Plot: What’s it about?
In New Orleans, a series of brutal gang killings have police baffled and the public in fear, but Remy McSwain (Dennis Quaid) is still on the case and working to solve it as soon as he can. The gang murders seem to have began with a single killing, then escalated into an almost full blown combat situation on the streets. With all these murders happening, you would think someone would have caught someone, but that isn’t the case here. But McSwain, a homicide detective, still pushes ahead and no matter how confusing the whole mess seems, remains dedicated to closing the case once and for all. Soon however, he will meet a new distraction in the form of Anne Osborne (Ellen Barkin), a beautiful Assistant District Attorney. She has been sent to investigate corruption with the police force, but she and McSwain seems to have sparks right from the start. All the while, the mystery continues as to who is behind the murders and McSwain finds himself accused of corruption.
This movie was a nice box office hit back when it was released and has even picked up a following on home video, but that doesn’t make it a good film in the traditional sense. In terms of classical good movies, The Big Easy measures up as decent at best, but somehow manages to cull in the audiences and even gather some critical praises along the path. So why the success on both sides of the fence for a less than stellar movie? This one is simple, The Big Easy is loaded with well planned and effective atmosphere, which makes everything within the film seem a little better in the end. The locations were chosen to perfection and the overall tone of the film seems just right, as if the stars shone down just for this movie. I can’t explain it in the least, but this picture just seems to have it all fall in line, which causes it to be a beloved movie even years later. The small touches such as accents, costumes, and well driven suspense also enhance the film, but the real star is the larger atmosphere at work in this one. I have fun each time I watch it and as such, I recommend The Big Easy to fans of atmospheric suspense/thrillers with a little romance tossed in the mix.
This film is driven by the two leads and while neither has become the “A” list star they could have, both have made good careers in this business. Dennis Quaid is excellent in this movie and though I know some will disagree with me, I think his accent is perfect. He uses his dialogue to build his character and I don’t mean just what he says either, but also how he says it all. Quaid is able to work well with his costar Ellen Barkin and the supporting cast, which is good since chemistry is vital to this movie. This performance might be of Oscar level, but it is one of Quaid’s better turns from this time and carries the character very well. Quaid can also be seen in such films as Dragonheart, Any Given Sunday, The Parent Trap (1998), and Frequency. Opposite Quaid here is Ellen Barkin, who looks terrific and performs even better than she looks. Barkin (Drop Dead Gorgeous, Mercy) uses her tough girl charms well here and wins me over from start to finish. I think Barkin is underused in movies these days and as such, I hope to see her in more prominent roles soon. The cast here also includes Ned Beatty (Deliverance, Back To School), Lisa Jane Persky (Tumbleweeds, Where’s Marlowe?), Ebbe Roe Smith (Falling Down, Turner & Hooch), and John Goodman (The Flintstones, The Big Lebowski).
Video: How does it look?
The Big Easy is presented in a 1.85:1 widescreen transfer, which is not enhanced for widescreen televisions. I was glad to find minimal compression flaws since I was expecting them to rampant and in the end, this transfer seems just fine. I would of course prefer an anamorphic edition, but given what Trimark has done, this one deserves some nice marks. The colors seem natural, but still retain some richness at times and flesh tones look warm and normal also. I did think the contrast was a little soft, but detail was never lost because of this slight issue. In the end, this could have been better, but it should still please fans of the film.
Audio: How does it sound?
I was surprised to find this disc used a mono track, but in the end I wasn’t too let down by this experience. This movie is basically subtle audio driven, so the lack of surround use isn’t that serious of an issue and since this one is done right, no real complaints emerge. The sound effects never overpower the other elements and the music sounds as good as mono can allow, which is all we can hope for in this case. I found no problems with dialogue, which is good since it is the major component of the audio mix. The volume is always proper and the vocals seemed crisp as could be. A couple spots could have used a surround sound kick in the pants, but on the whole this mono version is more than up to the task.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes the film’s theatrical trailer and some talent files.
