Search - The Fabulous Baker Boys on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Adult Situations, Not For Children, Adult Language Movie Release: 1989 DVD Release: 04/21/1998 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV,Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 56 mins Studio: Live/Artisan Members Wishing: 6 Genres: Drama, Romance, Romantic Drama, Musical Drama See Also: The Fabulous Baker Boys [Widescreen]

Real-life siblings Beau and Jeff Bridges star as the eponymous Fabulous Baker Boys. Musical prodigies both, the Bakers have long been teamed as a twin-piano act, with the less talented Frank (Beau Bridges) coasting on the skills of his brilliant younger brother Jack (Jeff Bridges). Their career dwindling to nickel-and-dime dates in second-rate clubs, the Bakers decide that they need a female vocalist to boost their popularity. They select auditioner Susie Diamond (Michelle Pfeiffer), who in addition to being a gifted songstress is drop-dead gorgeous. The newly renovated Baker Boys act scores a success, which is inevitably threatened by Susie's growing popularity and by Jack's insistence upon pursuing an affair with the girl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jeff Bridges - Jack Baker
Michelle Pfeiffer - Suzie Diamont
Beau Bridges - Frank Baker
Ellie Raab - Nina
Jennifer Tilly - Monica Moran

Too character-driven and subtle to immediately click with a large audience, the critically acclaimed The Fabulous Baker Boys has earned a large following since its initial 1989 release. This Live Entertainment DVD of the movie doesn't seem like the definitive edition at first, but it's actually much better than the packaging suggests. The widescreen transfer is not in the superior anamorphic process, but it is excellent. Set mainly in Seattle's nocturnal jazz clubs, seedy lounges, luxury ballrooms, and rain-soaked streets, Michael Ballhaus' beautifully moody camerawork captures the feeling of a jazz ballad. The audio track is in Dolby Digital Surround and the jazz-heavy score sounds great coming out of a stereo system, but is equally well balanced when fed through the television set. In what must be an odd oversight, Live Entertainment has buried a spoken commentary (it's not listed on the DVD box but look under "Audio" on the menu) by the movie's acclaimed cinematographer, Michael Ballhaus, who earned an Oscar nomination for his exquisite work here. The German Ballhaus isn't a stirring English-language orator, but his natural warmth shines through as he speaks of his fondness for this movie and goes into much detail about how he approached the shoot and about the importance of collaboration. The average movie fan may not be interested by Ballhaus listing f-stops and lenses used in certain shots, but filmmakers and students will be enthralled. At one point Ballhaus describes how Mike Nichols called him one night after he had seen the movie and demanded to know how he shot The Fabulous Baker Boys' balcony scene. Not only did Ballhaus tell Nichols how he shot this beautiful sequence but has now gone on and told the world. ~ Nick Dedina, All Movie Guide