I hadn’t watched Thelma and Louise since the 1990s. I’m not sure if I saw it in 1991, the year it came out, or some time shortly after it won an Oscar for Callie Khouri’s original screenplay. The short of it is that in nearly 20 years I had pretty much forgotten the tone of the film, while pretty much only remembering the predicament of its two protagonists and the ultimate result of their American road trip.
The opening credit sequence offers a vision of an open and empty road accompanied by Hans Zimmer’s reflective score, setting the viewer up for any number of directions this film could lead. I only wish I could go back in time to know what I was thinking when I first saw these images and heard that score. Seeing it this time it took on a whole new meaning and changed any expectation I may have had based on a false memory of what this film had to offer.
Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon excel in their Oscar-nominated roles, one a kept housewife and the other a small town waitress. Both are ill-treated, under appreciated and looking for an escape. That escape arrives in the form of a weekend getaway, one that will see their life trajectories change forever as they run into trouble at the first chance they get. From there a man dies, a cop gets stuffed in a trunk and Brad Pitt plays a criminal drifter as these two ladies run from the law only to ultimately find themselves and each other along the way.
Declared a feminist road feature by many, I think pigeonholing it in such a way does the film a disservice. To label it is to put it in a corner, to almost do to it as life has done to its characters before they are able to break free.
Directed by Ridley Scott, Thelma and Louise stands out among his other features as we associate the director primarily with his sci-fi features such as Blade Runner and Alien or the Best Picture-winning Gladiator. Thelma and Louise may be two of the more well-rounded characters Scott has directed, much thanks to both Davis and Sarandon as well as Khouri’s script, which allows situations to tell the story more than words, a trap films with females at the center typically fall into. Zimmer’s score is equally affecting.
I also must give brief notice to Christopher McDonald whose performance as Thelma’s dirt bag of a rug salesman husband is tremendous. The more and more films I see McDonald in the more valuable I realize he is as a character actor, it’s just a matter of ensuring it’s the right role for his style. This film certainly worked as do his performances in Requiem for a Dream, The Man Who Wasn’t There and even as Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore.
As for this Blu-ray release, I can only imagine it was the 20th Anniversary tag that gave Fox the idea to issue this edition, but it hasn’t stopped them from ensuring we get fine picture quality with grain still intact in an otherwise flawless print. It also comes with a DTS-HD Master audio track and the features ported over from the previous DVD release including a pair of audio commentaries, a three-part documentary well worth the watch, 40 minutes of deleted scenes, storyboards, a Glenn Frey music video, trailers and a vintage featurette.
It’s a stacked disc to be sure and for owners of the DVD edition you simply need to ask yourself if an upgrade is worth it. The picture and audio here are excellent if that helps in your decision making and Amazon is currently only charging $14.99 for the release. If you’re so inclined give the link below a click and give it a spin.
