..Gary
Dretzka
..Noah
Forrest
..Leonard
Klady
..R.J.
Matson
..David
Poland
..Douglas
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
..Michael
Wilmington
..The DVD Page
An Early Frost
The first telefilm to broach the subject of AIDS and codify the disease as a topic for network television drama, An Early Frost, has been released as a Special Collector’s Edition by Wolfe (UPC#754703762603, $20). The 1985 program was instantaneously clichéd, but seen today, those clichés are very effective at conveying, accurately, the atmosphere and popular attitudes of the time. Additionally, the film has a heavyweight cast, with Aidan Quinn as the patient, Ben Gazzara and Gena Rowlands as his well-meaning but apprehensive parents, and John Glover as another patient who is further advanced with the disease. The story is essentially about the homecoming of Quinn’s character, with everyone opening up emotionally to come to terms with his lifestyle and his condition. Like so many successful telefilms, the 97-minute feature may not be overly challenging, but it is inherently watchable and re-watchable, and that, combined with its groundbreaking subject matter, makes it a classic.The full screen picture transfer is not really befitting a Collector’s Edition. There are passages when the colors look moderately fresh, but much of the time the image is bland and fleshtones are pale. The picture is also somewhat soft and grainy. The monophonic sound is passable, but as an indication of sloppiness, one commercial bumper—a title card—has been left in, about three-quarters of the way through the program, while no others appear. The presentation has optional English subtitles and comes with a good 24-minute 1986 documentary, Living with AIDS, which presents a profile of one terribly young adult San Francisco patient.
There is also a commentary, featuring Quinn and writers Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman. They reminisce about the shoot, talk about the impact the film had (both Glover and Quinn had to cope long after the show was broadcast with rumors of illness and even death), and the elaborate effort it took to get the film financed and broadcast. The network’s on-set censors drove Quinn nuts, and even had problems with Sylvia Sydney when her character was supposed to display some grandmotherly affection. “See, this is important, because she does kiss him. NBC wouldn’t let us, originally. This was like one of the biggest fights we had on this movie. They had to call the CDC in Atlanta and talk to James Kern, who was the head of the CDC at that time, for him to explain to NBC how important it was to show grandma give the boy a kiss, a grandma kiss, to show that it can’t be transmitted that way. He said, ‘That’s one of the most important things in the movie. You have to show that.’ Only because of his intervention did they allow that to happen. Sylvia Sydney said, ‘Either I kiss the kid, or I walk.’ She was adamant about kissing him. And yet, I would have to say that despite all of their interference and their fear, [NBC] nonetheless made this movie, in 1985.”
August 16, 2006
DVD Roundup: This Week's DVD Releases
The Review VaultDouglas Pratt's DVD-Laser Disc Newsletter is published monthly.
For a free sample, call (516)594-9304 or go to his website at www.DVDLaser.com
