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The Movie:
The Bill and Ted or Dumb and Dumber of their day, Cheech and Chong released several popular movies in the late 70's & early 80's before heading on their separate stoner ways - Chong, for example, can be seen on "That 70's Show". In "Nice Dreams", the two open up an ice cream business that's actually a front for selling their particular brand of weed.
Of course, the cops are after them, including Sarge, played by Stacey Keach, who can now been seen on "Titus". The majority of the movie revolves around the usual stoner humor, including a silly joke about the fact that the weed is so strong that it turns things into lizards, including a pigeon that's been sitting on Sarge's window. I suppose this is supposed to be funny and I guess that's stoner humor. To me, it seemed pretty random.
"Nice Dreams" is made up of a sloppy mess of R-rated jokes. Some of them work well and get a couple of laughs going, while others, like the one mentioned above, seemed flat. C & C play off each other well and they always will have. Certainly typecast (for the most part) after this series, they play these parts fine each time. "Nice Dreams" isn't their best work, but it's good for a couple laughs.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Nice Dreams" is presented both in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen edition and a full_frame edition. Both are accessible from the main menu. The 1.85:1 anamorphic widesreen edition looked quite good, except for a few minor flaws that popped up along the way. Sharpness and detail were generally very good - there were a couple of interior scenes that looked slightly on the soft side, but overall, I was suprised at how crisp most of the movie appeared.
Flaws came up in a few scenes, but didn't cause a great deal of concern, just a little bit of slight distraction. Grain appeared in some sequences, as did print flaws. Marks, slight scratches, speckles and other faults were occasionally visible. The movie didn't display major wear, but these problems were infrequently visible. I didn't notice anything in the way of pixelation or edge enhancement.
Colors seemed fine, but not terrific. Some scenes displayed slightly faded or bland looking colors, but the majority of the movie looked fairly good, but not great. Overall, this isn't a terrific presentation, but its passable for its age. English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and Thai subtitles are available.
SOUND: "Nice Dreams" is presented in mono and although not terrific, it certainly sounded better than I'd expect from a mono presentation. The music sounded clear and provided some light bass, but light richness, although certainly there wasn't much bass to any of it. Dialogue sounded fine as well, clear and never thin. Not a whole lot going on, but fine for the material.
MENUS:: Menus are non-animated, with very basic images serving as backgrounds.
EXTRAS: Talent files and trailers for "Homegrown" and "So I Married An Axe Murderer". I can understand the inclusion of the first one, the second one is a bit questionable. No trailer for "Nice Dreams".
Final Thoughts: "Nice Dreams" is an occasionally amusing comedy, but I think it's not everyone's brand of humor. Fans might want to take a look at the disc as a rental, or if you're a big fan of the movie, the disc is nicely priced at $19.99 or less.
Film Grade
The Film **
DVD Grades
Video 80/B- = (340/400 possible points)
Audio: 80/B- = (340/400 possible points)
Extras: 70/C- = (210/300 possible points)
Menus: 70/C- = (140/200 possible points)
Value: 81/B = (243/300 possible points)
TOTAL POINTS:1273/1600
DVD GRADE:C+/79%
FILM GRADE: **
DVD GRADE: C+
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