Best in Show Blu-ray Review
Best Show-Off
Reviewed by Michael Reuben, February 18, 2013
The faux documentary style became a staple of contemporary comedy with the success of the
British version of
The Office in 2001, but its origins are considerably older. It flowered with
the mockumentary
This Is Spinal Tap in 1984. It
continued with a series of four largely
improvised films directed by Christopher Guest, a co-writer and star of
Spinal Tap, beginning
with
Waiting for Guffman (1996), followed four years later by
Best in Show. After appearing in
Spinal Tap as the dim-witted guitarist Nigel Tufnel ("These dials go to eleven"), Guest
assembled a kind of repertory company from such improv training grounds as Second City and
the Groundlings. He would give them character outlines and a basic story, then let the cameras
roll. The results were unique—and hilarious. As a famous quote from
Spinal Tap puts it, there's
a fine line between clever and stupid, and no one has ever pirouetted on it more delicately than
Guest's sophisticated troop of clowns.
In all four of his films, Guest and co-writer Eugene Levy delved into a specific world of
enthusiasts: community theater in
Guffman; dog shows for
Best in Show; folk music in a
A
Mighty Wind (2003); and award campaigns in
For Your Consideration (2006). The common
element is that the participants in these pursuits take them with deadly seriousness, sometimes to
the point of obsession, but to an outsider the whole thing often looks ridiculous. If Guest hadn't
tired of the format, one can only imagine what he might have done with the home theater
community.
Best in Show remains the most popular of Guest's films, probably because so many people love
dogs and, thanks to the cooperation of various trainers and kennel clubs, the production was able
to obtain magnificent specimens as canine cast members. Besides, the dogs emerge as the film's
true heroes. They're much better behaved than the humans.
Guest's films are more about character than plot. There's usually a single event that gathers a
group of enthusiasts with a common interest, who are interviewed by an unseen documentary
crew as the event approaches. In
Best in Show, it's the fiercely contested Westminster Kennel
Club Dog Show held in Philadelphia. The film follows five very different but equally intense
entrants as they prepare for the competition.
The Swans, Meg and Hamilton (Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock), are a pair of feuding
corporate attorneys who we first encounter in the office of their therapist (Jay Brazeau). Their
gorgeous Weimaraner named Beatrice might have a chance, if the Swans could ever stop arguing
long enough to pay her any attention.
Gerry and Cookie Fleck (Levy and Catherine O'Hara) hale from a small town in Florida, where
they dote on their Norwich Terrier, Winky. Perpetually short of funds, they drive to Philadelphia,
enduring a tense overnight stay at the home of one of Cookie's old boyfriends, Max Berman
(Larry Miller). One of the film's best running jokes is that Cookie has old boyfriends
everywhere,
not to mention flings, one-night stands and random hook-ups. Levy never runs out of variations
on the pained expression of a husband who knows he wasn't the best, but somehow managed to
be the last of his wife's lovers (or is he?). He also has an unusual physical condition that
produces a string of sight gags.
Harlan Pepper (Guest) runs a fishing shop in North Carolina, but his true aspiration is to become
a ventriloquist. True to form, he does all the talking for his Bloodhound, Hubert.
Sherri Ann Cabot (Jennifer Coolidge) is the much younger wife of an elderly man with money
(Patrick Cranshaw). "We both love soup", she says, explaining the attraction. Their Standard
Poodle known as Rhapsody in White has won "Best in Show" for the last two years under the
supervision of top-ranked trainer Christy Cummings (Jane Lynch), who acts like it's
her dog.
They are the odds-on favorite this year.
Finally, we have Scott Donlan and Stefan Vanderhoof (John Michael Higgins and Michael
McKean), a gay couple who have brought their Shih Tzu, Miss Agnes, from New York City. If
one imagined a young American version of Renato and Albin from
La Cage aux Folles, it would
be Scott and Stefan, with Stefan as the steady, responsible half of the couple, and Scott the
flamboyant party animal. However, they do share a seriousness about winning, and both of them
have their sights locked on Christy Cummings and Rhapsody in White.
As entertaining as these various eccentrics are, they are all upstaged once the competition begins
by Fred Willard's Buck Laughlin, the dunce of a sportscasting announcer who knows nothing
about dog shows and is a constant embarrassment to his co-anchor, Trevor Beckwith, played with
long-suffering British reserve by Jim Piddock. (According to the commentary, Piddock studied
so hard to be convincing in the part that many viewers thought he really
was a professional dog
show commentator.) As one absurdity follows another, Piddock's Beckwith gently tries to correct
his colleague while maintaining a professional demeanor. Meanwhile, Willard's Laughlin keeps
dragging them both down. (E.g.: "Now tell me, which one of these dogs would you want to have
as your wide receiver on your football team?")
One other memorable character is the hotel manager played by Ed Begley, Jr., who has become
an expert in the demands of guests both human and canine. His detailed presentation on which
cleaning products should be used in the aftermath of "accidents" by various dog breeds is not to
be missed.
Best in Show Blu-ray, Video Quality
Consistent with its documentary aesthetic (and also no doubt due to budgetary constraints),
Best
in Show was shot on 16mm film using available light. Although Cinematographer Roberto
Schaefer is perfectly capable of producing a polished, glossy image (e.g.,
Quantum of Solace),
here he delivered an appropriately textured and slightly grainy product that looks like it was
captured "on the run"—which it frequently was. For example, in the painful scene where the
Flecks attempt to check into the hotel, the production couldn't afford to rent the facility for the
day, which meant that the staff continued doing business as Guest filmed, with phones ringing
and patrons registering on either side of the actors performing their lines.
Warner's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray will disappoint those who expect "pop" from their Blu-rays, but it accurately captures the film's roughness and
preserves the somewhat coarser grain
structure that resulted from the combination of 16mm photography and available light. Fine
detail remains quite good in close-ups and medium shots, although in some longer shots, the
limits of 16mm's resolution become apparent. Colors are generally realistic, and no attempt has
been made to "push" them toward greater saturation or intensity. A minute amount of video noise
creeps in from time to time, but Warner is to be commended for not trying to hide it with DNR or
strip it away with high frequency filtering. No other artifacts were observed; the 90-minute film
fits comfortably on a BD-25, especially since all the supplements are in standard definition.
A detail worth noting: Unlike the usual Warner treatment of films framed at 1.85:1 theatrically,
Best in Show has not been opened up to
1.78:1 on Blu-ray. It remains at its original aspect ratio.
Best in Show Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation
You don't have to be a dog lover to enjoy
Best in Show, just as you don't have be a theater
enthusiast to laugh at
Waiting for Guffman or, for that matter, a rock music fan to laugh at
This Is
Spinal Tap. Guest's approach is summed up in the quote: "I am interested in the notion that
people can become so obsessed by their world that they lose sense and awareness of how they
appear to other people." As long as
they know their world, you don't need to. You just have to
watch them get caught up in it. As far as the Blu-ray is concerned, it's a faithful representation of
the film. Just don't expect something glossy. Those who already own the DVD might reasonably
decide to stick with it, since there are no new features. Otherwise, highly recommended.
