Palmetto Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this enjoyable Blu-ray release
A recently released ex-con gets involved in a fake kidnapping scheme that turns very real.
For more about Palmetto and the Palmetto Blu-ray release, see Palmetto Blu-ray Review published by Randy Miller III on October 11, 2023 where this Blu-ray release scored 3.0 out of 5.
Volker Schlöndorff's Palmetto, now celebrating its 25th anniversary with a long-overdue Blu-ray edition from Warner Archive, is a sweaty
southern neo-noir that barely registered with theater-goers back in 1998. Saddled with a death-sentence February release date that year, it features
a memorable atmosphere, solid performances, and not one but two femme fatales, all of which outshine its fairly questionable and patchy
script. Try as it might, Palmetto would be replaced almost immediately in the public consciousness by Wild Things just a few short months later, but is now ripe for
rediscovery thanks to the boutique label's occasional willingness to release films made after the 1950s.
Our hapless protagonist is former reporter Harry Barber (Woody Harrelson), fresh from a two-year stint in prison after being framed for a political
corruption scandal. Though grateful for the commuted sentence, he's still angry about what landed him there and thus reluctant to return to
his hometown of Palmetto, Florida. As luck would have it, Harry's sexy girlfriend Nina (Gina Gershon) is waiting for him outside the prison gate and
seduces Harry back home, and it won't be the last time his libido gets him in trouble. Finding work proves difficult so, for the time being, he shacks
up with Nina in her art studio and hangs out at a local bar despite staying adamantly sober. It's here where Harry meets gorgeous Rhea Malroux
(Elisabeth Shue), wife of wealthy Felix (Rolf Hoppe) and stepmom to teenage Odette (Chloë Sevigny); after kinda returning Rhea's lost
purse, they meet up later where she fills him in on a job offer. Also, boobs.
In short, Rhea plans to have Odette "kidnapped" for a $500,000 ransom; she's in on it too, and Harry will be tasked with brokering the deal and
gets 10% for himself. Skeptical of both the mother and daughter, he secretly records them during separate meetings but has trouble maintaining
composure with their aggressively alluring nature. After Odette flees town and Harry's ransom note is delivered, the story is leaked to local
authorities and his detective brother-in-law John Renick (Tom Wright), taking pity on Harry's wrongfully ruined reputation, offers him a position as
press liaison on the case. Harry's a reasonably smart man but woefully unequipped to navigate both sides, especially after a few twists and turns
make his already precipitous situation even worse. Without question, this man's in over his head.
There are parts of Palmetto I love, and the long-gestating rep as "forgotten 90s neo-noir" works in its favor. The story is appropriately
twisted but clearly overstuffed, with an intoxicating atmosphere that stokes Harry's increasingly grim future. Gina Gershon, Elizabeth Shue, and
Chloë Sevigny all work overtime with the vamping, although the former is stuck in a thankless role. This leads to my main complaint: it's no fault
of Woody Harrelson's performance, but Harry Barber is is basically set up to fail in the sympathy department. His former life as a noble reporter
seems questionable based on Harry's post-prison behavior, where his ruthless treatment of Nina (which later builds to an almost laughably
unbelievable interaction after a body is discovered), theft, and other actions don't make him an easy character to get behind. Not all noir fall
guys need to be on the straight and narrow... but almost no one's likeable in Palmetto, which kept me from becoming immersed in a
story that feels unquestionably more "guilty" than "pleasure". A tighter script, fewer characters, and less of a reliance on twists and turns would
have yielded stronger results for sure.
Upon its release, Palmetto was (mostly unfavorably) compared to Lawrence Kasdan's 1981 debut film Body Heat, which it doesn't borrow entire elements of its story
from yet certainly resembles in tone. But there's a scene after the halfway mark lifted wholesale from Fritz Lang's 1944 proto-noir The Woman in the
Window, where our hapless main character visits a crime scene with police and jokingly hints at his own guilt multiple times.
Palmetto falls well below both earlier noirs and countless others, but it's at least a mostly fun and frivolous outing that, if nothing else, kept
the neo-noir fire burning. Warner Archive attempts to resurrect it on Blu-ray a full quarter-century later and, despite a lack of extras, the sterling
A/V presentation will absolutely thrill anyone looking to retire their 1998 snapper-case DVD.
Released in the early days of DVD, it's not surprising that Palmetto never earned a second life on Blu-ray; I could've maybe seen this
as part of a neo-noir multi-disc collection, but not a stand-alone release. That makes its 1080p debut from Warner Archive all the more fortunate, and
I'd imagine that stalwart fans have had this on pre-order for months. Regardless, its relatively young age -- at least by Archive standards --
means that it probably didn't need a fresh new 4K scan of the original camera negative with extensive manual cleanup, although its transfer is simply
advertised as being sourced from "a new master" and that's it. Whatever the source material, this solid-looking disc showcases the film's understated
cinematography, boasting strong image detail that pinpoints almost every bead of sweat on close-ups and medium shots alike. Color reproduction and
black levels are superb, film grain is slight but present, and as a whole this is just a consistently solid presentation that's cleanly and capably encoded
on a dual-layer disc.
The same holds true for Palmetto's DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix, which features clean, crisp dialogue and well-mixed background effects that
rarely fight for attention. Since Palmetto is extremely light on action, the only noticeable rear-channel atmospherics other than general
room/location ambiance arrive in the form of Klaus Doldinger's jazzy original score, which enjoys a rich and dynamic presence bolstered by a potent
mid-range. This obviously isn't a demo-worthy track by any means, but it certainly gets the job done and outperforms the DVD's lossy surround mix.
Optional English (SDH) subtitles are offered during the main feature only.
This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with original poster-themed cover artwork and no inserts. Sadly aside from the original trailer, no bonus
features have been included -- not surprising, but disappointing nonetheless.
Theatrical Trailer (2:06) - This vintage promotional piece can also be seen here.
Volker Schlöndorff's southern neo-noir Palmetto didn't exactly light the box office on fire in 1998, although it's enjoyed a steadily increasing
cult following in the 25 years since. I can't count myself among those who herald it as some sort of undiscovered masterpiece, but this one certainly
has a few charms including a potent atmosphere and several solid performances at its core. Warner Archive brings it to Blu-ray in this belated but
welcome release, a basically movie-only disc led by the boutique label's consistently great A/V touch. It's obviously recommended to die-hard fans
looking to retire their DVDs, but may not be the best blind buy unless you're extremely intrigued by the cast or genre.
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2023 was a very unusual year for me. I added to my library the largest number of genre films ever, and I could not pick up everything I liked. On top of this, I ordered the largest number of box sets with classic TV content, though not all of them were new releases. ...
Warner Archive has announced its September batch of Blu-ray releases. They are: Palmetto (1998), Saratoga (1937), Westward the Women (1951), Christopher Strong (1933), Before Night Falls (2000), and Cats Don't Dance (1997).
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