Home Again – Blu-ray Movie Review

Synopsis

A separated woman, while raising two children, has her life changed when she takes in three young filmmakers. Soon she struggles with starting her marriage up again or falling in love with a younger man.

Specifications

Universal Studios
2017, 1080p, DTS Master HD 5.1 audio
Rated PG-13, Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
1 hour and 37 minutes
Starring Reese Witherspoon, Michael Sheen, Candace Bergen
Director: Hallie Meyers-Shyer

Rating

Entertainment:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Violence: No
Sex: Yes (mild)
Language: No

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Commentary

Home Again is a nice vehicle for the talented Ms. Witherspoon, but as a movie, it wanders around and never quite makes its point. The performances are generally fine, but all the actors talk in clever lines as if they were delivered by a script doctor trying to bolster the mostly aimless story.

I didn’t consider this a bad movie and it had a clever premise, but it lacked a solid core and felt more like a TV sitcom than a feature film. I enjoyed watching it, but by the time it ended I really didn’t feel I had a satisfying experience. For a comedy, it wasn’t all that funny. For a romantic movie, it lacked a compelling romance. I simply spent time watching some actors do the best they could with what they had to work with.

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Technical

Home Again is a nice-looking movie, with bright natural colors and excellent resolution. It was shot digitally with an Arri Alexa camera, and the Blu-ray beautifully rendered the cinematography on my LG OLED screen.

The audio sports a DTS HD Master 5.1 soundtrack. It’s tame, as most of the movie is dialogue with some background music thrown in. I only heard the surround channels in one scene, where Witherspoon’s daughter appears in a school play. At one point, a voice from the PA system appears centered in the rear channels.

Extras

There’s a commentary on the disc with writer/director Hallie Meyers-Shyer and producer Nancy Meyers. The box also includes a DVD version of the movie, and a code to redeem a digital copy of Home Again.

Mel Martin

Mel spent most of his life working in television journalism in Ohio, Florida, the BBC in London, and in Seattle, WA. He won a few EMMY awards along the way which most people mistake for bowling trophies. Being around all those expensive monitors frustrated him when he got home to his threadbare TV and stereo, so he began to improve things, brand by brand, upgrade by upgrade. He’s got a lovely OLED TV now, flanked by Magnepan 3.6r speakers, and a Home theater with an Epson Projector and Focal speakers. Also scatted about the house are HiFiMan headphones, and 6 Sonos Connect devices that are spraying his rather large music collection from room to room. Other equipment is from Oppo, Sony, Aurender, PS Audio and Emotiva. Musical tastes range from Classical to Jazz to New Age to classic Rock and Roll. Mel has written a biography of film producer Samuel Bronston (El Cid, King of Kings) and is working now on a second film related book. He resides in Arizona where, when he’s not adjusting his home theater, he dabbles in landscape and astronomical photography.