest in violent deaths spending more time than he should listening to the police scanner and responding out to the scenes of fatal car accidents in order to witness the immediate effects of lives lost in such a manner. His sons, Skip and Carroll, combat veterans of WWII each cope with the fallout associated with their very different wartime experiences while Jimbo who didn’t see combat feels slighted at not having a common experience that his brothers and father share.


Amidst that is a difficult familial dynamic associated with painful childhood memories, distant relationships, and unanswered questions about a wife/mother who walked away. This is of course exacerbated when Jim receives a call from England with the news of his ex-wife’s passing and the fact at her request she is being brought back to Alabama for burial accompanied by her “new” family.


At its core this is a story of fathers and sons, wars and peace, literally and figuratively speaking and how the generational boundaries between them can blur. The biggest obstacle this film has is its script which incorporates too many elements to effectively support the narrative offshoots introduced. It waters down the characters and reduces adherence to the stronger aspects of the story. Rather than winding up with a centrally strong drama the result is a sporadically engaging one. I also found the metaphoric reference in the title to be weak especially with regard to the offbeat and minute subplot its derived from. What I found interesting and ultimately entertaining is the depiction of old school southern family, the oddly dark humor and interaction among the characters which is aptly supported by the well placed members of the cast.

Jayne Mansfield’s car isn’t a compelling drama that resonates however it is a perfectly acceptable genre entry that merits the attention of those that tend to gravitate to its subject matter.


Parental Guide:


The rating is for language, sexual content, nudity, drugs use and some bloody images.


AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65

**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**


Audio: 78

(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

  • Dynamics:

  • Low frequency extension:

  • Surround Sound presentation:

  • Clarity/Detail:

  • Dialogue Reproduction:




Video: 84

(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

  • Resolution/Clarity:

  • Black level/Shadow detail:

  • Color reproduction:

  • Fleshtones:

  • Compression:


Jayne Mansfield’s car comes to Blu-ray Disc from Anchor Bay Entertainment featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 26 Mbps and lossless Dolby TrueHD 5.1 sound that has an average bitrate of 1.3 Mbps.


By design this film doesn’t boast vibrant colors are eye popping visuals but the encoding appears solid. Colors have a muted level of saturation and those used are rarely bright which give the perception of a limited palette. Overall they are naturally rendered and appear to fall within the visual range intended. Fleshtones have appreciable complexional distinction but the lighting used can sometimes leave them appearing flat and lacking in texture. Blacks are respectable with above average delineation. Shadow detail is quite good which enhances visual perception during the scenes shot in limited lighting. Resolution is adequate so that varying degrees of detail can be seen in close ups but the video isn’t razor sharp or dimensionally strong. It isn’t a bright film which when coupled along with the reserved chromatic scheme gives it a dull finish. This seems to coincide with the creative decisions of the filmmakers and results in stable imagery that lacks the eye popping definition that some may expect from a newer film.


The DTS-HD Master Audio sound quality is solid and offers a one dimensional, frontal oriented perspective that is highlighted by the film’s music which sounds silky smooth, tonally neutral and exquisitely detailed. Dialogue is centrally focused and lucid with distinguishable intonation and requisite clarity. Surround activity is limited to subtle ambience that occasionally offered some spatial dimension that extended the depth of the sound field.

Bonus Features:

  • (HD) Jayne Mansfield’s car: Behind the scenes – 9 minute featurette




Final Thoughts:


Co-written/directed by co-star Billy Bob Thornton Jayne Mansfield’s car is a fairly entertaining familial drama that could have been better with a less sprawling script. It comes to Blu-ray from Anchor Bay Entertainment featuring satisfying high definition audio/video and a nominal supplemental offering that consists of a making of documentary that is worth checking out if you enjoyed the film. When you’re in the mood for something a little off the beaten path give Jayne Mansfield’s car a rent.










Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews





Reference Review System:



JVC DLA-RS55 3D Ready 1080p High Definition Front Projector

(Calibrated with Calman 5 & C6 Meter from Spectracal )

Stewart Filmscreen - Studiotek 130 G3 100” 16x9 Screen
Carada Masquerade Horizontal Masking System

Marantz AV8801 11.2 Channel Audio/Video Processor

Sherbourn Technologies - 7/200 Seven Channel Amplifier

B&K Reference 200.7 Series 2 Seven Channel Amplifier

Oppo BDP-103D Universal Disc/3D capable Blu-ray Player (With Darbee video processing)

Panasonic DMP-BDT310 3D capable Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

System Controller: Apple iPad/iRule Pro HD Universal Remote Control

Canton "Ergo" Series speakers

Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers

SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)

APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector

Wireworld, Better Cables (Silver Serpent) - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling

Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package
 
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