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A fun little movie featuring an excellent performance from Perry.
So far, I´ve neglected the rest of the act. None is more compelling than Mary Steenburgen in a "When Harry Met Sally"-ish restaurant scene near the end of the film. Her therapist-turned-romantic partner for Hudson (Dr. Blaine, for the record) provides some of the best laugh lines-especially considering her signature scene was improvised. Pollack doesn´t do as much acting, bringing his "Kevin Pollack" character to the production. He eats, complains, makes a sardonic comment. Rinse. Repeat. But in a film where the lead isn´t over the top, he works nicely as a compliment to Perry.
Then there´s Collins as the love interest Sarah. A relative newcomer, at least compared to the rest of the cast, she successfully imbues the character with equal parts naivety and an off beat attitude, making it easy to see why Hudson falls for her. Even in the production´s most shocking scene (in a strip club), Sarah remains the most innocent person here. With every curse word or expletive which comes out of her mouth, Collins is able to endear Sarah to us even more. I can´t put my finger on exactly why it works that way; it just does.
VIDEO:
The 1.781:1 anamorphic transfer looks rather good, without a hint of the normal issues associated with lower budget productions. Blacks are deep while every other color is well rendered. Outdoor scenes are never given an ethereal quality, rather they look quite natural. Indoor shots aren´t over lit and appear natural. One minor quibble: late in the film, a thin strip appears at the very top of the screen. It seems to bring the elements underneath it into clearer focus than the rest of the picture. This strip isn´t terribly noticeable and disappears shortly after it comes onto the screen.
AUDIO:
The 5.1 and 2.0 (English, of course) tracks are interchangeable, to be honest. Both do the best they can in creating a depth in the sound field-despite this being a subdued romance. However, the 2.0 is a bit less dynamic than the 5.1. No discernable problems are present while the soundtrack elements come across clearly.
EXTRAS:
The jewel in the crown, figuratively speaking, is the commentary with Harris Goldberg. He rarely stops speaking for the entire 93 minute running time, imparting stories from the set (Steenburgen insisted she do her sex scene topless), directing (he continually asked Perry to ratchet down the comedy) and realism (people on set wanted to cover up running mascara when Sarah cries; he fought to keep it). Goldberg is an engaging speaker, though the inclusion of anyone else involved with the production would have been a welcome diversion.
A twenty minute featurette comes up next featuring sound bites from the entire cast. Most of the information we learn in the commentary is repeated here. Lastly is a series of trailers (all of which play at the beginning of the disc also). They are: "The Air I Breathe," "The Color of Freedom," "The Strange Case of Dr. Jeyll and Mr. Hyde" and "Che."
PARTING THOUGHTS:
"Numb" is a fun little movie featuring an excellent performance from Perry and solid supporting turns by everyone around him. Equal parts humorous, romantic and even a bit sad, it proves the leading man is more than the role we all know him for.
Then there´s Collins as the love interest Sarah. A relative newcomer, at least compared to the rest of the cast, she successfully imbues the character with equal parts naivety and an off beat attitude, making it easy to see why Hudson falls for her. Even in the production´s most shocking scene (in a strip club), Sarah remains the most innocent person here. With every curse word or expletive which comes out of her mouth, Collins is able to endear Sarah to us even more. I can´t put my finger on exactly why it works that way; it just does.
VIDEO:
The 1.781:1 anamorphic transfer looks rather good, without a hint of the normal issues associated with lower budget productions. Blacks are deep while every other color is well rendered. Outdoor scenes are never given an ethereal quality, rather they look quite natural. Indoor shots aren´t over lit and appear natural. One minor quibble: late in the film, a thin strip appears at the very top of the screen. It seems to bring the elements underneath it into clearer focus than the rest of the picture. This strip isn´t terribly noticeable and disappears shortly after it comes onto the screen.
AUDIO:
The 5.1 and 2.0 (English, of course) tracks are interchangeable, to be honest. Both do the best they can in creating a depth in the sound field-despite this being a subdued romance. However, the 2.0 is a bit less dynamic than the 5.1. No discernable problems are present while the soundtrack elements come across clearly.
EXTRAS:
The jewel in the crown, figuratively speaking, is the commentary with Harris Goldberg. He rarely stops speaking for the entire 93 minute running time, imparting stories from the set (Steenburgen insisted she do her sex scene topless), directing (he continually asked Perry to ratchet down the comedy) and realism (people on set wanted to cover up running mascara when Sarah cries; he fought to keep it). Goldberg is an engaging speaker, though the inclusion of anyone else involved with the production would have been a welcome diversion.
A twenty minute featurette comes up next featuring sound bites from the entire cast. Most of the information we learn in the commentary is repeated here. Lastly is a series of trailers (all of which play at the beginning of the disc also). They are: "The Air I Breathe," "The Color of Freedom," "The Strange Case of Dr. Jeyll and Mr. Hyde" and "Che."
PARTING THOUGHTS:
"Numb" is a fun little movie featuring an excellent performance from Perry and solid supporting turns by everyone around him. Equal parts humorous, romantic and even a bit sad, it proves the leading man is more than the role we all know him for.
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[release]23781[/release]