..Gary
Dretzka
..Noah
Forrest
..Leonard
Klady
..R.J.
Matson
..David
Poland
..Douglas
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
..Michael
Wilmington
..Episode Guide ..MCN DVD Page Sedgwick Makes Her Mark ...
The Closer
Making the transition from waif to proactive crime solver, Kyra Sedgwick has landed a role that may end up defining her career, playing an Atlanta cop with brilliant interrogation skills who moves to Los Angeles to head a specialized crime unit in The Closer: The Complete First Season, a Warner Home Video release (UPC#0125698064025, $40). Clearly patterned after Monk, Sedgwick's character is eccentric and quirky, and at first her team resents her presence, although one by one, over the course of the season, they begin to see the value of her mind and operating methods. The challenge the show faces is whether it can move beyond that dynamic in the following season, since by the end, everybody is behind her. In any case, the mysteries are very entertaining and Sedgwick delivers an Emmy-worthy effort in the lead role. Pay close attention, incidentally, to the advertising artwork on the jacket and elsewhere, as Sedgwick is being sold as a blonde babe backed by a group of admiring men, when within the show itself her character is rarely glamorous (except when a specific interrogation calls for it) and has an amusing battle with food that carries on throughout the season.
The season's thirteen 46-minute episodes are presented on four platters in letterboxed format only, with an aspect ratio of about 1.85:1 and, disappointingly, no 16:9 enhancement. The color transfer is fine and the stereo surround sound has a reasonable dimensionality. There are optional French and Spanish subtitles, and English captioning.
In Episode 1: Pilot, a female corpse with no face is found in a millionaire's house, and the millionaire has disappeared. The episode also introduces the characters and their initial conflicts. In a witty story point, Sedgwick's character gets a gradual makeover as she visits the last stops the wife of a movie star made before she was poisoned in Episode 2: About Face. There is a good plot twist in Episode 3: The Big Picture, when a hooker with a VIP client list is discovered murdered.
Not one of the better efforts, a sniper is killing gang members in Episode 4: Show Yourself. The ending is reasonably interesting, but the effort is a bit farfetched as a whole. John de Lancie guest stars in Episode 5: Flashpoint, an engaging tale about the murder of a psychotic teenager. In the witty Episode 6: Fantasy Date, Sedgwick's character is attacked by a man in a mask while investigating the murder of a woman who was apparently killed under the same circumstances, and yet it turns out the man has a viable excuse for attacking her. The logic of the plot is stretched a bit, but it still works. A judge is shot in a park in Episode 7: You Are Here, and his autistic son is missing.
A man is killed in an apparent gay bashing incident in Episode 8: Batter Up, but as Sedgwick's character works her way through the witnesses' stories, some things don't add up. The episode's depiction of gay characters may already feel a little dated, but it serves the story well. There are some good twists in Episode 9: Good Housekeeping, as a relatively innocent suspect winds up dead following the investigation of the murder of a young illegal immigrant. In the amusing Episode 10: The Butler Did It, three spoiled heirs are all pointing fingers at one another after the family butler apparently hangs himself. There is an inspired Least Likely Suspect, and a great deal of humor in the antics of the other suspects.
The principal suspect in a murder turns out to be an FBI informer in Episode 11: L.A. Woman. Presenting a character who may become a continuing nemesis in the series, the victim of a serial killer turns out to have been misidentified in Episode 12: Fatal Retraction, and so the heroes must sort out the facts of the case before the killer is freed from prison. In the finale, Episode 13: Standards and Practices, the heroine's investigation of a filmmaker who was found dead in his Jacuzzi is interrupted by office politics that almost force her out of the department.
Six of the episodes are accompanied by deleted scenes, which run a total of 19 minutes and often present more character conflicts that were wisely softened for the finished shows.
July 15, 2006
DVD Roundup: This Week's DVD Releases
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