In this hilarious teen movie that paved the way for Fast Times at Ridgemont High and The Breakfast Club, Bobby DeVito (Bruno Kirby, City Slickers) is the “senior campaign strategist” in a highly contested high school student body presidential election. Christine Alexander (Lee Purcell, Mr. Majestyk) is Bobby’s former girlfriend who’s almost guaranteed to win the election…because her opponent got suspended! To get even with Christine for breaking up with him, Bobby puts up an unknown candidate, Darryl Fitzgerald (John Friedrich, The Wanderers)—and the presidential race gets nasty! This irresistible ’70s cult comedy classic from director Martin Davidson (The Lords of Flatbush, Eddie and the Cruisers) features Didi Conn (Grease), Tim Matheson (Up the Creek) and a rockin’ soundtrack from Mike Love of The Beach Boys!

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Video Quality

Almost Summer debuts on Blu-Ray with a digital AVC encoded 1080p transfer derived from a new 2K master. The presentation is pretty pleasing throughout with only the occasional mark against it. Overall clarity and detail is pretty solid with natural skin tones and subtle facial features that are easily noticeable in closeup. Black levels are admirable in their depth with only some of the nighttime scenes lacking some precise detail. This transfer maintains the natural film grain of the presentation and only runs slightly on the soft side in a handful of shots, most likely due to limitations of the original source material. Colors appear stable with some of the hues in the clothing popping off the screen, and instances of print damage have been cleaned up immensely with only the occasional specks and marks visible. This new presentation from Scorpion Releasing is a fine effort for the long-unavailable film, which should please those who have been eagerly anticipating a proper release.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray disc comes with a lossless DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track that captures the intended aesthetic of the film quite well. Dialogue is very clearly defined and does not get lost among the din of the school hallways. Environmental sounds such as car sounds and the general murmuring in the auditorium and classrooms are rendered well alongside everything else. The score and music of the film from Mike Love provides the perfect breezy atmosphere for this story that maintains excellent fidelity. There is never a sense that this one is suffering from wear and tear. There are rarely moments where it threatens to overwhelm competing sounds, as elements work together in harmony. Scorpion Releasing has given this film a rock solid audio presentation.

Special Features

Interview with Director Martin Davidson: A new 21-minute interview with Davidson in which he discusses developing the initial idea into a full script, how two competing projects combined into one story, his joy working with the performers, a certain crew member he had a major disagreement with, the music in the film, the themes of the film and more.

Interview with Star Lee Purcell: A new 22-minute interview with Purcell in which she discusses how she came to the project, the environment of the set, touring with The Beach Boys, her relationship with the cast after the film, going undercover at a real high school, the tone of the picture, the legacy of the film and more.

Interview with Star Tim Matheson: A new 27-minute interview with Matheson in which he discusses his early career as a child performer, filming most of his major scenes in two days, the casting and bonding on the set, scenes that were cut from the film, his admiration for Martin Davidson, thoughts on other performances from his career, lessons he has learned over the years and more.

Interview with Costume Designer Sandra Davidson: A new seven-minute interview in which Davidson discusses taking over for a more established costume designer, the experience of working with the talented workers at Universal, constructing costumes for specific characters, memories of working with certain performers and more.

Trailers: The three-and-a-half-minute trailer for Almost Summer is provided here. There are also trailers provided for California Dreaming, Teen Witch, 9/30/55 and Where The Boys Are.

Final Thoughts

Almost Summer provides a very entertaining blueprint for teen movies that want to have more substance than the frothy output of the preceding era. It is the element of humanity within the narrative that gets you more deeply invested, making gags even funnier and the emotional moments actually register. The ensemble that director Martin Davidson assembled for this one is not lacking in talent, and his direction strikes the perfect tone to make this one stand out. Scorpion Releasing and Kino Classics have released a new Blu-Ray with a strong A/V presentation and some great special features. This movie has long been difficult to find, so fans who have been awaiting this one should be thrilled with what has been delivered. Recommended

Almost Summer is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Scorpion Releasing and Kino Classics have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.