FLETCH - Blu-ray review

In the early Eighties, "Saturday Night Live" alumnus Chevy Chase was one of the biggest stars of comedy. Chase was one of the original cast and the first to leave the show after just one season. Four years after leaving SNL, Chase appeared in "Caddyshack" and followed up that successful appearance with the 1983 film "National Lampoon's Vacation." These two films are the more memorable and notable pictures of Chase's early career and by the time he starred in "Fletch" in 1985, Chevy Chase was a bankable Hollywood star. Chase's stay at the top was short-lived and "Fletch" could almost be considered the apex of his stardom, although 1989's "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" may be the comedian's most well-loved film. "Fletch" was followed by the disappointing sequel "Fletch Lives" in '89 as well.

"Fletch" is a comedy about investigative journalist Irwin M. Fletcher (Chase), who prefers to go by the nickname Fletch and not be called Irwin. He writes under the pen name of Jane Doe and the film begins with Fletch investigating drug trafficking on Los Angeles beaches. It is believed that beachfront business owner Fat Sam (George Wendt) is behind the pushing of drugs and Fletch has taken on the identity of a roller skating beach bum with long hair to become friends with those he is researching. His editor Frank Walker (Richard Libertini) is pushing him hard to meet his deadlines, but Fletch feels that Fat Sam is not the primary person behind the drugs on the beach and needs more time to investigate.

Fletch becomes further sidetracked when he is approached by a business man named Alan Stanwyk (Tim Matheson) who offers Fletch a sizeable amount of cash to go to the man's house and listen to a proposition. Fletch insures the request is not sexual and agrees to listen to the man for $1,000. It turns out that Stanwyk claims to have terminal cancer and believes Fletch to be a bum and wants the smart-mouthed reporter to murder him. It turns out that Stanwyk needs this to happen for his wife to collect the life insurance. The man also has the entire plot mapped out down to the escape details and will provide Fletch with the necessary plane ticket to travel out of the country and disappear after the murder takes place. Of course, Fletch is not just another loser on the beach and decides to investigate Mr. Stanwyk.

The investigation of Stanwyk leads Fletch into a host of comedic situations. He works his way into the Tennis club where Stanwyk and his wife are members and begins a flirtation friendship with Gail Stanwyk (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson) under the pseudo-name John Cocktoston and creates a sizeable tab for members of the Tennis club named the Underhills. He poses as Dr. Rosenpenis to look into the medical files of Alan Stanwyk. Other roles undertaken by Fletch are that of the Mattress Police and a man named Ted Nugent. Fletch travels to Utah to investigate some shady real-estate dealings. During this time his editor is becoming increasingly annoyed, but his partner at the newspaper, Larry (Geena Davis) continues to help Fletch. It isn't long before police chief Jerry Karlin (Joe Don Baker) becomes involved and the Stanwyk investigation starts to tie into his story on Fat Sam.

"Fletch" allowed Chase to showcase the talent that helped make "Saturday Night Live" a successful venture. He is able to fill into a wide variety of roles in the film as the main character undertakes numerous disguises. Fletch's wisecracking allows Chase to deliver some very comedic lines that remind audiences of Chase's strong delivery skills. It allows the comedian opportunity to show some elements of physical comedy as well. Chevy Chase is best remembered for his performances as characters Clark Griswold and Irwin Fletcher, but if I had to pick just one film from his filmography to show what the talented comedian was capable of, it would be "Fletch." This is Chase's best performance during his heyday.

Director Michael Ritchie first found success with the 1976 Walter Matthau comedy "The Bad News Bears," but "Fletch" is his best remembered film. The director is noted to have said he would always film two takes. The first take would be based upon the shooting script, whereas the second take allowed Chase to put his own twist on the scene. This allowed Chase a greater opportunity to fit into the role that he claims is his favorite. The smart-alecky Irwin Fletcher and Chase is the sole reason this film has become a cult classic and Ritchie's allowing Chase to do what he does best during filming was a wise decision. I would love to know the percentage of scenes that were from the director's second takes.

Chevy Chase is at his best in "Fletch" and this is a fine example of Eighties cinematic comedy. The film has attained a cult status and deservedly so. I can sit down and watch "Fletch" every once in a while and each time I still laugh at Chase's antics. It doesn't feel right calling this film a classic and while a far larger audience has enjoyed "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," I will choose "Fletch" anytime if I have my choice of the trademark Chevy Chase film. He is at his wisecracking best here and the physical comedy, costumes and situations are classic Chase. There are a lot of laughs to be found in the film's slim ninety eight minute running time, but once you see Chase playing ball alongside Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and sporting the worst afro ever seen in cinema you will already have been laughing long enough to just keep on going.

Video:

"Fletch" looks fine enough with its 1.85:1 mastered widescreen image. Unfortunately, comedies and many other films of the Eighties decade were not filmed with the best film stock in preparation for a high definition world and "Fletch" suffers from the same flatness that plagues many films its age. Detail has its ups and downs and quite a few scenes look remarkably good, while others barely best the previous DVD release (through an upconvert player, of course). Each decade seems to have an associated palette as well and "Fletch" has the all-too-familiar Eighties drabness to it. Colors are film-like, but look muted. There is a noticeable amount of grain, but the source materials were in fairly good shape. The transfer looks dated, but this is still the best "Fletch" has or will ever look.

Audio:

The English DTS –HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack is the only sound mix contained on the Blu-ray disc aside from the original matrixed surround track in Dolby Digital 2.0 surround. The new mix is slightly better with improved imaging in the rears for the limited sound it contains such as the sound of a jet flying overhead. When compared to the original track, there is definitely a fuller sense of sound and direction, but "Fletch" doesn't lend well to an engaging surround experience. The musical selections in the film are among the more vibrant moments and aside from jets, dogs barking and the other occasional sound effect, this is a relaxed listening experience. Aside from "Ghostbusters," most comedies of the Eighties were. Vocals are clear and that is a plus. Overall, it is a clean mix, but there isn't much going on. Subtitles are included in English SDH, Spanish and French.

Extras:

Universal touts the "Blu-ray Exclusive" BD-Live functionality for "Fletch" and provides a few more supplements that have appeared on previous DVD releases. The BD-Live Center for "Fletch" provides only the promotional clips that have appeared on ever other recent Blu-ray release that has access to BD-Live. From this point forward, this may be standard included material for Universal Blu-ray releases, as is their My Scenes bookmarking technology. The other three items have all appeared on DVD before, but an asterisk on the packaging hints that these features too are Blu-ray exclusive. I have to say that the packaging seems a little misleading, but this release really is nothing too special beyond what is already out there.

The stand alone supplements are still nice to have on DVD. The odd little feature Just Charge it to the Underhills: Making and Remembering Fletch (26:34) is a quirky little retrospective that uses the familiar Harold Faltermeyer score and tries to be humorous while Jason Hillhouse narrates and spends time interviewing members of the cast and crew as they recollect making the film. Chevy Chase doesn't appear, but they talk about some other fun deleted sports scenes towards the end. From John Cocktoastin to Harry S. Truman: The Disguises (4:54) is a very brief vignette that has Producer Peter Douglas talking about the costumes and prosthetics used in the film as well as Chase's humor. Favorite Fletch Moments (2:37) is a very quick collection of one-liners, clips and quotes from Chase throughout the film. A pleasant surprise is the film's vintage Theatrical Trailer

Closing:

"Fletch" is a fine example of Eighties comedy and sensibilities as well as being the perfect vehicle for founding "Saturday Night Live" member Chevy Chase. The character's wit and humor play perfectly to Chase's humor and the film is filled with memorable quotes and funny sight gags. This is a very funny film. The Blu-ray release does what it can with the dated materials from a decade when it didn't seem that filmmakers put a lot of stock into their film and cameras, but the picture and sound is still better than the previous DVD release. The supplements are culled from previous releases, but the packaging makes it appear as if they are all new and Blu-ray exclusive. That isn't entirely so. If you love this film, it may very well be worth the upgrade if you have a previous DVD release. If you don't already own the film, now might be a good time to change that.