There is something about Pretty Bird that really amused me. It makes some observations beyond the quirky, cute characters. Giamatti (also a Producer of the film) is strong as the paranoid anti-social engineer, Crudup is an idealistic dreamer with limited life experiences and David Hornsby is the gregarious, loyal friend with gentle homosexual designs on his long-time buddy. Things don't come together very cohesively (like, why the title "Pretty Bird'?) but it still kept my attention to the very end. While no masterpiece it had me smiling throughout. 

The image quality is consistent and acceptable for SD. The print is super clean and colors and detail are at a standard for a modern film transfer to the medium. Nothing is particularly remarkable for the visuals but it supported Pretty Bird for a reasonable single-layered DVD presentation. 

The sound is clear with all dialogue audible. English subtitles are provided as an option but there are no extras at all excepting some Paramount previews.

This was the directorial debut of Paul Schneider (writer of All the Real Girls and he acted in a few features including The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford). This ends up as a kind of corrupted version of the American Dream with money never being the driving force for 'success'. The three partners want friendship, recognition, respect and fame with personal finances and profits never challenged. It's an interesting take and you may want to watch this sometime if you get the chance. The DVD is less than $15 and it may be worth an indulgence for about $10, I think.  

Gary W. Tooze