![Jagged Edge [Blu-ray]](http://cdn.hometheaterforum.com/0/03/50x50px-ZC-03bab77c_B004LVRQ42-51BEF9tjLkL.jpg)
JAGGED EDGE
Studio: lmage Entertainment (Film originally released by Columbia Pictures)
Year: 1985
Length: 1 hr 48 mins
Genre: Murder Mystery Thriller/Courtroom Drama
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
BD Resolution: 1080p
BD Video Codec: AVC (@ an average 20 mbps)
Color/B&W: Color
Audio:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (oscillates between 2.2 and 3.6 mbps )
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Film Rating: R (Nudity, Sexual Situations, Violence, Robert Loggia’s Foul Mouth)
Release Date: May 17, 2011
Starring: Glenn Close, Jeff Bridges, Peter Coyote and Robert Loggia
Written by: Joe Eszterhas
Directed by: Richard Marquand
Film Rating: 2 ½/5
Jagged Edge is not a movie that holds up under repeated viewing, or even a single one if you’re paying close enough attention. This is a shame because there are so many good things about the movie to recommend it, from the solid acting all around to John Barry’s relatively quiet score to Richard Marquand’s properly restrained direction. It’s just that the script is so obvious both in the dialogue and the plotting that things become outright laughable at times.
The story itself is classic murder mystery material. Jeff Bridges plays Jack, a man whose rich wife has just been brutally murdered. Since he is the sole beneficiary of her money, the authorities suspect him of the crime. Glenn Close plays Teddy, a conflicted attorney with an ax to grind against the District Attorney, since she has an unhappy history from when she worked in his office. Naturally, Jack hires Teddy to defend him in court from the murder charge. As the story unfolds, Teddy finds herself both increasingly attracted to Jack, and increasingly suspicious that he may actually have killed his wife. That basic structure is fine, and could lead to a very interesting courtroom/murder mystery. And the performances here are very good, particularly Bridges, who walks a very fine line in terms of being potentially guilty or innocent, and Robert Loggia, who earned an Oscar nomination for his performance as Teddy’s foulmouthed private investigator. Unfortunately, the dialogue and the plot twists are so obvious that one almost expects Marty Feldman to emerge from the jury box at points to yell “On the nosey!” We are repeatedly asked to accept revelations and twists in court that fall apart when you think about them for five seconds. The prosecution produces a key witness against Jack, a woman who says his wife was going to leave him. Yet, nobody knows that Jack is holding an amorous letter to him from that woman! A crucial witness is discovered very late in the trial, who is then revealed to have been dismissed by the prosecution. But then the same prosecutor tries to cite her as the basis for his case! And you have the matter of the typed notes to Teddy from an anonymous person – which gets one of the most ridiculous conclusions I have ever seen in any film. The movie is desperately trying to be a sleek and sexy thriller – trying so hard that one wishes they had a script that could have made this possible.
Jagged Edge has previously been released on standard definition DVD in a bare bones edition in 2000. The new Blu-ray provides high definition picture and audio transfers, coupled with a high definition copy of the film’s trailer. Fans of Glenn Close, Jeff Bridges and Robert Loggia may wish to rent the disc to see their fine work.
VIDEO QUALITY 3 ½/5
Jagged Edge is presented in a 1080p AVC 1.85:1 transfer that mostly provides a solid image with a variety of flesh tones and deep black levels. A fair amount of grain is visible throughout the movie. But there is one moment that really jumps out as an anomaly here. In an early scene, Jack tells the newspaper department heads that he’s taking a leave of absence. At the end of the scene, as Jeff Bridges and Al Ruscio stay in the room for a final moment, the curtains are opened and we see the printing presses operating just outside the window. To close the scene, the two men move to stand in front of the window. Watching this shot, I realized that the printing press area had been added in post. As soon as the men move in front of the window, they practically jump off the screen, with white haloes surrounding their heads and hard edges surrounding their bodies. This is an issue with the source print, but the high definition transfer makes it blindingly obvious. And I have to admit, it catapulted me out of the movie for a moment, almost as firmly as the script issues did in the other scenes. I should note that I am watching the film on a 40” Sony XBR2 HDTV. If anyone is watching the film on a larger monitor and is having issues, please post them on this thread.
AUDIO QUALITY 3 ½/5
Jagged Edge is presented in an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix in English, which effectively and clearly conveys the dialogue and John Barry’s score to the speakers. This is mostly a front-based mix, as one would expect, but there’s some atmospheric effects to go with the music in the surrounds.
SPECIAL FEATURES ½/5
The Blu-Ray presentation of Jagged Edge comes with but a single extra: the film’s theatrical trailer.
Trailer – (1:58, 1080p) The movie’s original trailer is presented here in high definition. If anything, it reinforces one major red herring in the movie’s script and, as is normal for trailers, plays some shots in a way that actually reverses their purpose in the actual film.
The film is subtitled in English and Spanish. A generous chapter menu is provided.
IN THE END...
Jagged Edge is a minor entry in the filmographies of Glenn Close and Jeff Bridges, due almost entirely to the weakness of its script. It earnestly wants to be a nail-biting thriller, but the seams really show and the movie isn’t as clever as it thinks it is by half. The acting is very good, however – and fans of the cast may want to rent this title just to see a good time capsule of what they were doing back in 1985.
Kevin Koster
May 24, 2011.
