First Sunday Blu-ray delivers great video and superb audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
Durell (Ice Cube) and LeeJohn (Tracy Morgan) are best friends and bumbling petty criminals. When told they have
one week to pay a $17,000 debt or Durell will lose his son, they come up with a desperate scheme to rob their
neighborhood church. Instead, they end up spending the night in the presence of the Lord and are forced to deal
with much more than they bargained for.
For more about First Sunday and the First Sunday Blu-ray release, see the First Sunday Blu-ray Review published by Martin Liebman on May 3, 2008 where this Blu-ray release scored 3.0 out of 5.
There is no denying that Ice Cube has been part of some decent-to-good projects: Boyz n the
Hood, Trespass, Barbershop and Three Kings come to mind.
Unfortunately, his 2008 comedy First Sunday fails to measure up to either the legacies of
those films or of Cube himself. Thankfully, First Sunday is a "comedy" (it must have been
so funny that I forgot to laugh) that doesn't rely on the crude toilet and hormonal humor we've
been seeing as the standard bearer of the genre since American Pie. There is no denying
that this movie's effort is a noble one, the idea fresh, the material ripe for the picking, and the cast
unquestionably solid. Nevertheless, there must have been a disconnect somewhere down the line,
because what could have been an above-average comedy is instead a tepid, insipid, and at times
downright insulting film.
This was more fun in 'Grand Theft Auto IV.'
Durell (Cube) is a man with more than his share of worldly problems. He and his buddy LeeJohn
(Tracy Morgan, Little
Man) are convicted criminals who cannot find work. Enter a Jamaican gang with some
spiffy wheelchairs to sell. Durell and LeeJohn, desperate for cash, agree to deliver the chairs and
collect payment in 24 hours. Surprise, surprise, they're caught after a high-speed pursuit (the
entire sequence seemingly straight out of the latest Grand Theft Auto game) and
sentenced to 5,000 hours of community service. As if the sentence and still owing money to the
Jamaicans isn't bad enough, Durell's ex-wife is threatening to move with his son to Atlanta,
unless he can come up with about $17,000 to pay off her debts and keep her in the city. When
the deadline for their move is pushed up, Durell and LeeJohn, in a fit of desperation, decide to rob
a local church of the thousands of dollars it keeps on-hand. When the duo breaks in, however,
they find the money is already gone! Durell and LeeJohn take as hostages the church's pastor
(Chi McBride, The Brother's Solomon), secretary, deacon, and choir director, amongst
others. They must
then decide whether to complete their nefarious scheme or to open their hearts and accept a
little divine intervention.
It's always difficult to figure out just what you're going to get with a movie like First
Sunday. At least with a box of chocolates you know you're getting chocolate in one form or
another, but First Sunday comes off as a comedy that forgot the jokes, a melodrama
that forgot the emotion, and a heist movie that forgot the tension and excitement. All the
elements are here, but they seem to be hiding in a corner, afraid to come out, for what reason I
cannot say. I expected more in the laugh department; I found myself laughing out loud only
once during a genuinely funny scene involving a blind and deaf church janitor meandering
through a "tense" hostage situation. Otherwise, the film failed to cause me to emote even the
slightest chuckle or crack the faintest smile. Your s-mileage may vary, but I saw absolutely
nothing even remotely humorous. Unfortunately, some of the more "touching" scenes just don't
work, but its not for a lack of effort. The scenes are so genereric and trite, that when Durell's son
says he wants to be like his father, or LeeJohn shows a boy at the church how to tuck his shirt
in, or when the church secretary sings happy birthday to LeeJohn, we simply fail to care. Yes,
the scenes do serve a purpose, either establishing plot devices or serving to influence a
character's actions, but they come off as far too sappy to be believable. Each scene is even
replete with the appropraitely melancholy music meant to tug at our heart strings, and the
scenes seem to rely on the mood the music tries so hard to set rather than genuine emotion
from well-developed charaters to carry the scene and, in the end, that's why I felt each of them
fell flat. The movie isn't meant to be high drama, but the courtroom scenes ignore even the
most basic of established judicial procedure, making a mockery of the system and a
cringe-inducing climax. Any momentum the story built up completely fell apart in the final 20
minutes
as the movie gets long in the tooth, tedious, and dull.
The one thing First Sunday got right was the casting. Cube, McBride, and Keith David
(Delta Farce) as a
tough yet understanding judge definitely fit the bill, but their performances can only carry the
film
so far before any semblance of respectability and charisma they bring to their roles is lost under
an avalanche of bad writing, generic direction, fake sentimentality, or ridiculous plot contrivances.
I'm not sure what it is with rappers who get into acting, but both Cube and Mark Whalberg (The Perfect Storm)
are definitely as good at what they do as any classically trained actor out there, as long as
casting directors make sure they play parts they can handle. Cube definitely holds his own here,
and his emotions seem more genuine than his fellow cast members. I have no doubt that
the movie could have been moderately improved with a bit of re-writing. As it is, Cube is the only
thing that makes this movie tolerable, and for that alone he's to be commended.
Presented in 1080p high definition and in its original 1.85:1 high definition transfer, First
Sunday is another mostly good looking Blu-ray disc from Sony that teeters on excellence.
The movie is impeccably theatrical in appearance, absolutely recreating the
look of a high quality cinematic presentation. Fantastic detail is evident throughout, the samllest
nuaces are crystal clear, from the surface of the pavement, to the pores and facial hair on
characters. Colors are wonderfully acurate, vibrant, and pleasing. One of the characters has
multi-colred hair, black to dark red, the definition of each is excellent, every strand seemingly
visible regardless of the color, the blend and flow perfect. Also, take a look at the varried outfits
worn by the patrons of the church. Wow. Black levels are nearly perfect save for a few scenes
that
appear somehat too bright and unnatural. This disc is not quite up to the level of excellent blacks
as seen in Saawariya, for
example, but this disc is nearly as good. Perhaps my biggest gripe with the disc is that many, if
not most, scenes look somewhat softer than expected. There is a definite lack of ultimate
sharpness to the movie, but it neither minimizes nor distracts from the other excellent qualities
evident throughout. Overall, this is a perfectly fine and respectable transfer.
First Sunday makes its most impressive donation to Blu-ray with a Dolby TrueHD 5.1
sound mix that steals the show. If you love Hip-Hop music, this disc is simply a must-buy. The
bass-heavy beats are miraculously meticulous, the sound system working overtime, the
subwoofer left sweating and gasping for air. Likewise, all of the gospel music is so real, so
impactful, and so spiritually sound and immacualtely reproduced that it makes you feel like you're
inside the church, the only thing missing being the movie's audience standing up and singing
along. This mix is boisterous to say the least, a fine sounding, theatrical, high quality,
impeccable mix. Dialogue reproduction is excellent with no flaws to speak of. When the pastor
preaches from the pulpit, the dialogue approriately echoes and reverberates in the church and
through your listening area by proxy, making for an absolutely amazing, lifelike, almost
so-good-its-sinful presentation. Definition, clarity, and imaging are first-rate, and the entirety of
the
soundstage is almost always put to good and necessary use. I had no idea this movie
could sound so good, and praise be for lossless audio. When even a movie like First
Sunday can sound this good, just imagine what's in store for us down the road. Needless to
say, I was highly impressed here, and while this track isn't quite as good as, say, I Am Legend, it's
simply miraculous nevertheless.
First Sunday makes its way onto Blu-ray high definition with a good deal of supplemental
material sure to keep fans busy for an evening. First up is a commentary with
writer/producer/director David E. Talbert. After a brief introduction, Talbert dives right into the
track as he not only discusses what's happening on-screen, but why. He discusses the music
heard throughout the film, from the east-coast flair of the opening title music to the music heard
during the church service, written by famed Gospel lyricist Kurt Carr. This is a solid track, never
too dull despite a few moments of dead air, and Talbert proves to be very passionate about his
work. Next up are fourteen deleted scenes (480p, 34:47) with
optional director's commentary. A somewhat dry and dull gag reel (480p, 4:25) is next, followed
by two outtakes (480p, 5:10). Next is David E. Talbert's Camera Wrap Speech (480p,
3:09), a short feature that shows Talbert presenting his actors with a parting gift and giving
thanks to his fine actors whom he compares to the likes of Sidney Poitier and Richard Pryor.
Hood Robbin' With the 'First Sunday' Cast and Crew (480p, 16:08) looks at the film from
the initial inspiration through shooting and finally to the ultimate meaning behind the film,
replete with your typical interviews intercut with film footage. The Almighty Version
Enhanced Fact Track is another of the pop-up trivia tracks that are growing in popularity,
supplemental material that provides viewers with some tidbits about various aspects of the film
over the movie itself. Finally, 1080p
trailers for This Christmas, Stomp the Yard, Hitch, Little
Man, and a Blu-ray promotional montage conclude the supplemental materials.
First Sunday left me feeling somewhat let down. I wasn't expecting the next brilliant
comedy, but I did expect to laugh much more than I did, and the movie seemed more a mishmash
of ideas, genres, moods, and themes, ultimately failing to really settle into any one of them so as to
make a point or at least make for a coherent story. I did enjoy the performances by several of the
actors, and after listening to director David Talbert's commentary, I find myself eager to see
what he does next, because even though I was disappointed by this film, his passion for it
and the process of filmmaking leads me to believe he won't settle for anything more than an
enormous step-up in quality in his next film. As a Blu-ray disc, First Sunday is first-rate.
Sporting excellent video quality and a top-tier sound mix, not to mention a good helping of extra
material, this disc is certainly good enough, and fans of the movie should have no reservations
about adding it to their collections.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring the Ice Cube and Tracy Morgan comedy 'First Sunday' to Blu-ray on May 6th, day-and-date with the DVD release. No specs have been announced at this time, but expect 1080p AVC video accompanied by ...
