![Cover for Good Times [TV Show]](/images/displaymedia.php?id=25021&cat=3&sizew=70){kind=small}
The movie tackles the American capitulation to legal arguments head on and condemns immoral media practices without preaching.
Tools:
Recommend review to a friend »
New Line Home Entertainment officially unveiled their "infinifilm" line of DVDs with "Thirteen Days," a political drama about the Cuban Missile Crisis. For the studio's second "infinifilm" effort, the powers-that-be selected March 2001's police thriller "15 Minutes." While "15 Minutes" may not be as good as or as important as "Thirteen Days," its DVD matches and sometimes exceeds the previous "infinifilm" release.
What if a couple of low-lifers decided to test the limits of our cultural tolerance for celebrity, even when the celebrity depends on criminal behavior? In this day and age, we've been saturated with all sorts of confessional shows and political soap operas, and they have numbed us to our moral cores.
"15 Minutes" examines the media dilemma facing America. We have become so inured to lawyerly arguments about psycho-traumas that we almost buy the idea that no one is REALLY responsible for anything in society. Writer/producer/director John Herzfeld has crafted a kinetic cop drama about two law enforcement officers, Eddie Flemming (Robert De Niro) and Jordy Warsaw (Edward Burns), out to nab two Eastern European criminals who videotape the murders that they commit.
Oleg (Oleg Taktarov) and Emil (Karel Roden), one Russian and the other a Czech national, arrive in New York City after getting out of prison. They have come to collect some money from a former partner in crime. It turns out that their friend has spent the money, living a comfortable life in America and buying nice jewelry for his wife.
Enraged, Oleg and Emil kill their American contact and his spouse, all the while videotaping the incident with a camcorder. In quick succession, they go around the city committing other homicides and videotaping the events, hoping to sell the tapes and become rich and famous in the process. They threaten the life of an attractive Eastern European hair-stylist, and Jordy tries to help her out of her predicament.
Along for the ride are Kelsey Grammar as the despicable tabloid newshound who stops at nothing for a ratings win, Kim Cattrall as his honest boss, and Melina Kanakaredes (TV's "Providence") as a news reporter who's dating the publicity hungry Flemming. Heck, Flemming is NYC's darling, appearing on the cover of "People" magazine and other publications due to his success at cracking cases.
The perps, Oleg and Emil, think that they can get away with it all by claiming insanity, and it's really not that far-fetched of an idea. The movie tackles the American capitulation to legal arguments head on and condemns immoral media practices without preaching. For example, Herzfeld's script acknowledges that our laws are meant to safeguard the rights of individuals who are genuinely insane and incapable of distinguishing reality from the worlds that their minds inhabit. At the same time, the film indicts the way so many people--lawyers, reporters, attention-starved denizens--manipulate the system for private gain. It's an ugly world out there, and Herzfeld asks his audience to reinstate some sense to civil society.
Edward Burns, so good in "Saving Private Ryan," comes into his own as a leading man in this pic. He matches De Niro in talent and effort, and the casting department really got it right with these two New Yorkers. They have the same cynicism and wry humor written on both of their faces, and the two actors, despite limited shared screen time, have great fun and chemistry. My only complaint is that "15 Minutes" is entirely plot driven, and the cast doesn't get to work the kind of magic on display in "Heat," Michael Mann's superior cop movie.
Mr. Herzfeld gave Charlize Theron her big start in his previous feature film, "2 Days in the Valley." She cameos in "15 Minutes" as a high-class escort, and, once again, proves that she is total dynamite. Hers being the kind of beauty that transcends description, Theron bewitches in a turn that is cute, sly, and intelligent simultaneously. I've never seen a cameo work so well within the frame of a movie that could easily do without the added appearance.
The movie isn't without its faults. Since Oleg and Emil use a handheld digital camera, the cinematography and the editing constantly switch between film stock and video stock, and the effects are headache-inducing with little thematic justification for this sort of stunt. Also, the lumpy pacing (some cuts are made too fast, while some scenes tend to drag a bit) hurts the mostly film's glossy feel. When the cast is this good, it's a bit of a let down to see the fellas in post-production undermine the good work done during principal photography. Finally, while everything is done professionally, even expertly, I couldn't help but get a sense of déjà vu during the foot chase (again, shades of "Heat") and other set pieces.
Video:
The 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer of "15 Minutes" bests the work done for the "Thirteen Days" transfer. Everything looks startlingly clear and life-like, and the smooth image does not suffer from excessive grain. While the filmmakers switch between various materials, the image quality never suffers. Sure, you can tell when the film switches between film and video, but New Line has done a good job making sure that "15 Minutes" arrives on DVD looking crystal sharp. A reference quality video presentation.
Audio:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 English track sounds very alive and natural. Even during scenes with relatively little happening, there is always something, be it music or just ambient background noises, coming from all the speakers. When there IS something happening, the sound field immerses you with a percussive score, booming explosions, and very directional sound effects. While you won't be ducking your head to avoid bullets whizzing by your ears, you will feel as if you're right there alongside DeNiro and Burns, chasing those dastardly villains through the busy streets of New York. The subwoofer provides much heart-pounding juice. The audio is also reference quality. (For those of you without DD 5.1 capability, you can select the DVD's DD 2.0 surround English track.)
New Line included English closed captions only, a slight step back from the time when they used to include English subtitles on their DVDs.
Extras:
Mercifully, the collection of extras on the "15 Minutes" DVD are not as extensive as the on on the "Thirteen Days" "infinifilm" DVD. However, while this DVD will not eat up as much of your time as the "Thirteen Days" DVD, it does provide you with a good deal of information obtained from various sources, all very (and surprisingly) candid. In keeping with New Line's recent practices, all supplements pertaining directly to a film's production are gathered under the "All-Access Pass" umbrella while everything else can be found under the "Beyond the Movie" heading. You can access video color bars to adjust your monitor's color settings, and there are various question mark icons on which you can click for help in playing around with the "15 Minutes" DVD.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]7831[/release]