27 Dresses Blu-ray
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 4/28/2008
FOXStreet: April 29
Prebook: now
> Gorgeous dresses jump off the screen in this romantic comedy.
Without wham-bam action, chick flicks don’t seem well suited to maximize the potential of high-definition. But 27 Dresses on Blu-ray is a special case. The film features more than two dozen spectacularly colored frocks that fly off the screen as much as any fight scene might. The film’s star, Katherine Heigl, takes viewers through all her past freaktastic bridesmaid experiences, which fill the void of not having a man of her own. Based just on the strength of his striking blue eyes in Blu-ray, co-star James Marsden easily outshines higher-profile Ed Burns. Pining is a rom-com staple, but Heigl’s wishing and wanting does slow down the rush of rainbow imagery at times. There are no bonus features exclusive to the Blu-ray version, which could curb people’s willingness to pay a premium for the title over its lower-priced standard-definition counterpart. All standard-def extras are carried over to the Blu-ray version for high-def playback.
Shelf Talk: Aiming straight at girls’ hearts, 27 Dresses on BD will be a challenge as females are not yet considered core adopters of the format. But with Heigl’s breakout performance in guy-friendly Knocked Up, she could prove to have cross-over appeal for those early adopting dudes.
Romantic comedy, color, PG-13 (language, sexual innuendo), 111 min., BD $39.98, reviewed on Sony BDP S300 on Samsung 37-inch HDTV with HDMI connectionExtras: four featurettes, deleted scenes
Director: Anne Fletcher
First Run: W, Jan. 2008, $76.5 mil.