Spring Breakdown Blu-ray Disc (Ryan Shiraki, 2009)

Warner (USA)
1.85:1 1080p
84 minutes
Audio: DD 5.1 English, DD 5.1 French
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: audio commentary; additional scenes; gag reel; Digital Copy disc

Released: 2 June 2009

Parker Posey and Amy Poehler have been smart and funny in various projects. I’m completely mystified as to why they agreed to participate in Spring Breakdown, which is so clumsily cobbled together that it’s painful to watch. Posey and Poehler were joined by Rachel Dratch to play three hapless friends who go on spring break to watch over a senator’s daughter. The senator’s daughter was played by Amber Tamblyn, who has had some measure of success but was somehow also drafted into this cesspool of shoddy craftsmanship.

Lemme give you an example of the production’s amateurism. In one scene, Posey returns home from work and sees that her pet died in the kitchen. The pet looks like a dog in various shots, and suddenly, the movie cuts to a shot of Posey looking upwards at something and crying. The next shot reveals that Posey’s pet was a cat. The visual cues (is the pet a dog or a cat?) are mis-matched for no apparent reason. The pacing and tones are so off that I had to rewind the scene twice to understand what was happening.

I don’t automatically dismiss straight-to-video movies as you never know when you’ll come across a gem. However, this is exactly the kind of movie that fares poorly with test audiences and finds itself orphaned from the theatrical release schedule. Avoid Spring Breakdown at all costs--your DVD or Blu-ray player may just die on you out of spite.

Video:
The 1.85:1 1080p image is clean, sharp, and bright, which is to be expected of a recent effort distributed by a major Hollywood studio. However, the colors are a tad “hot” at times, even for a spring-break setting. This is due in part to lighting choices, which give the movie a garish look.

Audio:
The DD 5.1 English audio track is filled with loud, obnoxious music across the front and occasionally the rear surrounds as befits a movie set during spring break in Texas. Otherwise, the sound mix isn’t anything special--decent dialogue balance, basic sound effects, some pans from left to right and back.

Extras:
You get an audio commentary by the director and Rachel Dratch that is about as unbearable as the movie itself.

There are several additional scenes of poor video quality, though the gag reel looks pretty good (it’s just not funny).

--Miscellaneous--
You also get a Digital Copy disc.