An anonymous note sets off a romantic chain-mail reaction with hilarious results in this letter-perfect comedy that really pushes the envelope! When high school heartthrob Michael (C. Thomas Howell, Red Dawn, The Hitcher) receives an unsigned love letter, he assumes it’s from knock-out prom queen Deborah Anne (Kelly Preston, Twins, The Experts) instead of pretty honor student Toni (Lori Loughlin, Back to the Beach, TV’s Full House). And when Michael accidentally misplaces the letter, the juicy jottings soon make their way into the hands of the whole neighborhood, touching off a scandalously sexy soap opera of mixed-up motives, mistaken identities and merrily misfired emotions! It’s a fast and funny farce where the laughs are unsigned, sealed and delivered! Featuring Fred Ward, Dee Wallace, Leigh Taylor-Young, Cliff De Young, Casey Siemaszko, Courtney Gains and Corey Haim.
For thoughts on Secret Admirer, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
[youtube https://youtu.be/ryBLRvEkLeE?t=1740]
Video Quality
Kino Classics presents Secret Admirer with an enjoyable upgrade in the form of a new 1080p transfer in 1.85:1 that comes from a new 2K scan of the 35mm Interpositive. The film was previously released on Blu-Ray by Olive Films with a dated master, but we do not have that release to compare directly. A few fleeting instances of minor specks remain, but this release looks pretty terrific overall. The color palette is natural and bright with vibrant colors within the sun-drenched environment that are striking with deep saturation. Skin tones appear to be natural and robust with fine detail in all instances.
The presentation offers up some fairly deep black levels that only begin to crush ever so slightly in the darkest moments. The uptick in fine detail reveals many amazing nuances within the production design, costumes and landscapes. There does not appear to have been any digital manipulation of the source. The transfer retains the natural film grain which mostly avoids any compression artifacts and other such digital anomalies. Kino Classics has done really good work here.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a stellar DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio split mono track that brings this material to life quite capably despite not being a preferred stereo track. The vibrant soundtrack comes through with perfect clarity which establishes the tone of the narrative. Despite the presence of the music, nothing ever overshadows the dialogue or other pertinent information. This track shows no obvious instances of age related wear and tear such as hissing, distortion or popping. The dialogue and background noises are balanced well with all competing elements. All of the sound effects and music appear to be accurate to the intent of the original soundscape. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Director David Greenwalt, Co-Writer Jim Kouf and Associate Producer Lynn Kouf deliver a very lively and enlightening commentary track in which they discuss the initial origins of this project as a Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner vehicle, adapting their ideas for a high school setting, the shooting locations, the casting of the ensemble, memories from the production and more.
- Radio Spots: A minute-and-a-half collection of radio spots are provided here.
- Trailers: There is a minute-and-a-half trailer provided for Secret Admirer. There are also trailers provided for The Experts, Up The Creek, Losin’ It, The Allnighter, Get Crazy, The Wild Life, Gotcha! and The Secret Of My Success.
Final Thoughts
Secret Admirer is along the lines of your typical ‘80s sex comedy, but it has some special characteristics that make it stand out as a fun watch. The pairing of Kelly Preston and Lori Loughlin makes this an instant must-watch, even if the character development of the lead played by C. Thomas Howell leaves something to be desired. This film also places a greater emphasis on the adult cast, who put in some really fun performances such as Fred Ward and Dee Wallace. There are some dated and disappointing choices in the script, but overall the film is a pleasant diversion for the time period in which it was made. Kino Classics has provided a new Blu-Ray featuring a pretty solid A/V presentation and a couple decent special features. If you have a soft spot for ‘80s comedies, this is a fine watch. Recommended
Secret Admirer (Special Edition) 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: Kino Classics 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.
