FOUL PLAY (Kino Lorber)

Foul Play
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: Native 4K 2160p / 1080p High Definition
Audio: 5.0 with 2.0 option in the Audio menu
Subtitles: English SDH

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by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Foul Play comes to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. A loving pastiche of the mystery genre from Harold and Maude screenwriter Colin Higgins in his directorial debut, Foul Play turns numerous genre clichés on their heads. The Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber is a worthy upgrade for fans of the film, with engaging features giving insight into its place in film history.

The Movie: Average

When librarian Gloria Mundy (Goldie Hawn) picks up a hitchhiker on her way back to San Francisco, she unknowingly sets into motion a series of events that will find her life in danger, her sanity questioned, and put her directly in the path of tomcat detective Tony Carlson (Chevy Chase). The two then find themselves embroiled in a conspiracy to assassinate the Pope and after crossing paths with some colorful characters, notably Gloria's landlord Mr. Hennessey (Burgess Meredith) and horndog orchestra conductor Stanley (Dudley Moore), they might just save the day.

I like this cast a lot--in addition to those mentioned above, notable character actors Brian Dennehy and Billy Barty appear in minor roles--and I'm frequently in the pocket for films that blend genres, especially when they can play the serious stuff straight, while still allowing the comedy to work its way in organically. But nothing tickles me about Foul Play more than all the loving homages to Alfred Hitchcock. This was Colin Higgins directorial debut, but he had previously written the amazing Harold and Maude (1971) and Silver Streak (1976), which is another thematic love letter to Hitch.

Foul Play takes the Hitchcock Blonde (Hawn), the bumbling but charming, Cary Grant-ish male lead (Chase), and swaps them. Gloria and Detective Tony's roles are essentially reversed. She's the more competent one, repeatedly getting herself out of one spot of trouble, only to find her in a new, usually much worse one, while Tony for the most part just tags along. He's the arm candy. In fact during the finale, there's a fistfight between one of the conspirators and Mr. Hennessey--was Burgess Meredith really 71 when this came out?!?!--while Gloria and Det. Tony watch and cheer.

What I enjoyed most was the way Higgins lampooned the idea of MacGuffins. If you're unaware, a MacGuffin was Hitch's term for the thing that gets the characters involved in the plot that the audience doesn't really have to care about. Here we have the microfilm and the phrase "Beware the dwarf". Neither amounts to very much, being extremely tangentially related to the central conspiracy at best, but there's something kind of lovely about that. It gives the whole film a kind of "it's the journey, not the destination" feel.

Ultimately though, Foul Play didn't really blow my hair back. It's not bad by any means, and contains a lot of elements I generally like, but something just didn't fully connect for me. Despite now having watched the film multiple times, I just have a problem getting into the rhythm of it. The comedy and the thriller aspects never really gel for me and just feel like they're getting in each others' way.

The Packaging: Good

The cover here is a lively illustration of Gloria embracing Tony from behind with him firing a pistol from within his raincoat pocket. The illustration, from Birney Lettick (the artist responsible for the Valley Girl, Escape from Alcatraz, and Heaven Can Wait posters), is excellent and includes a fantastic logo that borders the two characters. It's just very fun.

The Kino release also includes a slipcover featuring that same illustration.

The Video: Good

This looks wonderful overall. The film grain is present, but not to a distracting degree and the shadows and colors are both incredibly rich. I particularly loved the exterior footage in the San Francisco area, especially at night. There are soft halos around the lights, and seeing the various hues of the buildings and clothing rising from the depths of the shadows is pure eye candy.

The interiors definitely have a certain flatness generally, and look like film sets, but that sort of added to the Hitchcock homage for me? His films contained such a degree of forethought with regards to shot composition that their artificiality, at times, became a positive facet and not a negative. At times, Foul Play feels like that--Stanley's "beaver trap" apartment for instance--and that actually works very well overall.

The Audio: (poor / fair / average / good / excellent)

I had no real issues with the audio in Foul Play aside from one general note: on the whole, the film seems to be balanced more towards the high and middle range, with less low-end. I have a three-channel sound bar (as much to preserve my built-in TV speakers as anything else) and, a few moments aside, I could crank it up reasonably high before I experienced any low-end rattling.

I have no way of proving this, but I wonder if they used Ready to Take a Chance Again, Barry Manilow's theme from the film, as a guide--the way engineers at a live venue will frequently use "perfectly mixed" albums like Steely Dan's Aja to adjust to the space--because the song, which plays a handful of times, sounds full and excellent.

The Special Features: (poor / fair / average / good / excellent)

Aside from what is becoming a repeat request--a Play All option for the trailers--the special features are really engrossing. The interview with sound designer Nicholas Eliopoulos is fascinating and really gave a proper context to Colin Higgins' career, though during the commentary track, Max Evry does repeat the information given by Eliopoulos in a few spots. That aside, both Evry and Bryan Reesman are very knowledgeable and likeable.

• Audio commentary by entertainment journalists / authors Bryan Reesman and Max Evry
• Fair Play: Remembering Colin Higgins
• Theatrical trailers, TV, and radio spots:
• Foul Play (HD)
• Foul Play (original)
• Bird on a Wire (1990)
• Deceived (1991)
• Fletch (1985)
• Fletch Lives (1989)
• The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982)

In Summary: Snag a used copy

As mentioned in the special features, Colin Higgins' has a very interesting, if sadly abridged, filmography. That alone might be enough for someone to want to pick this up, and if so: you won't be disappointed on any of the technical merits. Likewise, if you already enjoy this film and are looking to add a modern quality copy to your library. From the standpoint of sheer technical quality, Foul Play is very solid.

If, however, you're unfamiliar with the film and are perhaps intrigued by the concept of Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase in a thriller / comedy, you might be a little underwhelmed. For me, the humor works on its own, but feels largely separate from the plot. Still, Foul Play is decently enjoyable, if a bit, as the kids say, mid overall.