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It’s kind
of funny how some of my favorite movies
tend to be those that have only been seen
by a handful of people. Fortunately DVD
has a way of bringing new audiences to films
that richly deserve them. One such favorite
of mine is finally getting the special edition
treatment this month from Fox Home Entertainment.
Generally I wait until later in the review
to tell you that you need to see certain
movies, but this time around I’m going
to tell you right up front. See this movie.
Buy the DVD. Oh yeah, I guess it might help
if I mentioned the name. Let’s hear
it for the best movie about ‘Dublin
Soul’ ever made, “The Commitments.”
Back in 1991, director Alan Parker created
one of the most soulful R&B bands ever
put together. Oddly enough, he did it for
a movie. He invested an incredible amount
of time into auditions and tryouts until
he had just the right blend of personalities
and talent to tell the story of the rise
and fall of an Irish band.
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The movie’s center is Jimmy Rabbitte (Robert
Arkins), an unemployed working class bloke who
wants to escape his humdrum life. With no promising
future in sight, he begins to focus on the dream
of creating a band. But not just any band. He
wants to create a band that will make the term
‘Dublin Soul’ a household name.
The problem is, no one believes he can do it.
His family all think he’s nuts, which is
odd considering his dad (Colm Meaney) idolizes
Elvis to an almost unhealthy degree. Through a
combination of nightmarish auditions and begging
his friends, Jimmy finally forms the band. He
then pushes them go from an unrehearsed mess to
a tight musical unit with the possibility of a
real future. Unfortunately egos begin to get in
the way and… well you just need to see the
movie.
“The Commitments” was one of those
films that I saw several times when it first came
out. Parker’s direction is pretty straight
forward, with no little tricks or formulas to
try and pull emotions from you. It’s a perfect
blend of drama and humor, and is quite accessible
despite some of the harsh language and the occasional
unintelligible Irish brogue. In fact, this is
probably the only detriment to the film. I never
had any problems understanding the dialogue, but
if you’re not used to the dialect, it can
take a little while to attune your ear to it (of
course that’s where subtitles can come in
handy).
I honestly doubt there is anyone out there who
could see the movie and not like it. Even if you
don’t get into the story, the music is some
of the best ever recorded for a film. As a matter
of fact, when you stop by the store to pick up
the DVD, go ahead and grab the soundtrack while
you’re at it. It’ll save you the trouble
of going back later to get it. The group of actors
and musicians Parker chose to portray The Commitments
had never played together before, much like their
movie counterparts, but to listen to them you
would think they had been together for years.
Their versions of the classic hits "I Never
Loved a Man (the Way that I Love You)", "Imelda",
“Try a Little Tenderness”, “The
Midnight Hour” and ‘Mustang Sally”
are amongst the best versions I have ever heard.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg, as every
song they perform is downright awesome. I bought
the CD the same day I saw the movie in the theatre
all those years ago.
After having seen the movie a few times back then,
I started looking into the making of info that
was available. I wish I could mention every member
of the band here, however that would take quite
a while, but one of the biggest surprises to me
was what I found out about the group’s main
lead singer. Andrew Strong played Deco Cuffe,
and he just blew me away. At times while watching
him, it seemed as if he was mimicking Joe Cocker,
yet somehow made the style his own. He belted
out songs with the power of someone who had been
singing for years. When I learned that Strong
was only 16 years old when the film was shot,
I simply couldn’t believe it. If you’re
at all as impressed with this guy as I was, be
on the lookout for some of his later CDs. They’re
all worth listing to.
Though the film seemed to have a limited audience
at the time of its release, the fans it did have
were quite vocal and loyal. Several members of
the ‘group’ toured as The Commitments
for years after the movie came out, successfully
selling out shows wherever they went. Sadly, they
spent most of the time in Europe and to the best
of my knowledge never made it down to my neck
of the woods. I guarantee I would have shelled
out the bucks to see these guys live, even if
it was only a few of the original members.
The long overdue Special Edition DVD of “The
Commitments” is a 2-disc set with a beautiful
widescreen transfer. And let me tell you, the
music has never sounded better. When we popped
it into the player, I turned it up as if it were
a big action flick with lots of explosions. My
house rocked like nobody’s business. Thank
God the neighbors are far away, we night have
had several complaints that night.
This DVD set offers no shortage of extra features
either. The first disc contains a commentary by
director Parker, which is probably my least favorite
of the extras. He has a lot of interesting things
to say, but as good of a director as he is he
is not much in the way of a talker. He is a bit
on the monotone side, which depleted some of my
enthusiasm for the information given.
Once you get to disc two however that all changes.
First up is a lengthy behind the scenes featurette
that was filmed back in 1991. It runs a little
over twenty minutes and is full of interviews
as well as a look at the production itself. As
good as this feature is, the follow-up is even
better. “The Commitments: Looking Back”
reunites much of the cast and crew and allows
them the opportunity to reminisce. Coming in at
about 47 minutes, this feature is both funny and
informative, not to mention it being great to
see some of the cast as they look today. There
is also another shorter ‘making of’
featurette which just seems to be a rehash of
the first, so I’m not sure why it was included.
For those interested in what life was like for
the working class in Dublin, there is another
featurette that gives a little insight into the
subject.
Generally I don’t get into music videos
when they’re included on DVD releases, but
for this movie I would have loved more. The one
on this disc for “Treat Her Right”
is an excellent video, and it is introduced by
Parker and Robert Arkins. I was also excited to
see that there were two new songs by cast members
Andrew Strong (“We May Be Down, But We’re
Not Out”) and Robert Arkins (“Taking
on the World”). My only disappointment came
when I found out they weren’t videos, but
the songs played over photos of the singers. Still,
the songs were great and I’ll have to track
down the CDs. Once you’ve checked out all
of these extras, you can also take a look at some
of the trailers, TV spots and the still gallery
if you are into that sort of thing.
Not to beat a dead horse, but again I can’t
recommend “The Commitments” enough.
Go now. Turn off your computer, jump in the car
and swing by your favorite DVD store and pick
up a copy of this movie (not forgetting to grab
the CD on your way to the cash register). This
particular disc easily slips onto my ‘must-have’
list for 2004, not so much for the extra features,
but simply for the movie itself.
Directed by: Alan Parker
Starring: Robert Arkins, Andrew Strong, Maria
Doyle, Angeline Ball, Imelda Quirke, Johnny Murphy,
Bronagh Gallagher, Dick Massey, Kenneth McCluskey,
Felim Gormley, Dave Finnegan, Colm Meaney
Extras: Commentary by Director Alan Parker, Theatrical
trailer(s), TV spot(s), "The Making of The
Commitments", "The Commitments: Looking
Back", "Dublin Soul": The Working
Class and Changing Face of Dublin, Making-of featurette,
"Treat Her Right" Music Video with Introduction
by Alan Parker and Robert Arkins, Original Songs
by Cast Members: "We May Be Down, But We’re
Not Out" by Andrew Strong and "Taking
On the World" by Robert Arkins, Still Gallery
Specifications: Widescreen (1.85:1), Dolby Digital
5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Fox Home Entertainment
Release Date: 3/16/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: R
Website
We'll give The Commitments: Special Edition
an A+.
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