Hudson Hawk [DVD]

Interesting that the Box office Summaries do NOT include how much was taken world wide. I enjoyed this film when I first saw it, and enjoy it in the DVD format. The audio is very good, the Video quality is superb. The Amazon is, once again, far of the mark, and shows just how much the editors are out of touch with the fans of these films. Watch the film, give it a chance, and if you have even a cursory knowledge of what works in europe, then you are likely to enjoy it. Yes the story is convoluted, and yes it is a Bruce Willis Pet Project, but its fun, and most people who like it REALLY like it. And the directors commentary is very revealing. From the deliberate continuity gaffs, to the Three Stooges style elements that are included, you can have a fun time, and dont believe everything that the Director says; for example, he says that the use of the Tape rewound was copied from them in a later film, however, POLTERGEIST 3 uses exactly the same trick, and that was done before this was made. Some other points show a little bit of additional ignorance by the director, but on the exposition of the events surrounding the film, its all fun and games, and shows a lot of fun by all, and this fun is indeed very contagious. [Minor Point: IF you like the advertised cover shown above, do not expect to get it , since that snap is from the inside card on the US release, and it was earlier VHS releases that had the above cover, the DVD as at this date, has another shot. less appealing in my opinion, but still good .] ENJOY

This is one of those movies. You either love it or hate it. I heard bad things about it and wasnt expecting much when I first saw it years ago. I bought the DVD years ago and just bought the Amazon stream for my iPad. I love this movie, not for everyone but it fits my sense of humor so 5 stars from me.

Why do so many people seem to expect every movie that comes out to be some sort of artistic triumph? Cant they just enjoy a movie for what it was intended to be, i.e.: just plain fun? I seriously doubt the producers of this film ever had any intentions of it being an Oscar-winner in ANY catagory. They simply wanted to make a movie that people could sit back and relax, let go, and just laugh at. Okay, so the artsy-fartsy crowd doesnt like it. Thats fine, cause I dont like them, either. Pretentious, self-serving, hideously obscure, and mind-numbingly boring this movie is NOT, but that seems to be what the critics consider a good motion picture. Sorry, folks, but I enjoy being entertained, not educated all the time. Sometimes you just want to read a comic book, not a great classic novel. Sometimes you want to watch Bugs Bunny cartoons, not 60 Minutes. Sometimes you want to watch a movie for fun, not to be elevated. THAT is what Hudson Hawk is all about!

There is a “cool” factor in this flick and The script brings great fun in cheek! Bruce Willis’ best effort in my opinion. Never a dull moment with this.

Family loved it

Forget Southland Tales, this movie is a real doozy. If theres a term that defines beyond over-the-top, it would be Hudson Hawk. Theres no way to explain just how bat-scat crazy this movie really is, other than saying its outrageous balderdash. I didnt know what to expect from this, other than the fact that it got panned by critics. I can understand why: its not that it was sold to be one thing but its really something else, this movie was sold to be one thing but it turned out to be too much of everything. That thought can put anyone in a weird position. The bizarreness began when the movie started in a book form, telling about Leonard da Vinci making a conversion device that can turn lead into gold. Jump to the present day (circa 1990), it has the titular character (Willis) bailing out of prison and being escorted by his pal Tommy (Danny Aiello), only to be later greeted by a mob and forced him to steal a statue from a museum. After the heist (while he and Tommy sing, no less), the movie started becoming hazy once an English butler killed a mob boss and broke the statue to find a princess artifact. Later, the same statue was returned to the museum without Hawks knowledge, so when he got there to check it out, there was a sudden sabotage by rich moguls, then he got chased by the mob in an ambulance before hes confronted by another rich mogul and his thugs named after brand-name chocolate bars. Hawk got sent to Rome to work for one faction, then on another faction, only to support a completely different faction with Andie MacDowells character, and from what I can gather, there was an evil plan to use Vincis conversion device and things blow up. In many ways, the plot of the unwilling protagonist getting involved in multiple groups without any real understanding reminds me of the Coens bowling strike, The Big Lebowski. While this is an earlier film compared to the film about a shomer shabbos guy beating up a guys car, The Big Lebowski did keep the clustered plot and its humor subdued. This movie doesnt know how to be subtle, it just goes on the loony path without taking a break. Its completely random at how scenes were set up so Hudson Hawk can be where he has to go and make witty retorts along the way. Nothing about this movie is realistic, almost every slapstick moment includes a Looney Tunes sound effect and multiple cartoon-based gags. Its rather unorthodox that such a zany movie can be so violent and vulgar; characters were cursing and getting sliced, the mood of this movie was all over the place. Does this movie had any idea what to do with a lot of elements it had? It tried to do so much and so fast that the insanity got a bit unnerving. For being such an outrageous movie, Hudson Hawk does maintain this kind of eccentricity for the entire runtime. At least it has the right cast to go with the zaniness, and the zaniness is consistent; just about the entire cast are simply out of their mind, even the one-dimensional love-interest like MacDowell (eventually) becomes as loony as the rest. Its a total mess, but it is a unique mess. There has never been another action-adventure, romantic-comedy, historical, musical, gangster, surreal, product placement movie quite like this. Its an achievement to say the least.

Great cheap no frills blu ray of an absurdist classic

I couldnt find my DVD so I had to purchase the digital version. Quirky comedy, fantastically goofy.

Blown away by the fast service, ordered it and received it the next day. Came in perfect shape, no flaws or scratches. So happy to be able to replace my VHS with a Blu Ray of a great movie.

Just as fun a movie today as I remembered watching it as a child. The blu-ray is a bit grainy, as you would expect, but still good quality even on 4k TVs.