Review of Feeling Minnesota

Introduction

It`s amazing what little sub-genres of cinema crop up from time to time. Just when you think you are watching a unique and original idea, another three come along like the proverbial London bus. In the mid to late nineties, one particular sub-genre was the rom-com road movie. Nothing like your traditional rom-com, it would have a boy meets girl scenario, then adversity would have them flee (ideally in a Cadillac) and after facing challenges and bad guys, with various laws broken and an impressive body count, girl and boy would drive off into the sunset to live happily ever after. It was a curious blend of dark humour, action and thrills that appealed to me, starting with True Romance and continuing with A Life Less Ordinary. Feeling Minnesota, made in 1996 is another film in that same thin vein, albeit with it`s own unique style.

Jjaks and Sam have always had a rather overblown sibling rivalry. Something that hasn`t been dulled by years spent apart due to their parents divorce. Since then, the elder Sam has become an accountant for the local small-time crime boss Red, while Jjaks has been in and out of jail for minor crimes. Red comes to believe that Freddie has been ripping him off, and the worst thing that he can think of to do to her is to give him as gift to his accountant. Sam of course is ecstatic to be marrying such a pretty young thing, despite her reluctance and has even gone as far as to put a down-payment on a house, courtesy of Red`s cash. It`s to this wedding that Jjaks arrives, freshly released from prison. When Freddie learns that Jjaks is Sam`s brother, she instantly breaks her wedding vows in the toilet, as a way of getting back at Sam. However she doesn`t count on falling in love with Jjaks. Pretty soon, the two of them are on the run, chased by Sam and the local bent cop, Ben Costikyan.

Video

The picture is a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer that is acceptable for the most part. There is a hint of grain that rears its head from time to time, but the image itself is clear and sharp for the most part. Minnesota is hardly the most colourful of settings though, and the film has a gritty winter feel to it, with plenty of greys and browns. It`s all shot in a very indie style, but there are some stunning scenes among all the bleakness, and some impressive cinematography. It does feel a little like Manchester though.

Audio

Feeling Minnesota is a little hard done by in the sound department though, with merely a DD 2.0 Stereo mix, which is a little surprising for a recent film. It`s a pretty straightforward track with few bells and whistles, The dialogue is clear which is the most important thing, especially given that there are no subtitles. Given a film of this nature, the music as you would expect is choice.

Features

EiV have thrown in about half an hour of extra material all presented in 4:3 and DD 2.0, including of course the theatrical trailer.

There is the featurette, which is the expected PR guff piece that lasts about 5 minutes in total. There is a little bit of interview footage, coupled with a lot of trailer footage.

More important are the interviews. Cameron Diaz, Dan Aykroyd, Stacey Sher, Steven Baigelman, Keanu Reeves and Vincent D`Onofrio all contribute. Some of the interview footage is repeated in the featurette, but this collection of interviews lacks any irrelevant movie footage, and the cast and crew go into more detail about the film and their characters.

I must admit that the sound seemed a little off for the interviews, as if they had been recorded in a tunnel, or cavern.

Conclusion

Feeling Minnesota is right up my street, featuring offbeat characters, a witty script and a well thought out plot. However, given True Romance and A Life Less Ordinary, it does seem almost an unnecessary addition to the sub-genre, going over much of the same ground and in the same vein. It does manage to shift away from the similarities, by also focussing on the relationship between the two brothers, who are not the sharpest tools in the shed to put it mildly.

However, the similarities to A Life Less Ordinary go beyond merely the presence of Delroy Lindo and Cameron Diaz. The character that Diaz plays, Freddie is almost identical to who she plays in the other film. In both movies, hers is the character that catalyses the events and motivates the story, in both she is the intelligent one while her co-stars fumble around trying to get things right. It tends to invite unfair comparison of the two films, when they have differing stories and styles. Delroy Lindo has a brief but charismatic role as Red, although he has to sport the most ridiculous haircut. Jjaks is perhaps the stupider of the two brothers, one who is fortunate to find the intelligent Freddie to guide him through life, but Keanu Reeves is perfectly cast in the role, looking permanently bemused, and fainting to comic effect. But Vincent D`Onofrio is the star of this film, as the older brother Sam he is unfortunately the butt of all that goes wrong, and his reactions and mannerisms are entertainment in themselves. However two downsides are Dan Aykroyd in a rare stinker of a role, and the feature film debut of Courtney Love. Aykroyd plays the crooked cop Ben Costikyan with an accent so ridiculous that you don`t know whether he`s serious or playing for laughs. As for this being Courtney Love`s first film, well as long as you know who to blame…

Feeling Minnesota is a little uneven, and you do end up caring more about the brothers than you do about the romance, which I suppose ultimately defeats the point. But the pace is vigorous and lively, and the film is enjoyable to say the least. It has a rich vein of dark humour running through it, and has me laughing out loud every time I watch it. Jjaks and Sam are as fine a double act as I have seen in a while, and the way they bait and trick each other in their sick sibling rivalry is hilarious to behold. It has an independent rough and ready style to it, which is refreshing after a long summer of Hollywood clichés.

In the mood for something different? Give Feeling Minnesota a try. It`s just a shame about the low spec disc.