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Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Boom! (1968)

Boom! (1968)

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Released 1-Nov-2007

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Drama Main Menu Audio & Animation
Theatrical Trailer-Boom!
Rating Rated M
Year Of Production 1968
Running Time 108:05
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 1,2,3,4,5,6 Directed By Joseph Losey
Studio
Distributor

Ovation
Starring Elizabeth Taylor
Richard Burton
Noel Coward
Joanna Shimkus
Michael Dunn
Romolo Valli
Fernando Piazza
Veronica Wells
Howard Taylor
Case Amaray-Transparent
RPI $14.95 Music John Barry


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame Unknown English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 2.35:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles None Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

     I remember seeing Boom! on late night television many years ago and, like many other people, I also recall being slightly perplexed by it. I thought revisiting the film on DVD might bring a whole new appreciation and understanding. But my principal reason for reviewing Boom! is my admiration of films by the late Joseph Losey. In my opinion, Losey is one of the most under appreciated directors of our time. His films are beautifully crafted, intelligent and courageous, but they rarely connected with mainstream audiences.

     Boom! is certainly one of Losey's more complex and difficult films in terms of both production and content. The screenplay was written by Tennessee Williams, based on his cryptic 1963 play The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore. The play failed on Broadway, but hopes were high for cinema success with "Hollywood royalty" playing the lead roles.

     In 1968 Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton were still riding the rocky heights of popularity. Despite their well publicised problems with alcohol abuse, they both commanded and received enormous salaries for any film project that came their way. With a multi-million dollar budget (much it on salaries) Universal Studios hoped the caustic nature of Williams' screenplay would give audiences the fire and brimstone they loved and expected from the couple. However, despite all this, Boom! failed dismally at the box office. The targeted mainstream audiences were justifiably baffled by the metaphorical rants in Williams' story. The film was also savaged by the majority of film critics for very similar reasons.

     But Boom! is not at all a bad film; on the contrary, there are a lot of positives in this production. The stunning Italian locations are perfectly captured and framed in Douglas Slocombe's cinematography. A fine example of this is the dinner scene with Elizabeth Taylor and Noel Coward. The timing and framing of the sunset is absolute perfection, creating the most sublime scene in the film. Richard Macdonald's audacious production design is also a cornerstone of the film and combined they make Boom! worth seeing for these factors alone.

     Flora 'Sissy' Goforth (Elizabeth Taylor) is an obscenely wealthy middle aged woman who is in the final stages of a terminal illness. She has out-lived six husbands, but now her time is rapidly approaching. Her constant pain is one of the likely factors for her demanding and nasty disposition. Flora is living her final days in the isolation of her private island villa. She and her verbally abused servants are the only inhabitants on the island, a requirement which is strictly enforced.

     Flora is dictating her memoirs to her personal assistant, Miss Black (Joanna Shimkus), when an uninvited visitor arrives on the island. A poet by the name of Chris Flanders (Richard Burton) has intentionally washed up on the beach and makes his way up to the villa. He is immediately set upon by the vicious guard dogs controlled by their angry dwarf master, Rudi (Michael Dunn). After being saved by Miss Black, Chris is invited inside and made to feel comfortable. He informs Blackie that he has come with the intention of spiritually freeing Flora in her time of need. Naturally though, he is greeted with nothing but suspicion and petulance by Flora.

     Flora invites her close friend, The Witch of Capri (Noel Coward), to a private dinner. He informs her that Chris Flanders is also known as Angelo De Morte (Angel of Death). He is notorious for arriving at the homes of wealthy women who are very close to death. He then fleeces them of their valuables. The possibility of her immanent death is unacceptable to Flora. With her memoirs still unfinished, she decides to take on this angel of death in a verbal cat and mouse battle of wills.

     It is interesting that Boom! seems to fare much better retrospectively, with many critics giving the film considerably more credence these days. Legendary indie filmmaker John Waters has declared Boom! a camp classic and is one of his favourite films of all time. Waters has even paid homage to Boom! in a few of his own productions. Come to think of it, a John Waters remake would be intriguing and very, very apt.

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Transfer Quality

Video

     Boom! is presented in the correct aspect ratio of 2.35:1, and is 16x9 enhanced. This preserves the beautiful cinemascope ratio, which is highly commendable.

     The transfer displays some softness but in general terms the image looks fine. Blacks were clean and shadow detail was quite good.

     Although there were no significant problems with colour, I was hoping for a little more vibrancy. The stunning ocean locations and sunset scene in particular appeared slightly flat. Having said that, Boom! is highly unlikely to get a restoration in the foreseeable future.

     There was an insignificant compression artefact evident at 7:43 and some minor telecine wobble at 88:15, otherwise film-to-video artefacts were not problematic. Reel change markings were noticeable at approximate 20 minute intervals; these were also unobtrusive. Film artefacts were minimal.

     Unfortunately, there are no subtitles available on this DVD.

     This is a DVD 9, dual layer disc. The layer change was easily noticed at 65:15.

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     There is only one audio track on this DVD, English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) which is surround encoded.

     There were no problems with the dialogue quality. Elizabeth Taylor's ranting came through loud and clear. I noticed a couple of minor lapses with audio sync, but these were ADR issues and not related to the transfer.

     The original music used in Boom! was written by the prolific film composer, John Barry. Music in general is used very sparingly in the film, but Barry's music contributes nicely to the eclectic nature of the narrative.

     Although there was no direct separation, the surround channels were active with ocean sounds, music and even dialogue. I didn't detect much activity from the subwoofer - there wasn't a real requirement for its use in any case.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

    

Menu

    The main menu is animated, 16x9 enhanced and features ocean sounds.

Theatrical Trailer    

   Boom! (2:14)

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    At the time of writing this review, I could not find a Region 1 release of Boom!. There is however a Region 2 edition available which appears to be the same as this local release.

Summary

     While Boom! has never really appealed to a wide audience, there is still much to like about the film. I believe one of the best ways to enjoy Boom! is to just let Williams' dialogue wash over you as you bask in the spectacular scenery.

     The transfer is reasonably good. The film is also presented in the correct aspect ratio; a welcome bonus.

     Sadly, the only extra is the theatrical trailer.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Steve Crawford (Tip toe through my bio)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Review Equipment
DVDPanasonic DMP-BD35 Blu Ray Player, using HDMI output
DisplayHitachi 106cm Plasma Display 42PD5000MA (1024x1024). Calibrated with THX Optimizer. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080i.
Audio DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with THX Optimizer.
AmplificationPanasonic SA-HE70 80W Dolby Digital and DTS
SpeakersFronts: Jensen SPX7 Rears: Jensen SPX4 Centre: Jensen SPX13 Subwoofer: Jensen SPX17

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