Roadracers (1994)

Movie: 4/5
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5

Roadracers AKA What the Hell is Wrong With Disney?

Ok, I managed to find this at Best Buy today and it's not due out until the 17th of April. So, having it a month before street date is pretty sweet. This was the second feature length film by Robert Rodriguez and it was a television movie for Showtime back in 1994. One thing that went through my mind while watching this film was; "What the hell is wrong with Disney?"

They sat on this film for all those years when they owned Miramax and did nothing; absolutely nothing. This movie was pretty damn enjoyable. This is probably one of my more favorite Rodriguez films now since I just finished it. I'm pleased that Echo Bridge got this and gave it a good release.

The film is about a rebel named Dude who has a problem with authority. And one night while he's out with his girlfriend and best bud, a rival challenges him to a race and with a flick of a cigarette, all hell breaks loose. Dude is now wanted dead for what he did. That's pretty much the gist of it; I really enjoyed the humor that was put into it and John Hawkes' always gives a great performance whenever I see him in something. The film, with it's comedic tones, gets really dark in the third act; just, "Wow". Movie gets a 4/5.

The video presentation is pretty good, and in the commentary, Robert Rodriguez stated that he remastered it for this release. However, there are some minor problems. At about fifty-four minutes, in a scene in which Salma Hayek's character is talking with her parents, the video gets blurry in several shots. This also happens again a few minutes later when they are sitting in a movie theater. However, the presentation is pretty amazing for an eighteen year movie. There's a nice level of grain pretty much present throughout the film which is very beautiful. With those minor issues factored in, I give the video a 4/5.

The audio is on the weak side. I found myself having to turn up the remote when listening to the DTS-HD MA 5.1 track. There is a Dolby Digital 2.0 track. They are ok, but, I think this is all boiled down to the original source material since I'm sure Robert Rodriguez remastered the audio as well. Audio gets a 3/5.

Extras included are an audio commentary by Robert Rodriguez and a "10 Minute Film School". The commentary is enjoyable and gives insight about the shooting process and fixing up the film for this release. The "Film School" is enjoyable because it shows how they did some of the scenes with David Arquette roller skating and some of the other stuff. I give the extras a 3/5; I feel there could have been more because usually a Rodriguez film usually has a ton of bonus material to kill time on.

Overall, this is a pretty sweet release and Echo Bridge did a good job. I can recommend it for the $7.99 price alone that I paid for it. Other than price, as I stated in the beginning of the review, this film is enjoyable. I see myself probably popping this in from time to time whenever I nothing going on. I give this Blu-ray a 3.5/5.