DVD Review - She's the One

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Site created 12/15/97.

review added: 2/6/01

She's the One
1996 (2000) - 20th Century Fox

review by Brad Pilcher of The Digital Bits

Enhanced for 16x9 TVs

Film Rating: B-

Disc Ratings (Video/Audio/Extras): B/B/B+

Specs and Features

97 mins, R, letterboxed widescreen (1.85:1), 16x9 enhanced, full frame (1.33:1), dual-sided, single-layered, Amaray keep case packaging, audio commentary by director Edward Burns, theatrical trailer, music video for Walls by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, "behind-the-scenes" featurette, scene access (24 chapters), film-themed menu screens, languages: English (DD 4.0 & 2.0), French (DD 2.0), subtitles: English, Spanish, Closed Captioned

Mickey: "Why are you getting so upset Dad? You don't even believe in God."

Mickey's Dad: "That doesn't mean I'm going to stop being a good Catholic."

So Ed Burns goes and makes The Brothers McMullen for $25,000, gets it in at Sundance, wins the Grand Jury Prize and scores himself a distribution deal. Now he gets to make whatever movie he wants, for whatever budget he wants. Sound like a sweet deal? Well, it is. She's the One, the film that came next, is just as sweet. Well... maybe semi-sweet.

My enthusiasm for She's the One comes from its witty script and rock solid performances. Admittedly, the film gets a little deflated, because the story starts to run out of gas near the end. But it's still very cute right 'til the credits roll. It may not stay as engaging the whole way through, having its ups and downs as a movie, but for a sophomore effort, Burns really shows he has chops as a filmmaker. The most important thing is that it stays funny. And boy... does Ed Burns know his dialogue.

The story runs like this. Ed Burns (aside from writing and directing) plays Mickey, a cabbie in New York. One day, Hope (Maxine Bahns) slips into his back seat. She's heading to New Orleans, but doesn't like planes. He agrees to drive her to New Orleans... and they're married the next day. Yeah, you heard me. When they get back to New York, Mickey's brother, an undiluted prick that works on Wall Street (played by Mike McGlone), is pissed that his bro got married without him. He's also cheating on his wife (Jennifer Aniston) with Heather (played by Cameron Diaz - tough life, huh?). Meanwhile, their Dad (John Mahoney) is playing referee. Oh yeah... and Hope forgot to tell Mickey that she's moving to Paris soon and she wants him to go with her. What the hell, you know?

If She's the One's story sounds as busy as The Brothers McMullen's, it is. The problem? It's not all that different from the earlier film. It just has a bigger budget, a few real actors, better lighting lighting and lots of product placement. It's witty, and the realism of the characters gets it off the ground a bit, but it never soars. After a while, it just conks out on fumes.

This DVD, however, is nice. The video is solid with good color balance and an absence of heavy grain. Source defects don't show up either, but the picture does seem a bit soft. The audio is good as well, nicely integrating a light score by Tom Petty (which sort of came together by accident) with the dialogue.

But it's the extras where the disc breaks out of the mediocrity of its subject matter. To start with, we have the music video for Tom Petty's Walls. It's an abstract little thing, but since I don't review videos I'll leave it for you to judge. A little fluffy featurette introduces us to the first ever movie set for Burns, and we get to see the actors stroke his ego. I will never get the image of Cameron Diaz, saying she's cool because she's been in an Eddie Burns movie, from my head. Mix in the obligatory trailer, and then you're prepped for the real meat here: Ed Burns's audio commentary. Unfortunately, he rehashes much from his commentary on The Brothers McMullen, but he manages to add some new insights and point out the biggest differences between a $3 million budget and a $25,000 budget. If you've ever wanted to make a shoestring budget film, Ed Burns commentary tracks are a good place to learn how.

For what it is, She's the One on DVD makes for a nice little afternoon diversion. If you're a fan, I'm sure you'll want it to your collection. And it's definitely worth a rent for everyone else.

Brad Pilcher
bradpilcher@thedigitalbits.com

She's the One

Stories From Long Island (Ed Burns 3-disc set)