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Showgirls (15th Anniversary Sinsational Edition)
Release Date: Available now
Studio: MGM
Packaging/Materials: Two-disc Blu-ray case with slipcover
Year: 1995
Rating: NC-17
Running Time: 2:11:00
MSRP: $29.99
| THE FEATURE | SPECIAL FEATURES | |
| Video | 1080p high definition 16x9 2.35:1 | Standard and high definition |
| Audio | DTS-HD Master Audio: English 5.1 / Dolby Surround: English, Spanish, French | Stereo |
| Subtitles | English SDH, Spanish | Variable |
The Feature: 2/5
Nomi Mallone (Elizabeth Berkeley) wants to be a dancer in Las Vegas, but upon arrival she's robbed of her possessions and stranded in the middle of the Strip. Fortunately she meets Molly (Gina Ravera), who gives her a place to stay and eventually brings her to the Stardust Casino, where she works as a seamstress for its stage show, "Goddess." When Nomi meets the star of the show, Cristal Connors (Gina Gershon), they're almost instant enemies, mostly due to Cristal's repeated attempts to humiliate her. But Nomi shows she's better and stronger than Cristal thinks, getting hired on as a dancer after making it through the Stardust's rigorous audition process. At first the showgirl experience is everything Nomi dreamed of, but as she becomes more involved in that world she'll see little is as perfect and beautiful as it appears.
Written by Joe Eszterhas and directed by Paul Verhoeven, "Showgirls" is universally recognized as a film "so bad, it's good." In fact, in 2000 the Golden Raspberry Awards bestowed it with the dubious honor of "Worst Picture of the Decade" and it remains tied with "Battlefield Earth" as the film with the most overall Razzies (seven, if you're keeping count). Now celebrating its 15th year, there's not much that can be said about it that hasn't been said already, but that's not to say it doesn't continue to astonish (and ironically, entertain) with its sheer awfulness. Whether it's Berkeley's vapid acting, the frequently ludicrous dialogue, or the laughable plot developments, there's no shortage of material to heckle. Which makes "Showgirls" a film best enjoyed in the company of close friends with quick wits. While it won't actually make the film any better, it will certainly make it more than bearable.
Video Quality: 4/5
The film is accurately framed at 2.35:1 and presented in 1080p with the AVC codec. Colors are deep and stable, which, for better or worse, presents the sometimes garish color palette in all its glory. Contrast seems to display the full range of values, with some moments of compressed or expanded blacks. Along the same lines, fine object detail can be quite good, showing satisfying detail in hair, skin and clothing, with only a few shots showing softness or limited detail. The picture also shows no sign of digital sharpening or noise reduction measures, consistently exhibiting a healthy amount of grain.
Audio Quality: 4/5
Though not always the most subtle of mixes (big surprise), the DTS-HD Master Audio track sounds balanced and sufficiently detailed. Surround channels provide plentiful environmental effects and support for the score, bass activity is deep and robust, and center channel dialogue is consistently clear and intelligible.
Special Features: 3/5
The set of extras has one or two highlights, but the majority of material is watch-once or easily skipped. The inclusion of the DVD makes the film viewable just about anywhere.
Pole Dancing: Finding Your Inner Stripper (11:54, HD): Teri Jaworski of S Factor describes and demonstrates the stripping-inspired fitness regimen started by actress Sheila Kelley. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release.
Lap Dance Tutorial Featuring the World-Famous Girls of Scores (4:56, SD): Ten steps to the perfect lap dance, described and demonstrated.
"The Greatest Movie Ever Made" Commentary by David Schmader: A Seattle-based writer, Schmader held regular screenings of the film during which he provided scene-by-scene commentary on the depths of its awfulness. The popularity of the presentation brought him to the attention of the MGM DVD producers, who then put him in front of a mic for this commentary. He does provides some entertaining observations, but too often he's distracted by the film, leading to long pauses. Frankly, I could see getting the same or better experience by rounding up some of my snarkiest friends to watch the movie with me, but your mileage may vary, depending on the company you keep.
Showgirls Fact-Up Trivia: Pop-up, on-screen trivia highlights the obscure, random and sometimes hilarious aspects of the production.
A Showgirls Diary (10:54, SD): Behind-the-scenes footage from filming gets compared to rough scene sketches and excerpts from the script.
Theatrical Trailer (1:59, HD)
DVD: A relabeling of the 2004 release, it includes the entire feature and most of the same extras. The disc does not include the pole dancing featurette, but does have a brief video commentary from the Scores girls during Nomi's stripping scene at the Cheetah. Find out more about the release in Jason Perez's HTF review of the V.I.P. Edition.
Recap
The Feature: 2/5
Video Quality: 4/5
Audio Quality: 4/5
Special Features: 3/5
Overall Score (not an average): 3/5
MGM turns in a great audio and video presentation for a film notorious for its awfulness. The set of extras has one or two worthwhile items (most notably the DVD), but the majority of on-disc items don't have much replay value.
