Plot: What’s it about?
As a child of the 80’s (primarily), I grew up in the “Cold War” era. Some may not know what that is and others know it all too well. In essence it can be summed up as “Russians = bad, Americans = good” (this differs depending on your geographic location, of course). But the threat of nuclear war was always there. I wasn’t alive during the Cuban Missile Crisis, so I can’t attest if it was ever that bad, but as I said it was always…there. My younger brother would often awake to nightmares about the end of the world via a nuclear holocaust. Amazing what a difference a few decades makes. Switching gears to the film in question, it’s been over twenty years since I first saw this movie. A friend of mine recommended it and I begrudgingly watched it. All I knew is that the “guy from Top Gun and Revenge of the Nerds” was in it. However this movie has a way of taking hold of you and really sticking with you due, in no small part, to its theme and non-studio ending. Over they years this movie has attained cult status and for good reason.
Harry Washello (Anthony Edwards) is a jazz musician who has just met the girl of his dreams. He sets a date with her only to go back to his hotel and get some sleep while she’s at work. The power fails and he misses their date. Arriving at her place of employment, he knows he’s too late. While attempting to call her from a phone booth (remember those?), he then gets a mistaken call from a crazed man. The man, an employee at a missile silo in North Dakota, was attempting to call his father but reveals to Harry that a missile attack is imminent and the city will be destroyed in just over an hour. What’s a guy in love to do? Harry, numbed by this information, tries to contemplate what to do and decides to reveal to the folks at the diner what’s just happened. A plan is set in motion to procure a helicopter, fly to the airport and head south (Antartica to be exact). It’s a good plan, but Harry wants to find Julie (Mare Winningham), else what’s the point in living. As word spreads throughout the city, we see pandemonium everywhere. Is this all an elaborate hoax or is the end of the world really here?
If you’ve ever seen Martin Scorsese’s After Hours, then you’ll have some idea as to the pace of the movie. A man, running around trying to find a woman only to be greeted by every freak out there. Granted, this one involves a more sinister plot, but the general gist is the same. Having not seen this in a couple of decades, I can say that the film does look dated, but that’s not to say it hasn’t aged well. It has. The theme and tone of the film is as pertinent today as it was then, even though we’re not under the constant threat of nuclear war. Or are we? Anthony Edwards essentially carries the film with the help of a good supporting cast of characters – some recognizable (Denise Crosby, Kurt Fuller and a pre-Forrest Gump Mykelti Williamson) and others not so much. However for me, and countless others, this is one of those films that just tends to stay with you. I mean really, what would you do if you found out you had an hour left to live? Many thought this would never see the (Blu) light of day and thankfully Kino has delivered the goods. Highly recommended.
Video: How’s it look?
As I mentioned above, it’s been a good twenty years since I last saw the film. I watched it on VHS on a 4:3 television and, suffice it to say, a lot has changed since then. After doing a bit of research, I learned that the previously-released DVD was full frame. But, as mentioned, Kino has “delivered the goods” in the form of a new HD re-master. That’s the good. But after doing a bit of digging, it appears that this is an open matte version of the full-frame transfer. Additionally, it has significant room for improvement in a few spots. It starts off with a plethora of grain, some of the colors seem a bit off and detail leaves a bit to be desired. Now that’s not to say that it looks bad by any means, the masses will be happy that this film is finally presented in widescreen.
I found a site which had some screenshots (presumably from the DVD version, though I can’t confirm it) and decided to whip out my camera and take a few pics from this Blu-ray version. Of note, they’re not indicative of the image quality (and they’re not meant to be), but it should give a good idea of framing as you’ll notice that there is a visible loss of picture on the top and bottom of the screen and this Blu-ray has more of a “zoomed in” look to it.
My screenshots are on the right.
Audio: How’s it sound?
An included DTS HD Master Audio 2.0 track fits the bill and while it doesn’t offer a ton of dynamic range, I really had no issues with it. Tangerine Dream offers up a nice, surreal mix for the majority of the film which works quite well. It ha some of that psudeo-realistic feel to it that really was the perfect choice for the movie. Vocals are sharp and crisp and though there aren’t any surround tracks to speak of, the front-heavy mix does a fine job of conveying the (potential) end of the world. Clearly this doesn’t hold a candle to today’s lossless mixes, but that’s beside the point.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Audio Commentaries – Two in all, the first with Writer/Director Steve De Jarnatt which is moderated by Walter Chow. I didn’t really know what to expect with this one, but the two seem to really work well of one another. It’s clear, even after all these years, how passionate De Jarnatt is about this movie He recalls having to fight for eight years to get the ending he wanted when the film could have been made with a studio budget, albeit a different “more commercial” ending. The second features De Jarnatt with Director of Photography Theo van de Sande and Production Designer Chris Horner. This one is a lot more chatty as Horner and van de Sande really get involved. Some tales from the shoot, how different visual effects were created and how they worked and influenced the film. Either way you go, both are great tracks.
- Excavations From the Editing Room Tar Pits (Deleted Scenes) – Presented in a full-frame, these are some extended and alternate versions of selected scenes from the film.
- Supporting Cast and Crew Reunion – The living members of the film gather in Johnny’s diner (conspicuously absent is Mykelti Williamson) and reminisce about the movie and the shoot. There’s even a man who is there via Skype. They tell of their experiences on the film and what they’re up to these days.
- Harry and Julie: Interview with Stars Anthony Edwards and Mare Winningham – Edwards and Winningham are given their own feature and they tell of the audition process, how the two knew one another since they were in high school and how Edwards influenced Winningham getting her part. Odd fact: these two were up for the roles in Rob Reiner’s The Sure Thing, though the parts eventually went to John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga.
- Alternate Diamond Ending – Pretty much the exact same ending as the one that was in the film plus a three second cheesy effect with two diamonds floating in space. Yeah, we see the symbolism.
- Trailers – Cherry 2000 and Miracle Mile
The Bottom Line
Miracle Mile is one of those films that captivates the viewer, brings them in and has a hard time of letting them go. At least that’s the way I feel. While the “Cold War” might be long gone (or just beginning again, depending on your point of view) this movie manages to capture the tension and paranoia that many of us grew up with. Certainly the picture quality improvement is welcome, though I’m sure it’ll be debated time and again on the forums about the aspect ratio. Still, it’s better to have than have not and I for one, am happy to have this on my shelf.
