Audio Video News

DVD: My Big Fat Greek Wedding—Warner Brothers
Audio: 3
Video: 3
Extras: 3
It's a rare person who isn't embarrassed by their family's quirks, but writer/actor Nia Vardalos' homage to her parents' and relatives' peculiar traditions captures just the right blend of humor and tenderness to make My Big Fat Greek Wedding charming.

Although the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack doesn't have to work hard in this film, it performs well, with easy-to-understand dialogue and pleasant music. The 1.85:1 anamorphic picture's muted color palette lacks detail in some scenes, but it isn't distracting.

The DVD doesn't have many extras, but what it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality. Commentary from Vardalos, actor John Corbett, and director Joel Zwick reveals that the film was a labor of love for all involved. Not content to stop with merely discussing the production, Vardalos points out some of her family members' cameos in the film and reveals how knowing that her family would see the film shaped its final form.

Even the available languages remain faithful to the film's heritage. After all, when was the last time you saw a DVD that offered Greek subtitles?—Christy Grosz

DVD: Swimfan—20th Century Fox
Audio: 4
Video: 4
Extras: 3
Love quickly turns into obsession in this semi-suspenseful, teen version of Fatal Attraction. Erika Christensen stars as the new girl in school who seduces Ben (Jesse Bradford), only to flip out when he later rejects her. Frankly, most of us are familiar with this story; so, by the time it was done, the people I watched it with only had a couple of comments. One: If a scene involves women falling into a swimming pool, they need to be wearing white shirts. Two: Since when were swimmers considered to be the cool kids?

Much of the 2.35:1 anamorphic picture is almost monochromatic (heavily blue), for effect—but the colors are still richly saturated and contain enough detail to make it impressive. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack also comes through cleanly, with a balanced use of the surrounds. In terms of extras, this double-sided disc includes a making-of featurette with cast interviews, 10 deleted scenes with commentary from director John Polson, and a commentary track by Polson.

Overall, Swimfan is a somewhat predictable film that's not going to knock you out of your seat, but it's executed well enough not to be embarrassing. Go for it on a night when you feel like a little light cinema. When it comes to the wet shirts, well, use your imagination.—Ekua Hagan