Legend of Bagger Vance, The

Starring: Will Smith, Matt Damon, Charlize Theron
Director: Robert Redford

Rating: PG-13

Review Posted: 5.7.01

DVD Rating: 6/10

By Dennis Landmann

This movie obviously tanked at the box office. It wasn't that particular factor that didn't make see The Legend of Bagger Vance in theaters, but some variation of it. Since this is somewhat irrelevant here, I'll just move on.

Set in 1931 in the southern United States, The Legend of Bagger Vance, based on the book of the same title by Steve Pressfield, is a timeless tale of a golf, friendship, and the lessons of life. Behind the lens is Robert Redford (A River Runs Through It, The Horse Whisperer). This movie worked here but didn't work there. It's sort of a balance between the two. The camera work is what I liked most about this movie. The story itself and its subsequent message I didn't necessarily care enough about.

In The Legend of Bagger Vance, Adele (Charlize Theron), whose rich father has just died, invites two of the South's best golfers (played by Bruce McGill and Joel Gretsch) to play in a 36-hole golf tournament to celebrate the opening of a new golf course. Savannah politicians want somebody representing their state. Rannulph Junuh (Matt Damon), a World War I war hero, is it. Having lost his authentic swing, he doesn't approve. Then during one night, he meets Bagger Vance (Will Smith). Junuh agrees to play, even though his chances are slim against the two other golfers. Bagger ends up teaching Junuh more about the mentality of golf rather than focusing on how to swing. His advice becomes the basis of Junuh regaining his authentic swing.

Jack Lemmon, who also makes a brief appearance as the elder version of Hardy Greaves (as a young boy he helped out Junuh and Bagger on the golf course), narrates the movie. The Legend of Bagger Vance is predictable in almost every way. With that in mind, it's an average movie. Granted, it's filled with great performances (Damon and whatever Smith can bring to his one-note character) and camera work (Michael Ballhaus deserves an honorable mention), but too many scenes are pressured by Rachel Portman’s otherwise beautiful thematic music. Redford feels the need to cue and urge the music so often, it seems as though the movie cannot stand too well on its own. Okay, this movie is not horrible. I just wanted to clear that up. However, it's not great either, but more of an enjoyable fantasy-like period piece (about golf, strange).

7 out of 10

I would like to believe that this transfer was prepped to its fullest. For some reason, I feel that something is lacking. The Legend of Bagger Vance makes use of a lot of colors and they're not all fleshed out. Talking about colors, the night scenes are kind of bothersome to watch because you can see the blackness shiver. The good things is that I didn't notice scratches. Aside from that, the quality of this one could've been a lot better had somebody taken the initiative to spend some quality time on it.

7 out of 10

I liked the sound quality of this DVD. Surely, it's not the greatest assembly, but it's enough to make Rachel Portman's beautiful score fill the room. The English 5.1 Surround sound isn't bad. It's not loud enough, however, for some portions of the movie. It didn't affect the enjoyment, but it could've been better.

8 out of 10

Speaking of extras, I wish there'd been some deleted scenes. I bet my arse this movie was longer than 2 hours and 6 minutes. I guess Robert Redford didn't want to include them (just like Sam Mendes optioned to leave them out of the American Beauty DVD release; shame to both of them). I can get over it. Okay. Moving on.

Wait, there's not a whole lot to begin with. There's a short commentary by Robert Redford over images of the movie. This lasts about 4-5 minutes and basically deals with his thoughts on the movie. Big deal. Then there's the run-of-the-mill behind-the-scenes featurette. Running a measly 4 minutes, it's filled with mindless interviews and some behind-the-scenes footage (nothing substantial).

Of course, let's not forget the teaser and trailer. Apart from the usual production notes, the talent files are actually not that bad. Instead of the usual short bio/filmographies of the cast and crew (includes a greater variety crew members), this DVD skips over that aspect and shows that somebody cared enough to spend some quality time writing these up.

So, basically, these features are a laugh. A commentary by Redford and/or the stars would've been a treat, but it didn't come to that sadly. Only get this DVD if you really liked the movie. Otherwise, don't bother looking into it.

3 out of 10

If you've read the above, you know my overall feeling.

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