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Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Easy A (Blu-ray) (2010)

Easy A (Blu-ray) (2010)

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Released 27-Jan-2011

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Comedy Audio Commentary-Direstor Will Gluck and Emma Stone
Featurette-Making Of
Featurette-Making Of-Vocabulary of Hilarity
Featurette-The School of Pop Culture
Featurette-Gag Reel
Additional Footage-Audition Footage
Custom Play-Movie IQ
Rating Rated M
Year Of Production 2010
Running Time 92:24
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By Will Gluck
Studio
Distributor

Sony Pictures Home Entertain
Starring Emma Stone
Penn Badgley
Amanda Bynes
Dan Byrd
Thomas Haden Church
Patricia Clarkson
Case Standard Blu-ray
RPI $44.95 Music Brad Segal


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English DTS HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish DTS HD Master Audio 5.1
Catalan Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Kb/s)
English Descriptive Audio Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Kb/s)
English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 1080p
Original Aspect Ratio 1.85:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles English
English for the Hearing Impaired
Spanish
Hindi
English Audio Commentary
Spanish Audio Commentary
Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

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

Plot Synopsis

     Updating a classic piece of literature through the pop-culture filter can often result in a piece of work that catches the timeless spirit of the original whilst attracting a new generation of fans who just might take the time to go back to the original work. Witness 10 Things I Hate About You (Taming of the Shrew), She's The Man (Twelfth Night) and , of course, the monster hit Clueless (Emma). Whether Easy A will get legions of teens reading The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is another matter but it is a fresh, funny and well acted meta-take on the classic story.

     For those not up on their early American literature The Scarlet Letter is the story of Hester Prynne, a woman living in early Boston who is shunned and persecuted when she has a child to an unknown man after her husband is presumed lost at sea. It also happens to be the book that community college student Olive Prenderghast (Emma Stone) is reading in English class, taught by her favourite teacher the funny and earnest Mr Griffith (Thomas Haden Church). Olive's bestie Rhiannon (Hellcats' Alyson Michalka) invites her away on a weekend camping trip and Olive tells a little white lie - she says that she has a date that weekend with a mystery boy. On Monday Olive is forced to improvise and creates a romantic weekend with the boy and Rhiannon jumps to the massive conclusion that Olive and the boy DID IT! This massive revelation is overheard by the president of the school Jesus club (Amanda Bynes) who determines to destroy Olive’s reputation by exposing her as a hussy. It seems like all bad news for Olive but the truth is stranger than fiction. Olive begins a path of damaging her reputation whilst enhancing others. She begins by helping a bullied gay friend to pretend that they had "done it", the film's funniest scene, and quickly becomes to go-to girl for fake sexual encounters. This is not new to Olive. As a young girl she allowed a young boy to pretend he had kissed her. That boy has grown up into the all-round good guy and school basketball team mascot "Woodchuck" Todd (Gossip Girls' Penn Badgely).

     As Olive’s reputation grows she embraces the outcast figure, dressing provocatively and wearing a prominent "A" on her breast. This is only a mild concern to her parents - the unbelievably cool Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson - but her perceived changed ways see her going on a trip to see the Headmaster (Malcolm McDowell) and counsellor and wife of Mr Griffiths (Lisa Kudrow). The plan comes unstuck - they always do- and Olive finds herself in deeper trouble when Jesus club boy Micah (Cam Gigandet from Twilight) gets an STD and blames her. Outing the real culprit will result in huge damage so Olive takes the fall. Will she ever be able to resurrect her reputation, as well as her damaged friendship with Rhiannon, and still get her guy?

     Easy A was a surprise hit around the world, particularly in Australia, and earned back ten times its meagre budget. At the same time it cemented the growing reputation of Emma Stone, so brilliant in Superbad and Zombieland, as a bankable star. She is smart and funny and can dish out a wry line as well as take a pratfall. The movie is really held up by her although it certainly helps having an experienced supporting cast. The script is alternately funny and serious and provides just enough meat for it to be taken as a "serious" teen comedy.

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Transfer Quality

Video

     Easy A was filmed on high definition digital using the Panavision Genesis HD Camera. It was later printed on 35mm film for cinema showing. The original aspect ratio was 1.85:1. That aspect ratio has been preserved for this Blu-ray release.

     Easy A is a good example of a well shot, well transferred title. The colours are bright and stable. As it was shot on digital there is no grain and noise is non-existent. The blacks are suitably deep and the flesh tones are true - spot the fake tans! The level of detail is impressive and the sharpness pleasing. There are no technical defects with the image.

     There are subtitles in English, English for the Hearing Impaired, Spanish and Hindi. There are also English and Spanish subtitles for the Commentary Track.

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

Audio

     The sound for Easy A comes in a variety of flavours. English speakers will want to head straight for the 5.1 DTS HD-Master Audio track. There is also a Spanish language track with the same specifications. A Catalan 5.1 track running at 640Kb/s is included as is an English descriptive audio track running with the same specs.

     The dialogue can be heard clearly throughout. There are no technical defects with the track. The surrounds are active throughout though, it must be said, the real action is from the centre channels. The sub-woofer is engaged to help build the bass on the many musical tracks.

     The film is peppered with songs, including a pivotal Natasha Bedingfield number, Pocketful of Sunshine, and some upbeat numbers like Change of Seasons from Sweet Thing. For the older set and drawing parallels with the John Hughes comedies, the film includes some classic tunes including Don't You Forget About Me.The original score is by Brad Segal.

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

Extras

     The Blu-ray of Easy A contains a number of fun extras.

Audio Commentary director Will Gluck and star Emma Stone

     In the Making of featurette it is made blindingly clear that director and star had a wonderful, play-fighting relationship and this carried over into the commentary track. This one is more for the fans of the film and the stars as it is a little light on detail and more about the pair telling stories about the fun on set and generally joking around. An enjoyable listen.

Pop-Up Trivia Track

     You want trivia? You got it!

The Making of Easy A (14:35)

     Although this Making of contains a fair amount of back-slapping it is lengthy enough and contains enough on-set footage to make it a cut above an EPK. Everyone on the acting and technical side gets a word in and the tone is pretty light-hearted as befits the film.

Vocabulary of Hilarity (5:01)

     Scriptwriter Bert V. Royal describes how he invented words that had a sexual connotation but weren't real - like the "reverse cowbell" and the "lemon squeezer". It was probably essential to make the film family friendly and not a cuss-fest like Superbad.

The School of Pop Culture: Movies of the Eighties (5:08)

     There's a lot of John Hughes lovin' going on here. Only pity is that none of the master’s films are shown. Not really worth a lot.

Gag Reel (5:21)

     A standard package of line fluffs and the odd technical problem, including a dog crunching on a bone whilst Patricia Clarkson is trying to get out her lines.

Emma Stone Audition Footage (19:19)

     This is as long as it comes. Stone rehearses her video diary and a few key scenes with a producer off camera feeding her the lines. Stone came to set with all her lines memorized. She pretty much memorized these scenes. A pity that a lot of the lines here never made it into the film!

MovieIQ

     For those with an internet connection rigged to their Blu-ray player this feature allows you to access continual information about the film in the way of a small icon at the right top of the picture. Press it and a world of information is at your fingertips!

R4 vs R1

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

    This Blu-ray boasts the same specifications as the Region A release. Buy this Region.

Summary

     Easy A is the perfect film for a Friday night in with the family, providing the kids are teenagers who can cope with the whole "virginity" thing.

     The Blu-ray is a good looking and sounding affair. The extras are not overwhelming but still rate pretty highly. A recommended experience.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Trevor Darge (read my bio)
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Review Equipment
DVDCambridge 650BD (All Regions), using HDMI output
DisplaySony VPL-VW80 Projector on 110" Screen. Calibrated with Video Essentials. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p.
Audio DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum.
AmplificationPioneer SC-LX 81 7.1
SpeakersAaron ATS-5 7.1

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