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In Short: . The Movie: "Drugstore Cowboy" stars Matt Dillon as the leader of a group of small-time drug addicts in this 1989 film from director Gus Van Sant(Good Will Hunting). It's 1971 and Dillon along with another couple drifts from place to place and home to home looking for the next score of drugs, or looking for the next place where they can rob a pharmacy. It's one of those films where a group of small-time criminals becomes something of a family. Besides Dillon's character, there's his girlfriend(played by Kelly Lynch), another drifter(James Le Gros) and a teen girl(Heather Graham). Things generally get worse for the group before they get better, with Bob(Dillon) eventually ending up in a rehab program to kick his drug habit. The picture has a realistic feeling of this lifestyle with moments of energy, then some moments of dull, drab existence where they simply sit, pondering where to go next. Dillon has the most interesting character in Bob, whose superstitions sometimes get the best of him and whose rules of existence tend to overpower his life. The film feels the way this lifestyle is; sometimes exciting and sometimes slow. Even the slow parts are captured interestingly, with the film having a sort of daydream-like quality. It's still a very interesting picture in terms of dialogue and direction. It also contains some fine performances; Kelly Lynch and Matt Dillon are excellent as the two leads and James Le Gros and Heather Graham are fine as the two tag-alongs who follow along. It's a very strong film and finally, it gets the special edition treatment from Artisan. The DVD VIDEO: This is a generally good anamorphic transfer of "Drugstore Cowboy" in it's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Images are generally clear and for the most part, are adequately sharp. Some interior shots though, do look a little bit on the soft side. It's definitely not a colorful movie, and the image consistently captures the sort of washed-out look of the streets and the skies throughout the picture. Shots of the Northwest countryside later on in the film, with trees having various fall colors, look especially good. There are some flaws that are noticable; a bit of grain here and there, and the occasional mark or scratch on the print. There is also a slight instance of shimmering on occasion. All in all though, the film looks pleasingly clear throughout, and the majority of it is free of any such faults. Even if the image quality here is flawed on occasion, it is still very likely the best that this film has ever looked on home video. It definitely does justice to the cinematography of Robert Yeoman, who also went on to film Rushmore and another film about addiction,Permanent Midnight. SOUND: "Drugstore Cowboy" is a very basic film in terms of audio. It's all dialogue, with the score( the first score from Elliot Goldenthal, who went on to also become the composer for films like "Heat") being the only thing involved that has, although somewhat limited, presence. Dialogue is always clear and easily heard, but it sounds a little flat at times. MENUS:: Basic menu art taken from the film's cover art. Nothing animated or anything like that...or anything like Artisan's "Stargate" special edition, which also is released(and which I will also be reviewing) this week. EXTRAS:: . Commentary: This is a commentary from director Gus Van Sant and actor Matt Dillon. You may remember Van Sant's commentary from other discs like his remake of Psycho and the special edition of Good Will Hunting. It's been 10 years since the picture came out, so the two have a little bit of a hard time remembering exact details, such as which actor shot some footage early into the movie, but all in all, the two generally do a very nice job bringing forth quite a few tidbits about the movie. I would have liked for there to be less pauses, though. The two talk about what was done for pre-production, looking at the drugstore involved in the opening scene and talking to various drug users about what would be realistic for these people to use. Dillion also mentions the film's color structure, and Van Sant goes into more detail about how colors like green were a major focus in the film's concept. The commentary is mainly like this, with Van Sant leading the discussion, or expanding on what Dillon offers. They also mention what it was like to work with the actors; Dillon talks about the sort of "Honeymooners" relationship that he had with Kelly Lynch and Van Sant talks about how Heather Graham was chosen for the role, the first that she could choose on her own. In addition, a lot of what Van Sant talks about here is what it was like on "Drugstore Cowboy", which was his first big picture with a decent-sized crew, and how they were more creative on a day-to-day basis, making up shots, etc on set. Also interesting later on in the film is the discussion the two have about working with William S. Burroughs. it's an interesting commentary as the two talk about how they were able to create a movie that takes a realistic look at this lifestyle and how the film was produced. Recommended. The Making Of "Drugstore Cowboy":: A very basic-looking documentary about the making of the movie, "The Making Of Drugstore Cowboy" takes a look at some interviews from the cast of the picture and a few bits of footage of the cast filming scenes. Van Sant talks about the production and his views on the drug use of the picture. There's a lot of "behind-the-scenes" footage as a part of this documentary as well, which is quite interesting to watch. This is a very in-depth, informative and enjoyable feature of the DVD. The documentary runs about 25 minutes. Also:: A TV ad for the film and production notes/bios. Final Thoughts: Although it's not one of my favorites, "Drugstore Cowboy" is still a very good movie and I think this is the best presentation it's recieved on home video. The commentary is generally good; it has it's share of pauses, but still, it does offer a fine share of information about the production. .  The Film: 86/B = (430/500 possible points) Video 86/B = (344/400 possible points) Audio: 81/B = (324/400 possible points) Extras: 86/B = (258/300 possible points) Menus: 70/C = (140/200 possible points) Value: 87/B = (261/300 possible points) TOTAL POINTS:1757/2100 Average:84%/B |