Search - Absence of Malice on DVD

MPAA Rating: PG Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations, Not For Children, Adult Language Movie Release: 1981 DVD Release: 04/15/1998 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV,Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English, French, Spanish Subtitles: English, French, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 56 mins Studio: Columbia TriStar Members Wishing: 7 Genres: Drama, Courtroom Drama, Message Movie

In this legal drama from director Sydney Pollack, Sally Field stars as Megan, an ambitious newpaper reporter who, based on information from FBI investigator Rosen, played by Bob Balaban, writes a scathing article that implicates Gallagher, a reclusive business-owner played by Paul Newman, in the recent disappearance of a labor leader. When Gallagher confronts Megan and sets her straight, the two team together to prove his innocence and have a few romantic interludes along the way. Wilford Brimley and Melinda Dillon also star. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Paul Newman - Gallagher
Sally Field - Megan
Bob Balaban - Rosen
Melinda Dillon - Teresa
Luther Adler - Malderone
Wilford Brimley - Wells

This adequate DVD edition of Absence of Malice could be used as the "before" example in showing how quickly the new format has improved as the format has grown in popularity. Columbia/TriStar did a decent job of transferring the movie to DVD in 1998 but they didn't pay attention to a couple of minor, yet important details. The anamorphic widescreen transfer slightly crops the edges off the theatrical version's 1.85:1 aspect ratio and it looks like the source print needs to be remastered. The print shows no scratches or tears, but the monochromatic scheme looks a little off. This is probably due to the fact that Owen Roizman's rich, often naturally lit cinematography needed a little special attention in the transferring process. Likewise, the Dolby Digital 1.0 audio mix is well-balanced but otherwise undistinguished. Studios have quickly realized that doing a "decent" job doesn't quite cut it with the new DVD system, and have been doing much better in bringing their back catalogues out on the new format. This DVD edition of Absence of Malice is still much preferable to the video release but rest assured that Columbia/TriStar will remaster the movie again for a future release. ~ Nick Dedina, All Movie Guide