Scott Kimball
Screenwriter
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Paper Moon
Studio: Paramount
Year: 1973
Rated: PG
Length: 102 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audio: DD Mono
Subtitles: English
Release Date: August 12, 2003
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich, Paper Moon is the charming story of a depression era grifter named Moses Pray (Ryan O’Neal) with a heart of gold - not so much when it concerns the widows he cons, as when it concerns a little orphan named Addie (Tatum O’Neal). Moses, who poses as a bible salesman, targeting widows in an ongoing scam, comes across Addie when he attends the funeral of a lady friend in Kansas. He is called upon to take young Addie to her aunt’s house in Missouri.
Moses intends to send Addie on her way on a train, but discovers that the young girl has a gift for the con games that may even surpass his own. The two mistrust each other at first, but find that, working together, they can work the cons to better reward than either could do alone.
Along the way, the pair meet Trixie Delight (Madeline Kahn), a Carney dancer who Addie, of course, despises - Moses pays far too much attention to Trixie. Addie works a con of her own to try and break the two up.
Further misadventures include involvement with bootleggers, crooked cops, and a family of hillbillies, as the duo make their way across the midwest, growing closer as they go.
Tatum O’Neal’s performance won her an Oscar, making her the youngest recipient of the award to date. Ryan O’Neal’s performance is also impressive, and the antics of Madeline Kahn as Trixie Delight are, well, a delight.
The direction is sure-footed, giving a real feel for the era. The stark, deep-focus, black and white photography by the great Laszlo Kovacs makes us a part of the action. Many scenes are done in long takes, with as few cuts as possible, adding to the “you are there” feeling.
The Video
This is an excellent transfer of a pristine black and white print. For a 30 year old film, the elements used for the transfer have held up extraordinarily well. Dust and scratches are virtually nonexistent. Some grain from the original photographic process is evident. There are no noticeable compression artifacts. The presentation is widescreen and enhanced for widescreen televisions.
The Audio
This is a Dolby Digital mono soundtrack. Both English and French tracks are available. There is no score in the film. Dialog is consistently clear.
The Extras
The disc includes a commentary by director Peter Bogdanovich, who provides many anecdotes of events surrounding the shooting process. He does get a bit into mechanics, talking about the choice of black and white, the use of deep-focus photography, etc., but that isn’t his focus.
There are three documentaries on the disc, totaling over 30 minutes. Covering everything from adaptation, casting and shooting - right through to reviews and awards - these documentaries include insights from director Peter Bogdanovich, producer Frank Marshall, director of photography Laszlo Kovacs and production designer Polly Platt.
Final Thoughts
Paper Moon is a gem of a film and it gets appropriate treatment on this DVD. It’s nice to see a commentary and documentaries on a Paramount catalog title.
Highly recommended!
