Suzanne Stone Maretto (Nicole Kidman) would kill to become a nationally recognized TV personality. Literally. Inspired by real-life events, To Die For, Gus Van Sant's bullseye satire of the media circus that surrounds so many criminal trials, features Nicole Kidman in one of her best performances as well as fine efforts from a supporting cast that includes Joaquin Phoenix, Matt Dillon, and Casey Affleck. Image Entertainment has licensed the title from Sony with a Blu-Ray that looks good but whose sound does not represent the best that they can do, nor have they treated the film to any special features.
TO DIE FOR (1995)
Studio: Columbia Pictures (distributed by Image Entertainment)
Year: 1995
Rated: R
Length: 106 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p
Languages: English PCM 2.0 Stereo
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
MSRP: $17.97
Film Release Date: September 29, 1995
Disc Release Date: November 8, 2011
Review Date: November 9, 2011
“You're not anybody in America unless you're on TV. On TV is where we learn about who we really are. Because what's the point of doing anything worthwhile if nobody's watching? And if people are watching, it makes you a better person.”
The Movie:
4/5
Back in 1995, the entry barrier for TV was a lot higher; there was very little “reality TV” and no YouTube, and while cable TV and the Fox network had already damaged the dominance of the Big Three triopoly—ABC, CBS, and NBC—they still held considerable sway over the public. CNN had established itself as a news leader by the time of the Gulf War, and its competitors, Fox News and MSNBC, were yet to come into existence. This was the atmosphere in which acclaimed indie director Gus Van Sant made the jump into mainstream filmmaking after the success of Drugstore Cowboy and My Own Private Idaho and the failure of Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.
In the aptly name town of Little Hope, New Hampshire, Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) is an ambitious but seemingly flaky woman with big dreams of becoming a top network news anchor, so she meets, woos, and marries Larry Maretto (Matt Dillon), whose father (Dan Hedaya) owns a prosperous Italian restaurant. After she persuades Ed Grant (Wayne Knight), the manager of the town’s low-rent cable TV station, WWEN, to hire her in an entry-level position, she continues to push for something that will get her on the air and into the public’s eyes like she has always wanted. Eventually, Mr. Grant relents and lets her take over the weather report. As she begins what she thinks will be her rise to stardom, her marriage becomes less and less satisfying as she resists Larry’s requests to give work a break and start a family. Seeing this as an obstacle to her career, she decides she wants to get rid of Larry for good…literally. To get this done, she starts a video project at the local high school called “Teens Speak Out.” There, she meets Jimmy Emmett (Joaquin Phoenix), a disturbed teenager; eventually she seduces him and persuades him and his friends Russell Heines (Casey Affleck) and Lydia Mertz (Alison Folland) to do something about Larry. The series of events that follow get Suzanne her wish; she does become a media superstar, but not for the reasons she wanted.
Based on a novel by Joyce Maynard—which, in turn, was based on the real-life case of Pamela Smart—and cleverly structured as a series of TV-style interviews yet done with a great deal of cinematic flair, with To Die For Gus Van Sant and his screenwriter, Buck Henry, whose curriculum vitae has no shortage of classic comedies on it, have cast a sardonic, astute, and witty eye on the media circuses that make celebrities out of criminals. Van Sant stylishly mixes the “real-life” dramatic scenes, interviews, and TV talk shows; a lesser director could have turned the film into a lumpy farrago of disparate styles with such an approach, but in this film it comes together without coming off too showy. He also manages to get exactly what he needs out of his cast; with a seemingly effortless mix of calculated ruthlessness, stunning beauty, and a complete lack of self-awareness, Nicole Kidman is magnificent as Suzanne, while Joaquim Phoenix has the feeling of Jimmy’s ah-who-cares sleaziness down pat. The WASPish Matt Dillon is not totally believable as an Italian-American, but he handles his part well enough. In her debut role, Alison Folland is especially effective as Lydia, the lone female of the trio Suzanne has assembled to kill her husband. Ms. Folland’s lack of experience belies her ability to convey Lydia’s awkwardness, shyness, and lack of self-esteem.
Unlike such classic satires as Elia Kazan’s A Face in the Crowd and Sidney Lumet’s Network, which were more prophetic than timely in their views of media demagoguery gone haywire, the film’s release could not have been timelier; it premiered a mere four days before O.J. Simpson was declared not guilty of the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. Yet despite the mostly enthusiastic reviews it was not a big hit; this satire didn’t exactly close on Saturday night, but it barely made back its $20,000,000 budget and was shut out completely at Oscar time. Kidman would have to wait for seven years before The Hours earned her a statue.
The Video:
4/5
The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in a fine AVC-encoded transfer. The film’s cool, subdued color palette, appropriate to a chilly New England town, is preserved here, as is the film’s light grain structure that is slightly grainier in the interview sequences. The contrast is decent, and fine details in clothes, fabric, and skin are easy to discern.
The Audio:
3/5
Here is where Image and Sony have dropped the ball. The film was released in the then-new Sony SDDS multi-channel sound format, and its 1998 DVD was in 5.1 Dolby Digital. For reasons beyond my comprehension, this Blu-ray presents a PCM 2.0 surround track that the box inaccurately lists as DTS-HD MA. There is nothing technically wrong with the track, as it presents Danny Elfman’s score, the dialogue, and the subtle sound effects environment very decently with strong stereo separation and above average fidelity.
The Extras:
0.5/5
The film never received a feature-laden special edition, so there are few extras to lose. This disc features nothing more than the film’s theatrical trailer in 1080p.
Final Score:
3.5/5
Despite the sound issues and the lack of features, To Die For is an on-target media satire buoyed by Nicole Kidman’s brilliant lead performance and Gus Van Sant’s effortless blend of comedy and mockumentary styles. This Blu-Ray is a good representation of the film that could have been a great one had it retained the 5.1 surround sound mix, and it certainly could have used some extras as well. Recommended with a minor reservation.
Studio: Columbia Pictures (distributed by Image Entertainment)
Year: 1995
Rated: R
Length: 106 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p
Languages: English PCM 2.0 Stereo
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
MSRP: $17.97
Film Release Date: September 29, 1995
Disc Release Date: November 8, 2011
Review Date: November 9, 2011
“You're not anybody in America unless you're on TV. On TV is where we learn about who we really are. Because what's the point of doing anything worthwhile if nobody's watching? And if people are watching, it makes you a better person.”
The Movie:
4/5
Back in 1995, the entry barrier for TV was a lot higher; there was very little “reality TV” and no YouTube, and while cable TV and the Fox network had already damaged the dominance of the Big Three triopoly—ABC, CBS, and NBC—they still held considerable sway over the public. CNN had established itself as a news leader by the time of the Gulf War, and its competitors, Fox News and MSNBC, were yet to come into existence. This was the atmosphere in which acclaimed indie director Gus Van Sant made the jump into mainstream filmmaking after the success of Drugstore Cowboy and My Own Private Idaho and the failure of Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.
In the aptly name town of Little Hope, New Hampshire, Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) is an ambitious but seemingly flaky woman with big dreams of becoming a top network news anchor, so she meets, woos, and marries Larry Maretto (Matt Dillon), whose father (Dan Hedaya) owns a prosperous Italian restaurant. After she persuades Ed Grant (Wayne Knight), the manager of the town’s low-rent cable TV station, WWEN, to hire her in an entry-level position, she continues to push for something that will get her on the air and into the public’s eyes like she has always wanted. Eventually, Mr. Grant relents and lets her take over the weather report. As she begins what she thinks will be her rise to stardom, her marriage becomes less and less satisfying as she resists Larry’s requests to give work a break and start a family. Seeing this as an obstacle to her career, she decides she wants to get rid of Larry for good…literally. To get this done, she starts a video project at the local high school called “Teens Speak Out.” There, she meets Jimmy Emmett (Joaquin Phoenix), a disturbed teenager; eventually she seduces him and persuades him and his friends Russell Heines (Casey Affleck) and Lydia Mertz (Alison Folland) to do something about Larry. The series of events that follow get Suzanne her wish; she does become a media superstar, but not for the reasons she wanted.
Based on a novel by Joyce Maynard—which, in turn, was based on the real-life case of Pamela Smart—and cleverly structured as a series of TV-style interviews yet done with a great deal of cinematic flair, with To Die For Gus Van Sant and his screenwriter, Buck Henry, whose curriculum vitae has no shortage of classic comedies on it, have cast a sardonic, astute, and witty eye on the media circuses that make celebrities out of criminals. Van Sant stylishly mixes the “real-life” dramatic scenes, interviews, and TV talk shows; a lesser director could have turned the film into a lumpy farrago of disparate styles with such an approach, but in this film it comes together without coming off too showy. He also manages to get exactly what he needs out of his cast; with a seemingly effortless mix of calculated ruthlessness, stunning beauty, and a complete lack of self-awareness, Nicole Kidman is magnificent as Suzanne, while Joaquim Phoenix has the feeling of Jimmy’s ah-who-cares sleaziness down pat. The WASPish Matt Dillon is not totally believable as an Italian-American, but he handles his part well enough. In her debut role, Alison Folland is especially effective as Lydia, the lone female of the trio Suzanne has assembled to kill her husband. Ms. Folland’s lack of experience belies her ability to convey Lydia’s awkwardness, shyness, and lack of self-esteem.
Unlike such classic satires as Elia Kazan’s A Face in the Crowd and Sidney Lumet’s Network, which were more prophetic than timely in their views of media demagoguery gone haywire, the film’s release could not have been timelier; it premiered a mere four days before O.J. Simpson was declared not guilty of the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. Yet despite the mostly enthusiastic reviews it was not a big hit; this satire didn’t exactly close on Saturday night, but it barely made back its $20,000,000 budget and was shut out completely at Oscar time. Kidman would have to wait for seven years before The Hours earned her a statue.
The Video:
4/5
The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in a fine AVC-encoded transfer. The film’s cool, subdued color palette, appropriate to a chilly New England town, is preserved here, as is the film’s light grain structure that is slightly grainier in the interview sequences. The contrast is decent, and fine details in clothes, fabric, and skin are easy to discern.
The Audio:
3/5
Here is where Image and Sony have dropped the ball. The film was released in the then-new Sony SDDS multi-channel sound format, and its 1998 DVD was in 5.1 Dolby Digital. For reasons beyond my comprehension, this Blu-ray presents a PCM 2.0 surround track that the box inaccurately lists as DTS-HD MA. There is nothing technically wrong with the track, as it presents Danny Elfman’s score, the dialogue, and the subtle sound effects environment very decently with strong stereo separation and above average fidelity.
The Extras:
0.5/5
The film never received a feature-laden special edition, so there are few extras to lose. This disc features nothing more than the film’s theatrical trailer in 1080p.
Final Score:
3.5/5
Despite the sound issues and the lack of features, To Die For is an on-target media satire buoyed by Nicole Kidman’s brilliant lead performance and Gus Van Sant’s effortless blend of comedy and mockumentary styles. This Blu-Ray is a good representation of the film that could have been a great one had it retained the 5.1 surround sound mix, and it certainly could have used some extras as well. Recommended with a minor reservation.
