The Majestic (2001) - February 24, 2015

[Akijama]

The Majestic Blu-ray

JIM CARREY plays an amnesia victim who, mistaken as a missing, favorite-son war hero by a tiny California town, restores and reopens the local abandoned movie palace -- discovering love and rebuilding his own life along the way.

Source:

[Show spoiler]WB press site

[Mandalorian]

We saw this coming soon after the Darabont set announcement. Looking forward to this.

[Bassaholic]

Good flick. Was surprised how good Carrey was in a none comedic role.

[Akijama]

2015..of course. D'oh! Can a mod fix this?

[Frightener22]

Stellar news! Now, I won't have to double dip on the box set

[MEB]

FINALLY!!!!

My all-time favorite movie!!! Even though I already own a high-def digital copy (iTunes), this Blu-ray will be day 1 for me! Preorder placed!



Mark

[MifuneFan]

Was just browing through Spain's deals on the site, and saw their cover for this. My god they look like mannequins

[Zekonin]

Sure, like the small town Carrey's character washes up in, the film is a bit old-fashioned and cheesy, but these are simply its traits, not its flaws. In fact, the cynical criticism the film has received is not unlike the true antagonist of the film: an America out of touch with itself. Darabont is no disappointment here.

[MEB]

I received my Blu-ray copy of 'The Majestic' today and I took it for a spin (skipping around to see how things looked). I'm very pleased, the transfer looks terrific!

I also own a digital HD (1080p) copy that I purchased from iTunes about 2 years ago. I spun up the Blu-ray on my iMac and compared various scenes/shots side by side on the same display. Compared to the digital HD copy, the Blu-ray is cropped just a little bit tighter all the way around. It's minimal, and not anything to worry about. I'd never have noticed if I wasn't doing an A/B comparison.

I'm also pleased to report that the Blu-ray has slightly improved color reproduction (compared to the digital copy). The digital HD copy is a little bit too yellow, making certain colors look a little off. For instance, in an early scene in the theater the paper cup Jim Carrey is holding has a green print on it. On the digital HD copy the green tends toward a fluorescent green while the Blu-ray version has a much more natural looking green (particularly for the time period). Ditto for Carrey's suit jacket in that scene, it's tan in both but more of a yellow-tan in the digital copy. The Blu-ray color looks more natural and more appropriate. Reds clearly look better on the Blu-ray. Many reds have a slight tinge toward orange on the digital HD copy, particularly evidenced in the red text of the "Sand Pirates from the Sahara" movie poster.

I also feel the Blu-ray looks just a bit more like film. The digital HD copy is ever-so-slightly sharper, particularly for objects in the background. I feel a little bit too much sharpening has been applied to the digital HD copy, making it look just a little bit less natural.

Again, I'm not talking a huge difference, but certainly noticeable if comparing the two side-by-side. The Blu-ray is a slight, but appreciated, improvement!

Mark

[AaronSCH]

I truly love this grossly under-appreciated film. Jim Carrey's best screen performance by a mile.

[MEB]

Originally Posted by AaronSCH

I truly love this grossly under-appreciated film. Jim Carrey's best screen performance by a mile.

Yep! I know there are a lot of people that never gave 'The Majestic' consideration because it starred Jim Carrey. I'm talking about people that aren't fans of his zany characters in other films. They have a hard time picturing Carrey being anything other than zany, so they stayed away from the film.

Conversely, I know there are a lot of people that went to see 'The Majestic' expecting to see their beloved zany Jim Carrey, and were disappointed when they discovered this was a serious role. Some of those folks are why the film scored relatively low with audiences.

As I've mentioned, this film is my all-time favorite. It pushes all of my buttons. I have difficulty understanding why anyone would dislike it.

Mark

[AaronSCH]

Originally Posted by MEB

Yep! I know there are a lot of people that never gave 'The Majestic' consideration because it starred Jim Carrey. I'm talking about people that aren't fans of his zany characters in other films. They have a hard time picturing Carrey being anything other than zany, so they stayed away from the film.

Conversely, I know there are a lot of people that went to see 'The Majestic' expecting to see their beloved zany Jim Carrey, and were disappointed when they discovered this was a serious role. Some of those folks are why the film scored relatively low with audiences.

As I've mentioned, this film is my all-time favorite. It pushes all of my buttons. I have difficulty understanding why anyone would dislike it.

Mark

I agree. Audiences had the wrong expectations. For those who remembered Carrey's performance in the tele-film, "Doing Time on Maple Drive," his range was not a surprise. I think it was Jack Lemmon who made the observation that comedians can usually make the transition to dramatic actor while the reverse is seldom true.

[Blades1370]

Originally Posted by MEB

Yep! I know there are a lot of people that never gave 'The Majestic' consideration because it starred Jim Carrey. I'm talking about people that aren't fans of his zany characters in other films. They have a hard time picturing Carrey being anything other than zany, so they stayed away from the film.

Conversely, I know there are a lot of people that went to see 'The Majestic' expecting to see their beloved zany Jim Carrey, and were disappointed when they discovered this was a serious role. Some of those folks are why the film scored relatively low with audiences.

As I've mentioned, this film is my all-time favorite. It pushes all of my buttons. I have difficulty understanding why anyone would dislike it.

Mark

The same could be said of Bill Murray's earlier career, in 1981 he starred in The Razor's Edge, most people were disappointed to find out this was a serious drama about the effects of the First World War, on a rich socialite. The critics absolutely nailed him to a cross over his performance, yet 22 years later he is being praised for a great dramatic performance in Lost in Translation.

People and critics often have a hard time accepting actors/actresses when they branch into different kinds of roles. I remember reading that Anthony Michael Hall received hate mail for his portrayal of the douche buff boyfriend in Edward Scissorhands.

Personally I like seeing actors branching outside their normal comfort zone, although I think comedic actors have a harder time being accepted in serious roles from longtime fans and critics alike.