Plot: What’s it about?
J Lo. I?m not sure if she made a deal with the devil or what, but there has got to be some reasoning behind why we all really give a hoot as to what she does every second of every day of her life. I don?t care if she?s marrying Ben Affleck, I don?t care what she?s wearing to the various award shows and I don?t care for her acting ability, either. That being said, I do have to clarify that I have only liked her in one movie, Out of Sight. I think the reason why is that she wasn?t so overexposed then (her credits up until then were Anaconda and Selena. In any case, she?ll have more money than I?ll ever have and I suppose it?s time that I talk about the title in question. Maid in Manhattan (clever play on words, eh) isn?t a bad movie. The performances aren?t even that bad. It?s just so ?been there done that? that literally after watching the trailer, you know what will happen. And let?s just say that they spend a little too much time on ?character? development because we all know what will happen in the end. Still, audiences loved it as it grossed nearly $100 million dollars this holiday season. So what is a predictable movie with a semi-studded cast all about?
We meet Marisa Ventura (Jennifer Lopez) and her son, Ty (Tyler Posey) as she?s hurrying to get to work. Ty is a smart kid, the typical son of a single mother. Granted that he?s ten years old and has a thing for Richard Nixon, but aside from that; he?s just a normal kid. This fact also becomes very useful and acts as a nice little bridge between him and Christopher Marshall (Ralph Fiennes). As it turns out, Marisa is a maid at a posh New York City hotel and has aspirations of being something better than what she really is. A true Cinderella, I suppose. As fate would have it, there is a spot open for an Assistant Manager position at the hotel and management has decided to hire from within. Her friend puts her application in for her and there we have half of the story. Conversely, the same friend also gets her to try on some very expensive clothes and as she is parading around the hotel room, she bumps into Christopher. The two are naturally instantly attracted, but what will she do when he finds out that she?s not the rich guest of the hotel, but instead just hired help? Judging from the cover of the box, you can guess that he doesn?t care and the two might just live happily ever after. That?s only if you care, though?
I can safely say this as I watched the movie with a girl. We both figured that the movie had been a modest hit, so we both watched it with eager anticipation. About 45 minutes into it, we had already decided that the movie was way too long and drawn out and that we knew what would happen in the end. So, why not have a little fun? Here?s a little trick to make the movie more enjoyable, every time Jennifer Lopez?s character (Marisa) says ?S?up? to someone on the street or one of her friends, take a drink of beer (or Diet Coke, I don?t care). The dialogue is so repetitive and translucent that you really don?t care what happens. One bright ray of light is the performance by Stanley Tucci, always a favorite of mine and who always turns in a very entertaining role. If this is a post 9/11 ?feel good? movie set in New York, ok (the opening scene does feature a somewhat barren shot, though familiar, of Manhattan). But this type of movie has been done so many times before, it?s hard to recommend. For fans of J Lo, and you?re out there, I suppose you?ll love it. For me, I?ll pass.
Video: How does it look?
Try as I might, I cannot seem to expunge seeing this movie out of my head. So with that said, the 2.35:1 AVC HD transfer does look a bit better than its standard DVD counterpart. The shots of New York tend to look a bit sharper and cleaned up than before. Detail is bumped up as well and flesh tones seem very warm and natural. One thing that does see to be different is that this version seems to have a much improved contrast. The movie seems much more bright than before and this is in a good way. If “Maid in Manhattan” is your cup of tea, then you’ll enjoy how this looks on Blu-ray.
Audio: How does it sound?
There’s an old saying that goes like this: “You can put lipstick on a pig and it’s still a pig.” I think that’s how it goes, anyway. Such is the case for “Maid in Manhattan” whose Dolby TrueHD soundtrack is an improvement over the standard DVD, but it’s still a sub par soundtrack. There’s a bit of atmosphere in some of the early scenes, but by and large the movie is dialogue-driven. Surrounds are nearly non-existent, but do chime in on a few instances. By and large, it’s a basic “romantic comedy” soundtrack which is fitting.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The theatrical trailer has been removed from the standard DVD and we get a “Blooper Reel” of all things as its replacement. Sony didn’t even put its “Movie IQ” on the disc. This one is for serious fans only.
