Stormy Monday Blu-Ray Review

Cast:
*Sean Bean as Brendan
*Melanie Griffith as Kate
*Tommy Lee Jones as Cosmo
*Sting as Finney

Story: Sean Bean plays Brendan, a young loafer taken under the wing of jazz club owner Finney (Sting), who’s under pressure from American mobster Cosmo (Jones) to sell up in exchange for a cut of a local land development deal. Brendan just wants to earn an honest crust, but his burgeoning relationship with Cosmo’s ex-lover Kate (Griffith) threatens to drag him into the middle of the impending showdown.

There’s something to be said about a film that is a competently made film but holds no interest for the viewer. This is the case with Stormy Monday a 1988 film that combines crime, romance and a noir-feel. It’s a movie that is technically good but has a story mired in murky plot and performances that don’t showcase the actors properly.

The film follows Kate, the former lover of Cosmo (and maybe also his employee) who meets up with Brendan, a man who wants to make an honest living but instead gets in the middle of a property battle that turns criminal. The whole time, Kate and Brendan are also trying to keep their new relationship going and Cosmo is battling Finney through nefarious means to get Finney’s club to shut down.

As you can probably tell, the plot is a bit convoluted and uninteresting. There are portions of the script that could have been a good movie on their own, but everything’s jammed together into a mess. It wants to be a pulpy crime drama, a star-crossed lovers romance film and a weird third film about land development. The three plots do not combine well and make the film a slog to get to, which is a shame because there is a lot to like about Stormy Monday.

First of all, you cannot go wrong with Roger Deakins on cinematography. The man just won the Oscar for his work and this was at the start of his career. Nonetheless, one of the best aspects of Stormy Monday is its look. It has a gritty appearance to it, putting its noir aspirations on its sleeve. The film has a great, moody atmosphere thanks to the cinematography, showing promise of what was to come from Deakins. Visually, there’s nothing wrong with what you get here.

Tommy Lee Jones is also great in it. As the American mobster Cosmo, he gives a great villainous without making it so obvious. It’s clear he enjoys playing a bad guy and with what he’s given, he gives arguably the best performance in the movie. Unfortunately, another reason Jones stands out is because the other performances are subdued. Sean Bean do an unmemorable, if serviceable job, while Griffith appears to be on autopilot even in scenes where she’s meant to be charming or likable. It’s a disappointment to have a cast this stacked and they don’t appear to have a lot to work with.

Of course, a lot of this could depend on your personal view. The film does get praise, for its atmosphere and mood, a well as a visual flair. If you can get into the story, you’ll find some decent enough performances as well, especially from Jones. However, the story tries to mix different elements to little success and the lack of enthusiasm from its stars makes this a chore to sit through in spite of its positives.

Film: 5.5

Arrow Video presents Stormy Monday with a LPCM 2.0 audio track. Another plus for the film is the score and soundtrack, so to hear them clear and clean is great.

Audio: 8.0

The video quality is right on par with the audio, which is good because it allows you to take in the most interesting part of the film. The film is presented with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1.

Video: 8.0

Special Features

Audio Commentary with writer/director Mike Figgis: The musician and filmmaker goes into detail about putting this low-budget feature together, which was his debut as a director. The commentary is hosted by Damon Wise.

Just the Same? Stormy Monday 30 Years On: A location tour and visual essay of the film with the unfortunately named historian Neil Young. It’s interesting enough, and doesn’t wear out its welcome at half an hour.

The release also has a trailer and photo gallery. It’s a decent enough selection of features for this movie, but not much to look at.

Special Features: 4.5

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

Stormy Monday is a slightly below average hodgepodge of genres, with disappointing performances from most of the cast that betrays the excellent cinematography. Arrow Video's release also looks and sounds good but lacks enough features for the people who will want them.