Hot newcomers Josie (Rachael Leigh Cook), Melody (Tara Reid), and Val (Rosario Dawson) are three small-town musicians with big dreams but little future. Then fate gives the Pussycats the chance of a lifetime when manager Wyatt (Alan Cumming) of MegaRecords signs them overnight to an awesome recording contract. Suddenly, Josie and the Pussycats are living life in the fast lane with sold-out concerts, a number one single and global stardom. But it’s not all limousines and private jets. The Pussycats soon discover they’re being played like pawns in an evil plot by the record label’s maniacal CEO Fiona (Parker Posey) to control the youth of America.
For thoughts on Josie And The Pussycats, please see my colleague Cornelio Villadragones’ previous op-ed here.
Video Quality
Josie And The Pussycats gets a solid upgrade to Blu-Ray courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment, but with it comes many issues that could have been avoided in parts. The transfer is sourced from a strong older master provided by Universal Pictures for its Blu-Ray debut. The biggest issue with this disc is not the occasional speck of damage to the print, but rather the compression artifacts and occasional macroblocking that plague most of the film. The presentation struggles when it comes to textural detail as the image presents as a bit soft at times. The colors are one of the standout aspects of the disc, as many of the colorful locations and outfits wow pretty splendidly. Skin tones mostly look natural, but the presentation offers up some fairly weak black levels. The disc experiences a fair amount of black crush that can be unsightly. Mill Creek Entertainment has provided a Blu-Ray disc that is a big step up from DVD, but not the homerun we could have had thanks to compression issues.
Audio Quality
Mill Creek Entertainment brings us this new Blu-Ray with a lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix that is a stealth powerhouse. The dialogue holds up quite nicely, coming though clearly without being stepped on by the music or sound effects. The environmental effects are delineated nicely and given a dynamic placement throughout the speakers. The sounds of raucous crowds along with a slew of other sounds bring nuanced life to the rear speakers. The movie features many incredibly catchy songs which gives this movie life and sound great within the mix. This is a track that was way more dynamic than I ever expected it to be. A truly pleasing experience.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Directors Deborah Kaplan, Harry Elfont and Producer Marc Platt deliver an enjoyable and informative commentary track in which they discuss trying to turn the sky pink in the first scene, the appearance of the fellas from Dujour, the product placement in the film, the music in the film, the last-minute shots they had to pick up for the film, the costume designs and more that makes for a good listen.
- Backstage Pass: A 24-minute vintage featurette which features the cast and crew discussing the film interspersed with clips. This is packaged as more of a fluff piece which delves a bit into each major character, the general arc of the film, the music, the wardrobe and more. The best parts are the less structured glimpses of the performers rehearsing and bonding.
- Behind The Scenes: A 23-minute piece which gives you more of what worked in the previous piece including copious amounts of footage of rehearsals and setting up certain sequences.
- Deleted Scenes: Four minutes of unused footage including a grand Parker Posey entrance, an autograph signing session and more.
- Music Videos
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- Josie and the Pussycats – “3 Small Words” (2:54)
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- Dujour – “Backdoor Lover” (3:43)
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- Dujour – “Around The World” (2:59)
- Theatrical Trailer: The two-and-a-half minute trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
Josie And The Pussycats is an incredibly fun and hilarious send up of the entertainment industry and the toxic commodification of pop music. Do not let the kitten ears fool you, this is a clever film that is bound to charm even the most cynical audience member. The performances all stem from a joyous place and capture the bubblegum spirit of the original cartoon perfectly. Mill Creek Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray featuring a pretty good A/V presentation and a nice array of legacy special features. Fans of the film will be thrilled to finally have this one in high definition. Recommended
Josie And The Pussycats is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Mill Creek Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
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