Movie Review: Sex, Lies and Videotape Blu-ray

Andie MacDowell, James Spader, Peter Gallagher and Laura San Giacomo come face to face with adultery, marriage and what people will say during a taped video interview on Sex, Lies and Videotape.

Film making 20/25
Video 15/25
Audio 16/25
Bonus Features 10/25
Total 61/100

Sex, Lies and Videotape stars Andie MacDowell as Ann Bishop Mullany, a typical housewife with a lawyer husband who is having an affair with Ann's sister. Okay, not your typical housewife but husband John is your typical cheating husband who lies his way through his affair and seems not to care unless his wife suspects.

John asks an old friend to visit when he hears he is down on his luck and Graham played by James Spader brings his odd passion to town. Graham ends up finding an apartment in town and visits a few times with bored housewife Ann and they do become friends.

Alex visits Graham in his new apartment and Alex sees a collection of videotapes on his table and asks about them and why the names are all women. Graham explains they are interviews and she wants to see them but Graham says he promised not to show them to anyone else.

Alex pushes and Graham confides that the interviews are about sex and Alex is dumbfounded and she almost runs out the door. This starts the whole sex and videotape part of the title and the show continues with the ultimate and inevitable Ann finding out her husband is having an affair and she haves an affair with Graham.

John finds out about the interview and affair his wife has as revenge and the show ends with John probably losing his job because of his continual absences from the office for his rendezvous'. Ann does forgive her sister and they make plans to talk later but Graham is still in the picture as Ann's friend and lover.

Ann also helped Graham out of his problems due to a past girlfriend who left him and started his obsession with videotaping women about their sexual lives. Sex, Lies and Videotape is a really good look at relationships and the inevitable affair we know is going to happen in the fim somewhere.

The film is slow going at the start but does pick up some in the middle but like others have said we do know what is coming and just can't wait to see just how things turn out. Sex, Lies and Videotape is well worth a second look and a good film for its morale debate even if it is a bit aged but not outdated.

The films transfer to high definition is not all that great even with the explanation in the bonus content about the process of transfer and spiffing things up for the Blu-ray edition. The video is grainy and colors are not at their best for a Blu-ray release but this film was released in the late 1980's so it does look good for its age.

The colors are muted throughout and the film comes off as a lower production quality but that may have been the intent of director Steven Soderbergh as he did approve the release. Audio is a bit better than video with good front sound and voice but surround is not all that much better than audio with an admitted lack of back and subwoofer effects.

Both the audio and video are a bit lesser quality but for a film from the 80's it is pretty decent, this is more of a purchase if you don't already own it. The bonus content is also lacking with a very quick peek at the reunion during the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and a few other features about the film and the usual audio commentary.

The film is a good one but I'm not sure a very high rating overall is warranted but it is worth at least a rental or purchase if you don't already own it. Sex, Lies and Videotape is a great look at the human condition when things get a bit stale and boring and what a little change can start.