The Film
Gee, old people are funny, aren't they? Well, probably not as funny as you remember. Somehow, Cocoon seemed a lot funnier and cooler back in 1985. Watching it now, though, it's more of a game of "dead or alive" (as in "Is that actor...?") -- and that isn't as much fun as it sounds.
Still, it's a Ron Howard joint -- an early one. Somewhere in between the hilarity of Night Shift and the controversy of Angels & Demons, Howard got all goofy and gave us Cocoon.
In Howard's post-Happy Days world, aliens are friendly, but a lot less funny than Mork from Ork. They peel their own flesh, look like creepy balls of light, and seem to love Steve Guttenberg (who doesn't??). They also like to keep their buddies in cocoons, submerged in a swimming pool.
Considering that the movie is about a bunch of old people, this 1.85:1 transfer looks surprisingly fresh. It's a super clean transfer, too. In fact, it's so clean, we'd swear some of Hume Cronyn's wrinkles are missing. That said, it's a bit on the dark side and there are a few soft shots throughout the movie. It's nothing too traumatic. If anything, it's during those moments where you might actually forget about the bad special effects. Make sure you stay awake for the climactic boat scene, which has some of the brightest, best imagery in the entire movie.
The Sound
Like the characters, Cocoon's DTS-HD Master Audio track has its share of excitement. While most of the movie revolves around dialogue, there are plenty of water sounds, dolphins chirping, and even a bit of nightclub chatter. The one ka-boom moment will be during Jack's poolroom romp with Kitty (or whatever the heck that was). Other than that, the totally '80s soundtrack doesn't help the film hold up all that well, but it does give the speakers something to do in this front-heavy mix.
The Extras
Fox cleared out the attic and slapped a few old featurettes into this disappointing section. How do we know they are old? Aside from the fact that Howard is mentioned as being "only 31," he looks a lot more like Richie Cunningham than the seasoned director we now know and love. Also, his profile is a whole whopping 2.5 minutes, well, because he hasn't done all of his cool directing stuff yet. Aside from that, everything comes off as sort of cheesy and promotional. It's as if they pulled together a bunch of clips and quickie interviews, handed them to one narrator and told him to "have at them." Because the material is dated, don't expect to unearth any gems here.
Final Thoughts
Apparently, the aliens that are our friends just aren't all that entertaining. Where's a good flesh-eating E.T. when you need one? Cocoon's message still holds up, but very little else does. We love Don Ameche break-dancing as much as the next Academy voter (he got an Oscar for that!). However, lame special effects and a boring Blu-ray transfer don't make this title very worthy of an update, especially if you own the film in any other format.
Product Details
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