“Say Anything…” Blu-ray Review
Not a huge success at its time of release, Say Anything eventually kicked up a massive fan following once it hit the home video market. True, the film was relatively well received by critics, but the film made a scant $4 million back on top of its original budget, so it didn’t exactly blow the studio away with its success. But as time went on the film grew and grew with a greater fanbase and plenty of praise for all those involved in its production. Entertainment Weekly has frequently gushed over it and most recently featured an article about this very 20th Anniversary DVD/Blu-ray release, further entrenching it as one of the best romance and high school movies ever created.
Synopsis
Fall in love with Lloyd all over again when Say Anything… 20th Anniversary Edition debuts on Blu-ray Disc (BD) and DVD November 3 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Earning a ‘100% Fresh’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes as a top fan-favorite, Academy Award® winner* Cameron Crowe’s (Almost Famous, Jerry Maguire) directorial debut stars Golden Globe® nominee** John Cusack (2012) as Lloyd Dobler, a mediocre student and aspiring kick-boxer, and Ione Skye (Fever Pitch) as the beautiful valedictorian Diane Court, whose heart Lloyd seeks to capture. The film also features an all-star supporting cast including Golden Globe® nominee*** John Mahoney (“Frasier”), Lili Taylor (“Six Feet Under”), Joan Cusack (The School of Rock) and Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”). The Say Anything…20th Anniversary Edition BD includes exclusive all-new bonus materials including a retrospective featurette revisiting the iconic film 20 years later, and a trivia track containing over 200 questions. The BD and DVD also feature two brand new bonus materials including ‘I Love Say Anything…,’ a look at famous fans who love the film and why, and a conversation with Cameron Crowe, in addition to cast commentary, extended scenes, deleted scenes, and more.
While I’m used to only enjoying high school movies created by John Hughes, I have to admit I was rather excited to watch this film. I’d never seen it previously and while it’s easily picked out when referenced in various mediums, I’d never made the effort to see it. So enters the 20th Anniversary edition and I’ve little choice but to watch it now…but you won’t hear me crying about it. This really is a film worthy of its accolades. I was worried it was something you’d have to grow up with to enjoy, but nope—this film is, wardrobe aside, pretty timeless in its tale and remarkably enjoyable from start to finish.
Quite frankly what makes this film still feel so exciting is that Cusack as Lloyd is probably one of the most perfect characters to actor matches to date. Everything he does in this film just feels so real and original and while the pairing of him and Ione Skye seems a bit odd at first, it’s that oddity that drives the entire film. Why she would even go for his seemingly “loser” character is just one of the many questions…but in the end it’s a relatively simple film when you strip away the storyline and characters.
The film is literally about love. It may sound cheesy or hokey, but honestly…that’s what you get out of this film. It’s not a great ploy to get into some girls pants or pull the most pranks during summer vacation. No, the film is just about a first love and all the trials and tribulations that go along with it. Whether it’s the parents of those you love or the extenuating circumstances that will eventually “end” your relationship, the film is all about grasping and holding onto a summer love.
Of course the film isn’t all syrupy sweet; there’s plenty of humor and hilarious situations in it, but it’s very much a “coming of age” type story that Cameron Crowe is so known for. I was surprised by how similar this film and Almost Famous was, not so much in terms of characters and story, just more in that it was about a youth finding something. Ok so that’s kind of ambiguous, but once you see the film you’ll get a sense for what I mean.
Overall this is a classic for a reason and I fully believe that it will go down as being one for as long as the film medium is around. The roles, story, and pacing is all pretty much perfect in this film and it’s hard to even lump this into the category of “high school movie” as it really boasts a lot more than the other films that occupy the category. Still, Crowe’s personal touch is definitely evident in this film and if you’ve any sense of love or human decency you’ll likely find yourself as enamored with this film as everyone else who has seen it. Highly Recommended.
The Blu-ray
Fox releases Say Anything… on Blu-ray for the first time in an all new 20th Anniversary release. The disc arrives in a standard Elite Eco Blu-ray case without any inserts. The menu system is simple and easy to navigate and the overall presentation of the set is incredibly solid.
For the video transfer we get an AVC encoded 1080p transfer that is quite frankly one of the best I’ve seen for a twenty year old movie. Not Patton good, mind you, but very close. The colors are brilliant; the detail is remarkable and just about everything about this transfer looks like it was treated with the utmost care. In addition the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 set is very strong, with the films robust soundtrack coming through at every turn in proper fashion. Dialogue is clean and clear and surrounds are basically limited to the soundtrack, but overall a very strong A/V package for this release to be sure. Other tracks include English Dolby Surround Sound, Spanish and French Mono Sound, and subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Cantonese and Mandarin.
Extras are a mix of the old and new and include:
• ALL NEW To Know Say Anything…is to Love It! Trivia Track (over 200 questions)* BD exclusive
• ALL NEW An Iconic Film Revisited: Say Anything…20 Years Later featurette* BD exclusive
• ALL NEW A Conversation with Cameron Crowe featurette
• ALL NEW I Love Say Anything…! Featurette
• Intro and Commentary by Cameron Crowe, John Cusack and Ione Skye
• Alternate Scenes
• Alternate Scenes with Commentary by Cameron Crowe
• Deleted Scenes
• Extended Scenes
• Vintage featurette
• Theatrical Trailers
• TV Spots
• Photo Gallery
That enough for you? Quite frankly I haven’t seen a disc this packed with genuinely good bonus features in a long time. The commentary and the additional scenes from the previous DVD release are strong as is but the three all-new extras are fantastic as well. The trivia questions are even done in a nice fashion, although I’m not quite obsessive enough over this film to know the answers to all two hundred, but this really is a fantastic set.
Overall this set comes Highly Recommended. Anyone who is remotely a fan of this film or of the genre(s) it resides may even find this to be a Must Own as the A/V presentation is simply fantastic and there are enough extras to warrant a double dip for any previous owners. Definitely one of the best discs I’ve seen this year.
Say Anything…20th Anniversary Edition is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.