Hail Caesar – MVD Rewind Collection (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1994
Director: Anthony Michael Hall
Writer: Bob Mittenthal
Cast: Anthony Michael Hall, Bobbie Phillips, Leslie Danon, Nicholas Pryor, Kane Picoy, Samuel L. Jackson, Ilia Volok, Robert Downey Jr., Frank Gorshin, Grant Cramer, Judd Nelson, Robert Downey Sr.

Release Date: December 12th, 2023
Approximate Running Time: 97 Minutes 18 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: PG
Sound: LPCM Stereo English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $19.95

"Julius Caesar MacGruder (Anthony Michael Hall, Sixteen Candles), the outrageous lead singer of ''Hail Caesar'', a rock 'n' roll band, wants it all... fame, fortune, beautiful girls and a recording contract from Easy Street Records (fronted by Robert Downey Jr., The Avengers). There's only one problem, Julius isn't a rock star but a worker at a pencil eraser factory run by the notorious Mr. Bidwell (Nicholas Pryor, Risky Business). And with his dreams seemingly out of his grasp he falls in love with the boss's daughter Buffer (Bobbie Phillips, Showgirls) against her father's wishes. In order to curry favor with him Julius makes a bet with the old man... if he comes up with $100,000 in six months, Mr. Bidwell must let them be together. Can Julius make the money, make it big AND get the girl?" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 2/5

Hail Caesar comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 21.2 GB

Feature: 20.4 GB

No information is provided about this transfer source. That said, it looks like it comes from a dated source. There are moments where the image looks soft and there appears to be some digital filtering. Flesh tones look healthy, colors look very good, black levels fare well, and compression is very good.

Audio: 4/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM stereo mix in English with removable English SDH. The audio sounds clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, this track does a good job with ambient sounds, and the soundtrack sounds appropriately robust. It should be noted that there are issues with the subtitles going out of sync. Two examples occur at the 36-minute, 20-second mark and the 63-minute, 10-second mark.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a trailer for Hail Caesar (2 minutes 15 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), collectible mini-poster, and a slipcover (first pressing only).

Other extras include trailers for Men at Work, Joysticks, and Delirious.

Summary:

Hail Caesar is the directorial debut of Anthony Michael Hall (Weird Science), and to date, it is the only feature film that he has directed.

The narrative revolves around a wannabe rock star named Julius Caesar, who takes a bet with his girlfriend's wealthy father, who wants him out of his daughter's life.

Hail Caesar is a movie that usually evokes two responses from those who watch it. Those who embrace its irreverent humor are sure to enjoy it, while everyone else is going to loathe it. That said, most audience members seem to fall into the latter category.

The most impressive aspect of Hail Caesar is the cast they were able to get. Anthony Michael Hall, in the role of Julius Caesar, a slacker who dreams of being a rock star, anchors the cast. Anyone familiar with Anthony Michael Hall knows how well-versed he is when it comes to comedy. And though he does a good job with the material he has to work with, the result is not among his stronger, more memorable performances.

Besides Anthony Michael Hall, the other two performances of note are Bobbie Phillips (Showgirls) in the role of Buffer, Julius’ girlfriend, and Leslie Danon (Whatever It Takes) in the role of Annie; she’s part of Julius’ band. These two characters are vying for Julius’ affection.

Also, there are several well-known cameos, like Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction) in the role of a mailman who is constantly attacked by Julius’ dog; Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club) in the role of a prison inmate; Frank Gorshin (Batman TV Series) in the role of the manager of a glue factory where Julius gets a job; and Robert Downey Jr. (Less Than Zero) in the role of a mailroom clerk who pretends to be a record company executive.

Based solely on premise, Hail Caesar brings nothing new to the table. And when it comes to the narrative, there are real surprises, with everything leading towards a predictable ending. Also, being that Hail Caesar is comedy, when it comes to humor, unfortunately, things do not always hit the mark. That said, Hail Caesar only works as well as it does because of its cast, who all give enthusiastic performances.

Hail Caesar gets a good audio/video presentation from the MVD Rewind Collection.

Written by Michael Den Boer