Search DVDBeaver |
S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
|
Giuseppe Makes a Movie [Blu-ray]
(Adam Rifkin, 2014)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: Blump International Films Video: CineliciousPics
Disc: Region: 'A' (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:22:08.456 Disc One Size: 18,307,871,331 bytes Disc Two Size: 19,506,099,116 bytes Feature Size: 17,638,490,112 bytes Video Bitrate: 26.81 Mbps Chapters: 10 Case: Transparent Blu-ray case Release date: July 14th, 2015
Video: Aspect ratio: 1.33:1 matted to 1.78:1 Resolution: 1080i / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -4dB Commentary: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps
Subtitles: English, None
Extras: Disc 1 • Audio commentary with director Adam Rifkin & producer Mike Plante • Trailer (3:08) Disc 2 • Bill Nowlin Lives - Giuseppe interviews Bill Nowlin (14:06) • "The Fifth Wheel" TV pilot by Giuseppe Andrews (22:10) • Directed By Giuseppe - clips from Giuseppe's other films (5:11) • Garbanzo Gas (1:15:04) • Schlong Oysters (Extras Scenes from Giuseppe Makes a Movie) (25:02) • Visual Medium Observation - Giuseppe Andrews interview (28:56)
Bitrate: Blu-ray Disc one
"Garbanzo Gas" from Blu-ray # 2
Description: While the rest of America slept, DIY
filmmaker/musician Giuseppe Andrews (a one-time teen actor
in
Independence Day and Detroit Rock City) has
made over 30 experimental features with titles like Doily’s
Summer of Freak Occurrences, Trailer Town and Utopia Blues.
Set in some demented alternate universe (i.e. Ventura,
California), they are populated by real-life alcoholics and
drug addicts, trash-talking senior citizens and trailer park
residents dressed in cow outfits and costume-shop wigs,
acting out booze-fueled vignettes of severe psychosis
filtered through Giuseppe’s John Waters-meets-Harmony Korine-meets-Werner
Herzog sensibility.
The Film:
More ragtag video diary than incisive feature documentary, "Giuseppe
Makes a Movie" takes a swift, at times riotous walk on the wild side
with the ultimate independent filmmaker, Giuseppe Andrews. Never heard
of him? Let's just say this guy's cinematic oeuvre makes the early
output of John Waters and Andy Warhol look like the work of François
Truffaut. Giuseppe Makes a Movie, Adam Rifkin's eye-opening portrait of trailer-park underground filmmaking, reveals its moral character about halfway through, when Tiffany Naylor—one of many unknown eccentrics employed for on-screen purposes by DV-tape moviemaking wizard Giuseppe Andrews—confides of her musical ambitions to the camera. "I wanna be able to touch peoples' lives with it," she says before launching into an a cappella rendition of one of her songs in front of her fellow cast members. Her singing is occasionally off-key and warbly, but Rifkin hangs on this impromptu performance until it becomes an endearing display of vulnerability, even letting the song become a non-diegetic score to the subsequent scene. For a less sensitive filmmaker, this soul-bearing moment might have led to mockery; imagine a premature, dismissive hard cut, if not elision of the scene altogether. But Rifkin's concentrated inclusion of it here suggests the fundamental compassion with which he approaches all of his subjects—even characters as goofily named as Vietnam Ron and Spit. Excerpt from Slant Magazine located HERE
Image : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. Giuseppe Makes a Movie comes to a package of 2 Blu-rays from CineliciousPics and will remind many of Chris Smith's 1999 documentary American Movie chronically low-budget filmmaking at its most 'exposed state'. Giuseppe Andrews' reference to important filmmakers (aka Bunuel) supports this comparison to American Movie. This is in 1080i - which I presume is how it was shot - so there are some 'trailing' (combing) artifacts during camera motion, but, truly, this film is less about video quality and more about it's content. This Blu-ray image is weak, but so was its original source. The versatility of the format adds the vérité exposure that subject embraces and few will make issue with its appearance once they see the feature.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :The audio is only in lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 channel but that is okay because it is almost exclusively dialogue and anything too pristine probably wouldn't suit the impression the filmmakers were achieving. It's clear and clean with only natural scattering and little in the way of remarkable music (Tiffany Naylor singing left an impression) to offset the speaking. There are optional English subtitles and m y Oppo has identified it as being a region 'A'-locked disc as confirmed by the back cover.
Extras : CineliciousPics make this a 2 Blu-ray package with plenty of extras (although both discs are single-layered and all the content would have fit on one dual-layered BD). So on the feature disc #1 we get an audio commentary with director Adam Rifkin & producer Mike Plante which, if you enjoyed the film, is more of the same amusing, grassroots, discussion. There is also a 3-minute trailer. On Blu-ray #2 we get 1/4 hour of Giuseppe interviewing Bill Nowlin, 22-minutes of the "The Fifth Wheel - Naked Dating" 2001 TV pilot by Giuseppe Andrews, for those curious the entire of 2007's Garbanzo Gas with Walt Dongo, Miles Dougal, Tiffany Naylor, Bill Nowlin etc. plus a 'telling' 5-minutes of brief clips from Giuseppe's other films entitled "Directed By Giuseppe". Schlong Oysters is 25-minutes of, erratic, extras scenes from Giuseppe Makes a Movie and the 1/2 hour Visual Medium Observation is another Giuseppe Andrews interview - this time dressed in costume.
Blu-ray Disc one
Blu-ray Disc two
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze July 6th, 2015
|
About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500 DVDs and have reviewed over 5000 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
Although I never wanted to become one of those guys who
focused 'too much' on image and sound quality - I
find HD is swiftly pushing me in that direction. 60-Inch Class (59.58” Diagonal) 1080p Pioneer KURO Plasma Flat Panel HDTV PDP6020-FD
Oppo Digital BDP-83 Universal Region FREE Blu-ray/SACD
Player APC AV 1.5 kVA H Type Power Conditioner 120V Gary W. Tooze ALL OUR NEW FORMAT DVD REVIEWS
|