This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Warren R Schmidt: Jack Nicholson
Jeannie Schmidt: Hope Davis
Randall Hertzel: Dermot Mulroney
Roberta Hertzel: Kathy Bates
Helen Schmidt: June Squibb
Larry Hertzel: Howard Hesseman
John Rusk: Harry Groener
Vicki Rusk: Connie Ray
Ray Nichols: Len Cariou
Warren R. Schmidt has retired, and he's at a loss.
He's been married to the same woman for 42 years and has been working in the
same job for as long as he can remember. When the time comes to finally give
up the 9-5, his plans stretch only to buying a 35-foot Winnebago and visiting
their daughter for her impending wedding.
Then when a life-changing event occurs and he responds to a TV advert to
sponsor a child in a Third World country and so writes regularly to six-year-old
Ndugu, which forms the basis for the fact that the movie has a narration from
Jack Nicholson as the main character.
When I started watching this and got about 45 minutes into it, it seemed like
it was trying to be the dour part of One Foot in the Grave, with Schmidt
handing over his job to a young upstart played by Matt Winston, son of
special effects maestro Stan Winston, and most recently seen in Six Feet
Under as choirister Terry; he sees that all his old work files have simply
been thrown out with the trash and he sinks into a feeling of worthlessnness.
About Schmidt is a nice unassuming little drama that turns into
a road movie without much bite to it, but one that makes for a mildly-diverting
two hours. However, after the first hour, while I don't mind decent films that
take a while to set the scene, I was expecting it to pick up past that point
but it didn't really - it just went on in the same vein. It's like Nicholson
has the capacity to turn Schmidt into a Victor Meldrew-type character but it's
a road not taken.
Schmidt visits old haunts including his college, but it proves that as we get
older and relay past experiences to new people, the only ones interested in
those tales are ourselves. What we also learn from the film is about trying to
right the wrongs in one's life and wondering how much of a difference, if any,
you've made to other people's lives.
Over two hours of time, it could've still picked up the pace from time
to time, and not shown Kathy Bates first topless and then naked. As
for the cast, Nicholson is perfectly fine in his role but it's one he could
sleepwalk through, Bates plays the same low-key role she's played in scores
of films and dramas and the rest fill their own shoes without much to get
excited about.
The film is in the presented in the original cinema ratio of 1.85:1 and
is anamorphic, but any motion a bit hazy sometimes. This isn't a major problem
but for such a recent film the transfer could've been a lot better. No problems
with the sound, but such a drama doesn't get the chance to shine in the sonic
department so the DTS track is largely wasted.
There's few extras which are as follows:
Deleted Scenes (22½ mins):
Nine scenes, all of which are pretty inconsequential to the overall movie
given how they just reinforce a point sometimes. They're okay to watch as
extras but they're not missed from the final cut. All are in anamorphic 1.85:1.
The Woodmen Tower sequences (11½ mins):
Five short films, in letterbox 1.85:1, meant to be like corporate films
showing off the Woodmen building and its surroundings, but it's little more
than alternate opening sequences that you won't watch again.
Trailer :
One, in 16:9 anamorphic, just over 2 minutes long. I prefer to watch these
afterwards in case they give something away, but this one's pretty good for
not doing that.
There are subtitles in English only, a decent 26 chapters to the movie
and a simple main menu with a small amount of music rotated endlessly.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
