Bedazzled (US)

What a funny and witty movie this one turned out to be.
I was told to expect very little of it, but was very positively surprised. Both Fraser and Hurley do a great job.
The video transfer is very good. There are no compression signs at all and the colors are simply "leaping out of the screen". The special effects are great.
The DD 5.1 soundtrack is very good as well. The surrounds are used quite frequently for both sound effects and music.
The menus are partially animated with sounds. You can actually choose how the menus look from 4 possible options.
The extras include 2 nice commentaries, an extensive behind the scenes look, a costume design featurette (Hurley would look great no matter what she wore) and a still gallery.
Bottom line - starting with the hilarious opening scene, this is a fun and funny movie. Go for it.

This has a very luke-warm reputaion, but I trust Ramis as a director and quite like Brendan Fraser, so bought this anyway. I found it fairly enjoyable too, it`s not in the same league as Groundhog Day, but that`s probably an unfair comparison.

Bedazzled is supposedly a remake of the Moore/Cook film, but this bares little resemblance to that release, except of course for the central premise. It opens promisingly with a montage of scenes set to music, this depicts the devil scouring the world for souls and assesing the viability of various locations (The Vatican apparently only has one claimed soul).

The movie is basically about Fraser`s character (Elliot) making wishes, in exchange for his soul. Oddly though, he can`t alter his real life, as when he makes a wish he "becomes" someone else living in a fantasy world. When it eventually doesn`t work out, he leaves that world and everything returns to normal. The other main actors play different people in the fantasy too, so it`s more like a Quantum-leap than a life changing option. Once you adjust to this concept, the film is quite entertaining and the various scenarios are all impressive on their own terms.

Something worth mentioning is that Fraser plays several different types of character and he shows his diversity as an actor (believe it or not!). Liz Hurley proves once again that she is extremely limited and her delivery is consistently wooden. Fortunately for her, how the "actual" devil sounds is unknown, so you can ignore her stilted dialogue and tell yourself that the Devil would maybe "try too hard" when speaking too. Pure kidology I know, but she grates and it takes a lot of effort to get past her irritating performance.

Hurley aside, there`s plenty to warrant your time and effort. the other actors are clearly in high-gear and totally convince in their many different guises. The end is partly mis-judged and a tiny bit confusing, but to be fair, how else could they have ended it - kill them all off? send him to hell? Big explosion? There are many unsuitable alternatives, but I`m prepared to let the filmmakers off with a warning this time. the finish is a bit soppy and drippy I know, but this is supposed to be a feel-good movie anyway.

The disc has a superb easter-egg (deleted scene) which is quite lengthy and shows Elliot as a "nasty!" Rock & Roll star. This is a nice addition to an almost complete package. Ramis explains why that scene was cut in his commentary and he was absolutely right. Notably, the DVD is NUON Enhanced (I don`t know either!) and has the picture and sound we`ve come to expect.

Can`t understand why many people rate this movie as one of the year`s best...
It`s a so, so comedy, not with too many laughs. One that you`ll stay tuned on cable TV, but I doubt you`ll want to watch it again and again on your DVD.
Video transfer is very good, sound also, using the surround speakers and sub channel very well.
Elizabeth Hurley and Brendan Fraser seem to be doing something while they had nothing else to do. Theyr acting is a passtime. So is this movie. If you`re a fan of Hurley, she`s better and sexier on Austin Powers. If you`re a fan of Fraser, look for The Mummy.