BLU-RAY
REVIEW: EXTRACT
12/20/09
OVERVIEW: Controversy, competition and a gorgeous con artist turn a typical
American workplace inside out and upside down in the hilarious comedy Extract, available on Blu-ray™ Hi-
Def and DVD on December 22, 2009 from Miramax Films and Buena Vista Home Entertainment. Writer and
director Mike Judge (Office Space, “King of the Hill”) masterminds a fresh and funny look at the life of the
owner and employees of a flavor extract factory as they weather freakish on-the-job accidents, wacky get-
rich-quick schemes and romantic mishaps with unpredictable consequences. Both DVD and Blu-ray
versions include an exclusive featurette that offers Judge fans a revealing glimpse inside the mind of this
comedy original. The Blu-ray version also features extended scenes and a deleted scene not shown in
theaters.
SYNOPSIS: Joel Reynolds (Jason Bateman) is sitting pretty. With a beautiful wife, a comfortable home and the almost
finalized acquisition by General Mills of the culinary extracts business he has built with his loyal lieutenant
Brian (J.K. Simmons), Joel seems to have it all. Except his wife is about as interested in him as she is in
her career (supermarket coupon design), his employees want a piece of the pie and the sweet young thing
with designs on him (Mila Kunis) is really a wily con-artist. On the advice of a drug-addled confidante (Ben
Affleck), Joel cooks up a scheme to cheat with impunity by hiring a gigolo to seduce his wife—only to
discover the young object of his affection is behind a lawsuit by long-time employee Step (Clifton Collins, Jr.) that will scotch the General Mills deal and leave Joel penniless. The best-laid plans unravel with
hilarious results in this off-the wall comedy about life in the not-so-fast lane.
REVIEW: So, the man behind the infamous
Beavis and Butt-head animated series and the motion picture
Office Space, is back again with this fresh, new project. It has
been a while since we’ve last seen a Mike Judge movie on the
big screen so the anticipation was high. I am a big fan of
Office Space so unfortunately my expectations were pretty high
too, assuming that this would be at least as good as Office
Space. Well friends, I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t too
thrilled about this movie. It was funny, direct, realistic, and
down-to-earth but something was missing. Office Space is an icon
of American cinema, it was an instant classic and to this day I
continue to quote from that movie. This movie just doesn’t
reach that level. Okay, okay, so I shouldn’t compare the two
and I should treat them as individual movies. Fine, but it
doesn’t make much of a difference. I was hoping to be in tears
from laughing so hard, but I didn’t come close. It does have
plenty of funny moments but not the rolling on the floor type.
For the most part the humor wasn’t very fresh or new. What
Mike does bring, though, is a knack for making it real; real
life, real people, real situations, exaggerated just a bit for
the sake of the comedy. He also brings quality characters that
we can relate to. This is all very evident in Office Space and
in this picture he carries over his talent. This one is just a
little weaker in the comedy aspect.
Another reason for my level of expectations is that if Mike
could pull off the success of Office Space with a relatively
unknown cast at the time, with the exception of the lovely
Jennifer Anniston, then with the cast that this movie has I was
sure it would be a smash hit. Well, not necessarily I guess.
Highlighted by the star of the film, Jason Bateman, the
performances were good but I’ve seen them do better. Such is
the case for Jason and others like J.K. Simmons, Ben Affleck,
and Mila Kunis. Ah, Mila, she can melt me with those eyes and
her smile. There was an award show held on Spike TV not too long
ago and it had a category along the lines of which is the hotter
Milla (Mila), Jovovich or Kunis, and guess who won? Kunis won
and I agree with that although it is a tight race. I’ve seen
her do better, such as in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, but she
does have one of the more interesting characters in this film. I
think J.K. is an excellent actor but he really didn’t shine as
much with this role. Ben looks mighty strange, almost
unrecognizable, but fitting for this stoner, druggie, Xanax
dealing, bartender bum. He does have some really funny scenes.
One of the more small but memorable roles was done by David
Koechner. He nails his character. And then there’s Gene
Simmons doing some unexpected but captivating cameo work.
The story that this movie tells was nicely laid out. It was easy
to follow and it had some appealing sub-plots. Again, Mike Judge
has the talent of making it very down-to-earth which is a good
thing. The dialogue was also down-to-earth and simple so there
was no over-the-top-of-your-head humor. Don’t get me wrong
folks, this movie wasn’t bad, I just had higher expectations.
It may very well be worth the watch for you, I just recommend
you lighten your expectations.
Film
Review By Cine Marcos
cinemarcos@smartcine.com
BLU-RAY:
The film is
presented in 1080P widescreen in a 1.85:1 aspect ration
preserving its theatrical format. The picture is just flawless,
no complains
in this department. Not only the picture looks great in this
release, also the sound it is good, a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio in
English, that provides a good
complement to the picture. It also includes English and French
In terms of Special Features,
the Blu-ray doesn't include much. The highlight is the
"Mike Judge's Secret Recipe" featurette, which is a
nice behind the scenes with Mike Judge. It also include a total
of five extended and one deleted scenes that just don't add
anything excite to the blu-ray.
VIDEO:
Anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1 aspect ratio) 1080P
AUDIO:
English 5.1 DTS HD/Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, French.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Mike Judge’s Secret
Recipe—What are the ingredients of a classic Mike Judge film? Go straight
to the factory floor to uncover the writer and director’s secrets. From shooting in a real working
factory to the unique cast of characters and situations, Mike Judge always seems to have the right
recipe.
Extended Scenes—5 scenes featuring extended portions with Joel, Dean and Brad that didn’t make
the final cut of the film.
Deleted Scene—Straight from the factory floor, watch this exclusive deleted scene where Dean
explains his rather abrupt departure from Willie’s party the night before and finds out Joel got
punched in the face.
RATING BREAK DOWN:
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