Search - Crazy Mama on DVD

MPAA Rating: PG Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations, Not For Children, Adult Language Movie Release: 1975 DVD Release: 05/28/2002 Format: DVD Edition: Restored/Remastered,Special Collection Audio Tracks: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 21 mins Studio: New Concorde Members Wishing: 4 Genres: Comedy, Crime, Period Film, Gangster Film

Cloris Leachman stars as Melba, a woman with whom violence is a way of life, in Jonathan Demme's high-pitched "B"-movie Crazy Mama. The film spans three decades in the violent life of Melba, beginning in Jerusalem, Arkansas in 1932, when law enforcers kill her father (Clint Kimbrough), turning her mother Sheba (Ann Sothern) into a bitter widow. Mother and daughter take off to Long Beach, California, and the time jumps to 1958, when the two are thrown out of their beauty salon for non-payment of back rent. Melba now has an attractive (and pregnant) teenage daughter Cheryl (Linda Purl). The three generations take to the road, stealing cars and creating general mayhem across the United States, robbing a motorcycle racetrack box office and a bank. But in 1959, Melba and Cheryl are picked up again, running a Miami Beach snack bar, their lives wasted in free-living terror. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Cloris Leachman - Melba
Stuart Whitman - Jim Bob
Ann Sothern - Sheba
Tisha Sterling - Sheba-1932
Jim Backus - Mr. Albertson

New Concorde's DVD edition of Crazy Mama doesn't deliver the kind of technical perfection DVD fans might expect but makes up for it with some worthwhile extras. The video transfer sadly foregoes the film's widescreen theatrical ratio for an open-matte transfer and uses a source print that suffers from periodic scratches and dust speckling. Despite these problems, the transfer does a nice job of capturing the glossy, hazy style of Bruce Logan's cinematography and serves up the film's rich color scheme in a suitably vivid fashion. The audio is limited to a mono soundtrack: A stereo remix would have been nice but the mono soundtrack is sharp and easy to understand. This DVD edition of Crazy Mama improves when it moves into the area of extras. Fans of the film will find themselves treated to the film's original theatrical trailer, trailers for three other Roger Corman productions, a video conversation between Jonathan Demme and Corman, and a full-length commentary track featuring Demme and Corman. The best of these extras is the commentary track: Both men have a great deal of affection for the film (Demme excitedly points out the period music tracks he picked from memory) and devote plenty of time to discussing how they put together such a slick period piece on a small budget. Film buffs will also be pleased to hear Demme discuss how he carefully chose a series of Los Angeles locations to give the illusion of the film's cross-country settings and point out cameos by director John Milius and a pre-fame Dennis Quaid. All in all, Crazy Mama doesn't deliver the technical quality that most DVD fans expect but its extras make it worthwhile for fans of this film. ~ Donald Guarisco, All Movie Guide