Cool & Crazy
Picture: C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C- Film: C+
If ever a documentary
lived that was utterly unique, strange, bizarre, and above all else, effective
it would be Cool & Crazy.
From director Knut Erik Jensen comes this musical documentary that
places a men’s tenor group against the backdrops of the frigid Norwegian
landscape, which is also their homeland.
The average age of these men is probably in the 80’s or higher, but
despite their age they press on with their bellowing no matter what the
climate.
The choir presses on with
their music, while the scenery changes and at times we are invited to explore
some of the background of certain individuals.
It seems like this idea started out as a documentary on the group, which
then ended up being a musical mixed together.
Perhaps they had no other music to put the documentary to, so they just
decided to use their own. Whatever the
case, this makes for an interested, even entertaining watch, but only for those
with the patience to sit through what seems, at times, like eternity waiting
for the choir to finish their musings.
Just as odd as the film
itself, was the choice to shoot the film in scope, which the DVD from First Run
Features recreates in a 2.35 X 1 transfer.
The footage looks quite good though.
Apparently there has been some slight confusion about the appropriate
aspect ratio for this film, but make no mistake this is a scope presentation,
which has been anamorphically enhanced.
There is a definite amount of softness to the picture, but nothing
overly bad. Most of the footage has
large amounts of white (snow for example), which never allow the film to get
dark enough to truly test the blacks.
Whites look okay, even if detail is particularly a problem from time to
time. It looks to have originated on
video, oddly.
The only soundtrack/audio
option for this piece is a Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix, which decodes for Pro
Logic playback and sounds okay for a musical experience. At least the sound never seems compressed,
which can be a typical problem, but given that this DVD contains hardly any
supplements, space was not an issue on this disc.
Extras, as mentioned, are
somewhat few. There is a biography on
the director, which is more like a one page summary. There is a brief photo gallery, which lasts about as long as the
career of Chris O’ Donnell. A few
trailers round off the supplements section making this a rather below par
release.
This films success came as
a surprise to many, which was later, followed by Cool & Crazy on the
Road, which has been reviewed on this site. Fans of ‘movies that deal with old people in confusion ways’ like
the Tom Selleck film Folks, may enjoy this adventure, while others might
find it bewildering, boring, and banal.
- Nate Goss
