Plot: What’s it about?
Bo Price (Toby Keith) has just lost his brother in a tragic turn of events, when he is killed in a helicopter crash during combat training operations. In addition to his own brother, the crash also claimed the life of his ex girlfriend’s brother. Bo and his ex Angela (Kelly Preston) have been away from their Tennessee hometown for a while, but both return for the funerals, to pay their respects. The reunion is more intense than expected, as Angela introduces Bo to his sixteen year old daughter Dixie (Lindsey Haun), whom he has never met. Bo left town before she was born in order to pursue a career in country music, but now what success he found has faded, mostly due to his own mistakes. The lure of alcohol was too much for Bo and his lack of control cost him almost everything, including his dream of stardom. He has been sober for a while, but the emotion of the funeral, his feelings for Angela, and meeting his daughter has pushed him to the brink. Now as he faces his own past, can Bo rewrite his life and make the future worthwhile?
As much as I like Burt Reynolds, Willie Nelson, and Kelly Preston, I had reservations about Broken Bridges, thanks to the connection with Country Music Television. I am not a fan of country music, even the recent redneck pop movement, so I didn’t know what to expect. I lowered my expectations again when I saw that country music stars Toby Keith and Lindsey Haun were given substantial roles. I don’t knock musicians as actors, some have made a great transition, I just didn’t hold out high hopes. As it turns out, I was right to have low hopes, as Broken Bridges was even worse than I expected. If you take the basic Lifetime Original Picture, turn the focus to the male instead of female, and give the lead to a miserable actor based on his popularity in Nashville, you have an idea of what this movie is all about. At least his role has some musical elements, as Keith is unwatchable in dramatic moments, in a downright laughable performance. And since this movie has a serious tone about life and redemption, his presence lessens the entire experience. This isn’t even up to the standard of a good Lifetime production, its more like the ones even that network wouldn’t want to broadcast. I can see Keith’s diehard fans being interested, but for anyone else, avoid Broken Bridges like the plague.
Video: How does it look?
Broken Bridges is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. This is another above average transfer from Paramount, and I wouldn’t expect anything less from them. The colors are vivid when they need to be and subtle when called for, with no signs of erring and flesh tones seem normal and consistent. The contrast shows no problems either, with well defined shadows and no visible detail loss to be seen. Aside from some minor edge enhancement, I noticed no compression errors.
Audio: How does it sound?
This release includes a Dolby Digital 5.1 track, which offers a terrific audio experience. This is a dialogue based film, so the main surround activity is found within the musical score and soundtrack. Some subtle use can be heard, but the main focus of the surround is the music, which sounds rich and full at all times. The other surround use might be rare, but when it does appear it is effective and well placed, including some excellent directional effects. This is a comedy though, so the dialogue is what you came here to listen to. This track offers crisp and clear vocals at a consistent volume, which never allows them to be drown out by the other elements. This disc also includes a 2.0 surround option.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes five featurettes, none of which are substantial and seem more like promotional tools than actual behind the scenes material. The first is interviews with the major cast members, then we have some live performance footage from Keith, a salute to the armed forces, and two general promotional pieces. Not a lot, but then again, this movie doesn’t need a feature length documentary, given how thin and predictable the material is to start with.
