Angels Fall/Montana Sky (Nora Roberts Telefilms on DVD)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: D     Episodes: C+

 

 

Nora Roberts is a famous genre writer of melodramas for the modern woman, so it is no surprise that her name would land up on DVD product.  Angels Fall and Montana Sky (both 2006) offer able-bodied, independent women (Heather Locklear and Ashley Williams respectively) in tough positions doing hard work and maybe finding romance.  Locklear is Reece, who goes on a road trip to get away from the horror of being the sole survivor of a massacre, while three half-sisters inherit a ranch and do not know each other in the latter.

 

Both telefilms are competent, but also formulaic, predictable and aimed at a female audience.  It is pretending to be feminist, but is post-feminist and in its ideology, a bit right of center.  Unless you like safe storytelling with some melodrama, these are not for you.  If you are interested, they are adequate at best.

 

The letterboxed 1.78 X 1 image is softer and more color limited than expected in both cases, shot in digital High Definition.  Both have plenty of weak shots and the compositions are far from imaginative.  The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is surprisingly surrounds limited and even dialogue-weak.  The production audio is just spread around and it is simple stereo at best.  There are no extras.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo