THE MOVIE

Perhaps the most appropriate way to kick off my look at Alex & Emma is to mention a quote from its director.

“…it’s very hard to find a new and fresh way of doing a romantic comedy…”

Rob Reiner said it in his audio commentary, and ain’t it the truth…

Over the past 15 years we’ve been inundated with romantic stories of princesses, presidents, movie stars, and everyone in between. It seems like we’ve seen just about every incarnation of the romantic comedy.

And while Alex & Emma doesn’t manage to pull off a startling reinvention of the genre, it actually turns out to be a worthy addition to it.

Alex (Luke Wilson) is a young writer with a few serious problems. Finding himself in debt to Cuban loan sharks for $50,000, Alex promises them that once his book is finished he’ll be able to pay them what he owes.

But when our loan sharks come calling to see how close the book is to completion, Alex is forced to admit that (due to a severe case of writers block) he hasn’t started it yet. Infuriated, the Cubans destroy his laptop and decide to try and throw Alex out of his apartment window.

In a desperate attempt to save his life, Alex quickly offers to pay the Cubans double what he owes them. They agree to return in 30 days to collect the $100,000. But without his laptop, Alex is forced to find another way to write his book. In walks stenographer Emma (Kate Hudson), and after some initial distrust the two go about creating a romance novel that will not only save Alex’s life, but also bring Alex and Emma together.

It may be predictable and a little silly but Alex & Emma is a pretty good film, which can be attributed to some witty writing and the solid performances of its two leads.

I’ve always thought Luke Wilson was a capable actor and he proves it again here. The man has mountains of dialogue as Alex yet he handles it with ease.

They may have put her in more than one god-awful wig throughout this film, but even that can’t hide the beauty of Kate Hudson. This may not be one of her more challenging or memorable roles, but her Emma is wonderful and charming.

Overall, Alex & Emma is a quite enjoyable and reasonably clever little film.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

Alex & Emma has been presented at the widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and is 16x9 enhanced. I couldn’t confirm it, but I think it’s safe to assume that the original theatrical aspect ratio was 1.85:1.

Being made in 2003 you’d expect a pretty spiffing transfer and (for the most part) that’s exactly what you get.

Fine strong colours, few film artefacts (even those that do pop up are just specks), solid black levels and an image that is impressively sharp and crystal clear.

This film is presented on a single layer disc. I didn’t notice any compression problems.

My only grumble is that some scenes seemed to suffer a little from edge enhancement. Aside from that complaint, Alex & Emma looks superb.

Tremendously accurate subtitles too.

Audio:

Alex & Emma has been provided with an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track at 448kbps.

It may be debateable whether or not this film actually NEEDS a 5.1 track but it certainly is nice to have it anyway.

There’s no doubting this is a dialogue driven film and I’m pleased to say it’s always clean, clear and easy to understand. Well, except maybe for the strong accent of one of Kate Hudson’s nanny characters.

I can’t say the score of Marc Shaiman was particularly memorable but it did its job well enough. Being a dialogue heavy film there was minimal use of the surrounds and subwoofer. In fact, I’ve heard some 2.0 surround-encoded mixes that provide a more immersive audio experience.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with this 5.1 track. It’s excellent, but due to the content is underutilised.

THE EXTRAS

A static menu very similar to the front cover greets you when you pop this disc in your player. There is a Special Features section containing the goodies.

THEATRICAL TRAILER

Running for a little over 2 minutes this is a very impressive little trailer presented at 1.78:1, with 16x9 enhancement and Dolby Digital 2.0 audio.

AUDIO COMMENTARY

Featuring director Rob Reiner and actor Luke Wilson this is quite a funny and entertaining commentary track. There are plenty of tidbits and anecdotes from both men here, and it’s obvious they really enjoyed making this film.

On the negative side, there are a few silences and a couple of times when the participants fall into the trap of describing what’s on screen, but overall this is a good track certainly worth a listen.

I normally don’t mention the bit rate of an audio commentary unless it’s exceptionally high or low. This is at a surprisingly high 320kbps and it sounds great.

All this on a single layer disc too!

ROADSHOW DVD CREDITS

Not technically an extra for Alex & Emma but on the main menu there is a little Village/Roadshow logo that you can click on to get an animated credit sequence.

SUMMARY

While I won’t describe Alex & Emma as a “brilliant” or “must see" film, it is actually quite funny, well acted and reasonably original for a romantic comedy. There’s not much more you can ask, is there?

Its presentation on our beloved shiny disc is also very good with excellent video and audio along with an entertaining commentary track. Certainly worth a rental at the very least.