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In America -- May 11th (merged)

post #1 of 31
2/23/04 at 10:28pm
Thread Starter 
The info available so far from DVDFile:

Quote:
Another Oscar favorite comes home on May 11th when Fox Home Entertainment will release Jim Sheridan's acclaimed drama In America. This special edition will include an anamorphic widescreen transfer and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track, plus an audio commentary, three featurettes and more to be announced. Stay tuned for final specs, and retail will list for $27.95.


I'm looking forward to this one; I thought it was one of the very best movies of 2003. Looks like it'll probably be a nice SE package with the special features.
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post #2 of 31
2/24/04 at 1:31am
best movie of 2003, and one I'll go to the store to get instead of waiting for a shipment from an online company!
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post #3 of 31
2/24/04 at 5:36pm
I can't wait for this one! I am glad I just went all region as Region 2 gets this in a couple of weeks.
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post #4 of 31
2/25/04 at 7:45pm
Horrible coverart here:

http://www.dvdanswers.com/index.php?...3405&n=1&burl=
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post #5 of 31
2/25/04 at 8:01pm
That is horrible, especially considering the beautiful poster. At least there's always DVDCA.com for customs.
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post #6 of 31
2/25/04 at 8:12pm
That is the worst cover art I have ever seen.
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post #7 of 31
2/25/04 at 8:16pm
Thread Starter 
Yeah, that cover art is very underwhelming. Down there with the cover art I've seen for The Great Escape SE coming out around the same time. Oh well, at least we're not buying these discs for the cover art!
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post #8 of 31
2/25/04 at 8:17pm
Yuck I really wish they would have stuck with the poster art.

Here is the region 2 cover

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P...2.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
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post #9 of 31
2/25/04 at 8:21pm
That R2 cover is almost as bad.

The poster art is gorgeous; it's a shame they didn't use it.
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post #10 of 31
2/26/04 at 3:15am
Guys,

Can you tell me a little about this film?

I have heard very little about it, and there's
a lot of "buzz" surrounding its release.

Thanks
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post #11 of 31
2/26/04 at 4:40am
Holy Toledo, that R1 cover art is bad, and the R2 art isn't much better.
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post #12 of 31
2/26/04 at 4:59am
Can you tell me a little about this film?


It's the latest movie from Jim Sheridan. It's at the very least semi-autobiographical, written by Jim and his daughters. It's about an Irish family trying to get over a family tragedy, moving to NYC and the life they build there. It's told mostly from the perspective of the 2 daughters.

It's still easily my favourite movie I've seen so far this year (it only opened around here in early January). Some people find it a little too sentimental, but I found it very moving.
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post #13 of 31
2/26/04 at 5:22am
Quote:
Some people find it a little too sentimental


That's one of the issues I had with the film. Nowhere near as sappy as most hollywood productions, but this one aspect kept it from being a must buy in my opinion.

It's a good film with some great performances though, so I do recommend a rental.
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post #14 of 31
2/26/04 at 8:38am
Quote:
Can you tell me a little about this film?

I have heard very little about it, and there's a lot of "buzz" surrounding its release.
If there's so much buzz, how could you have heard very little about it?

It's a wonderful autobiographical film by Jim Sheridan, filled with excellent performances. I disagree with any charges that it's too sentimental; I think part of what makes it such an achievement is that the Sheridans (Jim co-wrote the script with his daughters) are able to get the kids' point of view without it being saccharine.

And, hey, it's still out in theaters. No better way to find out whether you want to own the DVD than getting out of your living room and checking it out.
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post #15 of 31
2/26/04 at 12:57pm
I agree with the above. I found it magnificent and not sentimental at all, which was pretty amazing considering that 99% of movies that cover this sort of subject matter end up pretty maudlin. The sisters who played the daughters absolutely blew me away - some of the most naturalistic performances I've ever witnessed. I can't wait for the dvd to get more insight into the Sheridan's real story as well. Easily one of the best of the year for me.
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post #16 of 31
2/26/04 at 1:45pm
Thread Starter 
I wasn't crazy about the sub-plot involving Djimon Honsou's character, which I thought was kind of trite in parts (though I love the scene where he first interacts with the girls). But I was blown away by the main story of the family when it just focused on them, as most of the movie did.
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post #17 of 31
2/26/04 at 1:57pm
Thread Starter 
If anybody's wondering about the original poster that others have mentioned, follow this link for what the cover art clearly should be, instead of what it's apparently going to be.
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post #18 of 31
3/4/04 at 2:15pm
Thread Starter 
A few details on the extra features from The Digital Bits:

Quote:
Fox will release In America on May 11th, with both anamorphic widescreen and full frame on the same disc, along with director's commentary, an alternate ending, 9 deleted scenes, and a "making of" featurette (SRP $27.98).


Looking forward to the Sheridan commentary, that should be great. I wonder what the alternate ending will be about? I think the ending they went with is one of the best parts of the movie.
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post #19 of 31
3/4/04 at 4:12pm
I just received a screener copy from Fox earlier
today and immediately took an opportunity to sit
down and watch this film based on your recommendations...

Wow!

Don't quite know what to say about this amazing film.

I spent the last 90+ minutes just lying across my
couch, soaking in this story of hope, friendship and
love amongst an immigrant Irish family and their
friend Mateo.

All of this film seems so real as if it's not being
acted out, but happening right before you.

Certainly one of the best films I have seen as
of late. How did this film not get a Best Picture nod?

It also seems, from the film's final dedication,
there is some truth in what is being told on screen.
Would love to know the background of this movie.

This is a film I will be hyping up once it gets
released to DVD. I will make it my mission to make
certain everyone purchases or rents this film.

Just incredible! Thanks guys for bringing this
one to my attention. Without doing so, the screener
may never have gotten watched.
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post #20 of 31
3/4/04 at 4:38pm
Quote:
It also seems, from the film's final dedication, ...


Jim Sheridan's brother died when he was a child. I don't know if they were immigrants.
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post #21 of 31
3/4/04 at 4:39pm
Quote:
It also seems, from the film's final dedication, there is some truth in what is being told on screen. Would love to know the background of this movie.
It's pretty readily available; note that Sheridan co-wrote the film with his two daughters. I saw the movie at the Boston Irish Film Festival last spring, and Sheridan was in attendence. As he put it, the actual details when he came to NYC were "far madder", and some things were changed around (I gather his brother, rather than his son, had died, and Mateo was a flamboyantly homosexual actor as opposed to a West African artist), but that the basic events, down to E.T. being his daughter's favorite movie, are a pretty much direct take from his life.
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post #22 of 31
3/5/04 at 3:15am
Very interesting.

Just a really beautiful film.

This will be another one of those "sleeper"
DVDs that will be a HOT TOPIC amongst the
Internet discussion forums.

I plan to promote this quite aggressively
and I expect many people will end up buying
this one blindly.
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post #23 of 31
3/5/04 at 9:01am
Quote:
but that the basic events, down to E.T. being his daughter's favorite movie,

Sold!

Looking forward to watching this.
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post #24 of 31
3/5/04 at 9:50am
Worth noting that Rewind gives the nod to the R2 for being uncut. Checking in with IMDB, apparently the film was trimmed in the US to get a PG-13.

The UK version will be out before the US. I wonder how much was trimmed?
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post #25 of 31
3/5/04 at 10:40am
There's a rather intense sex scene
in the middle of the film. It's full
of quick cuts that hides any nudity of
Samantha Morton (who is very good on
the eyes).

I would definately opt to buy the R2
version if it contained an uncut version
of that scene.

How much longer is the running time on
the R2 release?
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post #26 of 31
3/5/04 at 1:56pm
Ron,

Is there a Jim Sheridan commentary track on the screener you received? If so, does he provide any insight into the "truth" behind the screenplay?

Rob
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post #27 of 31
3/5/04 at 3:48pm
The DVD I received is an early marketing screener
designed to give retailers an early look at upcoming
product.

It is not representative of the final release, therefor
there are no supplemental extras on the disc. This is
simply the movie and a few forced trailers of upcoming
Fox product.

I will say that even though viewers are warned that
audio/video are not final, the anamorphic transfer was
gorgeous.
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post #28 of 31
6/10/04 at 7:08pm
Sorry to start a new thread but I couldn't find the review anymore. I just wanted to say I agreed with the reviewer or whoever said make you see this movie. It was an absolutely fantastic film, and the kids were incredible. Everyone should at least check this movie out.

(Admin note - merged with existing thread on "In America")
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post #29 of 31
6/10/04 at 7:53pm
I saw it too. Wanted to post, but couldn't find a thread. Rented it at the same time as Monster and 21 Grams, both fine films and critically lauded, and liked it the best of them all. Just an amazing piece of film work with stellar acting by all.
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post #30 of 31
1/3/05 at 9:55am
I finally saw this movie last night, and I found it thoroughly enjoyable. The two child actors were simply incredible; I'm sure they have a good future ahead of them. I wasn't surprised to learn they were sisters, as there was obvious chemistry between them. Without giving anything away, the final scene with the 10-year old just staring at her father was an excellent example of her acting ability just in her constant eye contact.

This morning, I listened to the commentary track. Not surprisingly, the director gets quite philosphical at times, as the film tells his own story. As noted above, he lost a brother as a child, and trying to recover from the loss of a child is one of the subplots of this movie. Clearly this is a very personal work from Jim Sheridan.

I didn't find the character of Mateo as a distraction, as I felt that it added to the story. The Halloween scene was particularly touching.

This film is definitely worth consideration, even if it's not the latest blockbuster.

Steve K.
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