Casino is my first chance to really compare the difference between standard DVD and HD-DVD, since I bought the Special Edition DVD last year but somehow never got around to viewing it. By all accounts the transfer on that standard DVD was stunning, and indeed it is. But compare it to the HD-DVD version and the differences become obvious, even on a screen only capable of displaying 768i resolution rather than the full-blown 1080i that the HD-DVD offers.
It's on scenes where there are detailed backgrounds that the differences really stand out. Up close (3 to 4 feet) on a 50" plasma there is significant blooming around background characters on the standard DVD version, and they're blurred and fuzzy. On the HD-DVD the blooming is gone and detail is such that eg what looks like a blurry photo frame on standard DVD turns out to be a press clipping that can be read on HD-DVD.
In other words, the HD-DVD release of Martin Scorsese's 1995 film about the mob-controlled casino's in the 1970's is another superb HD-DVD release from Universal. If they could just change the nasty little plastic flap lever for opening the HD-DVD case for the standard open/close mechanism that the other studios use this release would be almost perfect.
Not that the picture quality is everything of course, it's the film that matters, and whilst Casino has its flaws - a reliance on too much voice-over narration, and lack of a real story until the second half of the movie being the most obvious ones - there's a reason why so many of the published reviews of this film start with the words 'An under-rated....'!
Robert de Niro plays Sam 'Ace' Rothstein, a money maker for the mob who runs the Tangiers casino, with Joe Pesci playing his partner in crime, and all-round heavy, Nicky Santoro. As the film opens the two take turns in explaining via a voice-over the whole Las Vegas narration, the key players and each other. One senses the two men are rivals, although the film explains their first meeting and subsequent friendship and reliance on each other that sets the scene for what is to follow.
Rothstein makes the mistake of falling in love with Ginger, a psychotic but beautiful wheeler- dealer, played by Sharon Stone in what is undoubtedly the performance of her career, and when the two get married the successful operation the two men have built up starts to visibly crumble. As the film explores the problems Ginger introduces, the real story starts to take shape and we move from what starts off being a pseudo-documentary turns into more of a story with plot, dialogue and real characters that begins to justify the three hour running time. By the time the film reaches its climax one feels one has been witness to an epic of film-making, albeit one that critics have correctly identified as being under-rated. However it is one of those epics that you have to invest time and effort in and which demands that you pay attention throughout.
The film is based on the real story of what happened when the mob tried to put its own men in suits to run the casinos, with side stories showing the incestuous nature of the Nevada State's politics, and the effect this has on how things are run. The film is extremely violent in places with four letter words constantly being spoken, as one might expect from a film based around mob politics. Rothstein may not be a nice man, but the audience is never left in any doubt about whose side they're on, thanks to a deft performance from de Niro. He may come across as a thug in sheep's clothing (a very bright, dandyish sheep it must be said), but if you were gambling in Las Vegas he's the guy you'd want keeping an eye on things. You know that he'd make sure your stay was a pleasant one.
If there is a criticism to be made of the film, it's that maybe the direction is just a bit too 'flash'. There are some wonderful, technically innovative shots here, but they often take you out of the film, carrying a bit too much 'Look at me! Look at me!' about them. However, with performances this good, this is a minor quibble, and if you have a high-definition player this should certainly be near the top of your list of disks to have a look at. It has a depth which pays repeated viewings, and there aren't many films that can be said of these days!
The extra's from the special edition issued on standard DVD have been copied over pretty much intact, with nothing new for the high definition version. The commentary track, entitled 'Moments with Martin Scorsese, Sharon Stone, Nicholas Pileggi and more' is not a commentary as such, more a series of interview edits that may or may not have made the final cut of the other featurettes included. You're better off just watching the featurettes most of the material has been taken from. On the surface there are three of these featurettes: The Cast and Characters, The Look, and After the Filming, but in truth they're a one hour documentary artificially split up to give the impression there's more here than might otherwise appear to be the case. The Deleted Scenes add nothing, being primarily alternative takes or extended versions of scenes included in the film. Nevertheless there's enough information here to keep most fans happy, and at least the featurettes are original material with some depth, as opposed to marketing exercises made to ensure a free advert on a TV station, endlessly repeating clips interspersed with just a couple of minutes from the cast.
Casino is a great movie from a great director, presented in the best possible format on HD-DVD. I highly recommend it.
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