Ramona and Beezus (2010/Fox Blu-ray w/DVD)
Picture: B-/C+
Sound: B-/C+ Extras: C Feature: C
Fox continues to produce their own live action
children’s/family fare and in order to appeal to young ladies the way they did
young men with Diary Of A Wimpy Kid,
they have optioned books by Beverly Cleary about two sisters named Ramona and Beezus. The 2010 releases is at least charming and
child-friendly if predictable, but Joey King and Selena Gomez in the respective
title roles have chemistry and this is more entertaining that expected.
Ramona is the younger of the two, always having good ideas
and a big imagination, which she tries to bring alive more often than she
probably should, but decides to try out everything she can think of and even
applies these big ideas to serious situations.
This makes you want to root for her and Miss King is a very talented
young actress the camera loves, can act and truly has a gift for humor that
stands out from so many precocious child actors and their performances
(especially since the 1980s) that makes her perfect casting for the role.
Supporting them are John Corbett, Bridget Moynahan, Josh
Duhamel, Ginnifer Goodwyn and newcomer Hutch Dano, making for a convincing
cast. I think this will be the bigger
hit on Blu-ray and DVD it deserves to be because the potential audience for
this was not found, but I would further suggest to Fox, the writers, producers
and Director Elizabeth Allen that they have a gem of a franchise here and if
they pushed forward in a newer, more exciting direction, this could be Shirley
Temple huge. I hope they do a sequel
because the talent and material is there to make a better film. Let’s see how this one picks up.
The 1080p 2.35 x 1 AVC @ 21 MBPS digital High Definition
image looks to be shot in HD and has its share of motion blur and other flaws,
though color is not as bad as expected.
The anamorphically enhanced DVD is even more on the soft side throughout
with some flaws not being as obvious. Director
of Photography John Bailey (As Good As
It Gets) tries to make this look good, but is barely able to make it look
better than a sitcom despite his many talents.
The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) lossless 5.1 mix is on the quiet side and
dialogue-based, while the Dolby Digital 5.1 on the DVD is weaker, but it is
just well recorded enough to hear and the DTS has at least some warmth to it. Mark Mothersbaugh (DEVO) created the music
score, which figures prominently in the mix.
Extras include a Digital Copy DVD-ROM for PC and PC
portable devices, the DVD version and the Blu-ray has a Gag Reel, Deleted
Scenes, a few featurettes, trailers, audition footage and Life After Film School show from the Fox Movie Channel on this
release with Director Allen.
- Nicholas Sheffo
