One From the Heart: Reprise - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

When everyone starts discussing the best movies that take place on July 4th, certain films are projected out including, The Sandlot, Independence Day, Jaws, and even Return of the Living Dead. Nobody remembers that The Godfather filmmaker himself, Francis Ford Coppola, made a film that took place on July 4th. Not only was it a narrative feature, but it was a musical with every song and composition written by Tom Waits. The movie in question is One From The Heart which after its release, plagued the iconic Coppola for decades due to its poor standing amongst critics and box office receipts. Revisiting it today, it's easy to see how much a champion Coppola is for indie filmmaking and experimenting with movies and his actors because so many films have been inspired by One From The Heart ranging from Kill Bill to La La Land.

One From The Heart pretty much bankrupted Coppola since he fronted most of his money at the time to make the film his way which put him $26 million in the hole. The movie barely grossed half a million even though its score was nominated for an Oscar. Originally, One From the Heart was written as a straightforward romantic comedy about a couple who breaks up on their 5th anniversary to go out with who they think is their soulmate. Coppola had other intentions that forced bigger budgets and crew to quit over his ideas. The result is a completely staged abnormal musical that is shot entirely on a studio lot where Coppola had his people build a giant set of Las Vegas in 1982. In its average 95-minute runtime, this musical does NOT feature any actor singing a song, but rather has Tom Waits and Crystal Gayle's soundtrack tell the story as the characters fall in and out of love in Las Vegas.

The scene in Kill Bill when Uma Thurman is landing in Tokyo that features those stage-like buildings of the Japanese skyline is how One From The Heart looks, or how La La Land incorporated a set design to make it look like every big musical number was outside when in fact some of it was in a studio is what Coppola was looking for. That transforms into big musical numbers of what looks like downtown Vegas, however, as the camera pans up to the sky, it's clear that there is a padded roof above. That aside, the narrative that follows Hank (Frederic Forrest) and his woman Fannie (Teri Garr) who broke up on their anniversary could have gone the comedy path. Hank eventually sees a traveling woman in the circus where Fannie falls for a waiter who is desperately trying to be a big Vegas lounge act played expertly by Raul Julia. This could have gone to extremes with the Odd Couple-like flow of comedic dialogue.

Instead, Coppola saw the artful love inside this couple who want to rediscover their passion for one another in the form of big dance numbers in the streets of Las Vegas or having a junkyard's choir of car horns and lights that display talent and love for these two characters who require each other but have forgotten it. The performances are nuanced in each actor's face as their emotions pour out over sexual desires and sadness for finding something more in a partner. Their physical performances transfer to energetic dance numbers like watching a conductor make magic with their symphony. There's something beneath the surface of this couple that isn't always explored due to the intense visual styles of neon lights and set designs but the thought is there.

This is a one-of-a-kind movie where one of the biggest directors of all time after the two Godfathers and Apocalypse Now was released, decided to take his own money and make a bizarre musical with nobody singing in it. Despite it being a failure, over time, many critics and fans have amassed praise for the film, especially for its great soundtrack from Tom Waits that evokes a jazz, blues, and country vibe to the notes with his cigarette-coated voice, along with the performances from everyone involved. One From The Heart still goes on more than 40 years later as an original creation from a once fantastic director who is still trying to make his unique vision for the world to see.

Vital Disc Stats: The Ultra HD Blu-ray
One From The Heart dances its way to 4K + Blu-ray + Digital Code via Lionsgate and Studio Canal. The two discs are housed inside a hard, black plastic case. There is no cardboard sleeve. There is an insert for a digital code. The artwork features a rough illustration of a woman walking down the street in Las Vegas.

One From The Heart travels to 4K for the first time. About twelve years ago, this movie was released as part of a box set honoring Francis Ford Coppola on Blu-ray. This particular movie did NOT look good at all and had tons of visual issues with its transfer. The new 2160p and 1080p transfers now look amazing with most of its problems fixed.

The 2160p 4K image with Dolby Vision is magical in its odd 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The color palette is filled with dazzling life inside the Las Vegas strip, along with the couple's home address. Neon signs capture the visual cues of love and loss perfectly with tons of reds, pinks, blues, greens, and purples that touch every element of set design. Even the couple's house has neon signs attached to it. The lighting goes a long way to show those emotional colors of what the characters are feeling that now with the help of Dolby Vision are allowed to breathe in their lighting conditions or darker interiors with zero video noise or banding. Black levels are inky and rich and the skin tones are natural when in appropriate lighting.

The detail is sharper than ever, revealing facial pores, individual hairs and stubble, makeup applications, fake eyelashes, and even set design in the ceilings that should be the sky. Even the matte paintings are painfully visible here, however, that is the style Coppola wanted and it looks wonderful. Textures in the costumes and props look amazing, especially the metallic textures of the vehicles. The grain is fine-tuned keeping its filmic quality. There are finally no major problems with this movie making it the best it's ever looked.

This release comes with both a DTS-HD 5.1 audio mix and a DTS-HD 2.0 option. Naturally, the 5.1 track is the way to go because it is allowed to breathe during the music cues. This is a front-heavy audio mix where the dialogue is clean, clear, and easy to understand. But when sequences inside the restaurant or downtown are on screen, the surround speakers have robust sound effects and ambient noises or people talking and walking by. The score and song list give life to this film and is easily the best part of the audio track with each note hitting the perfect pitch. The low end of the bass has a good rumble to it during each song. There are no problems to speak of.

There are over four hours of bonus materials here, both new and vintage that cover every aspect of the movie. The commentary track from Coppola is still great to listen to.

4K Disc

• Reprise Cut (UHD, 94 Mins.) - This new Reprise cut runs at 94 minutes whereas the 1982 cut was ten minutes longer. This gets more confusing when the original release in theaters is 98 minutes.
• Audio Commentary - A vintage commentary track is included from the previous release where Francis Ford Coppola himself delivers a candid interview about the practical sets and how he got the movie made, for better or worse.
• The Look of One From The Heart (HD, 18 Mins.) - This is a new archival extra that talks about the cinematography and production design of the movie with some great interviews.
• The Cast of One From The Heart (HD, 22 Mins.) - Here's another new archival bonus feature that focuses on the casting for the movie with more interviews.
• The Choreography of One From The Heart (HD, 25 Mins.) - Kenny Ortega and Gene Kelly himself worked on the dance numbers for this movie and they are both here in this archival interview discussing their contributions to the movie.
• Reinventing the Musical (HD, 25 Mins.) - Director Baz Luhrmann talks about this musical and its impact on modern movies in this new interview.
• Restoration Process (HD, 4 Mins.) - A new look via split screen on the different restorations from 2003 and this year on the movie where anyone could see the visual problems on the previous release.
• Trailer (HD, 1 Min.) - A trailer for the 4K.

Blu-ray Disc

• 1982 Cut (HD, 104 Mins.) - The longer cut of the film with some additions.
• The Making of One From The Heart (SD, 24 Mins.) - A vintage behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie with on-set footage and interviews.
• The Dream Studio (SD, 29 Mins.) - This focuses on Coppola's movie studio American Zoetrope, and how it was influential in the movie business.
• The Electronic Cinema (SD, 10 Mins.) - This great featurette explores how Coppola was imagining what the future was going to look like in terms of technology, music, and movies with some funny reactions.
• Tom Waits (SD, 14 Mins.) - The best piece on here is a look at Tom Waits talking about the music of the film with a cigarette in his mouth or hand at all times.
• Deleted Scenes (SD, 35 Mins.) - There are quite a few scenes that are new to this release that were not included in previous versions.
• Videotaped Rehearsals (SD, 9 Mins.) - These are some raw footage of some of the scenes from the movie before they were shot.
• Coppola Speaks to Exhibitors (SD, 2 Mins.) - Coppola tells the potential buyers about his movie.
• Press Conference (SD, 8 Mins.) - A 1981 snippet of the cast and crew talking about the movie from a screening.
• Music Video (SD, 4 Mins.) - The big song from the film in music video format.
• Stop Motion Demo (SD, 4 Mins.) - A stop-motion rehearsal is included.
• Tom Waits Score (SD, 25 Mins.) - Here are some alternate tracks from Tom Waits' score.
• Trailer (SD, 2 Mins.) - A trailer for the film.

One From The Heart is a strange diamond in the rough some 40 years later. Coppola's ability to make a musical without anyone singing is fantastic even if the narrative falls flat at moments where the director focused more on brilliant visuals. The two-disc set of 4K and Blu-ray that have the correct video presentations look amazing with its new Dolby Vision. And the DTS-HD 5.1 audio tracks sound exquisite with Tom Waits's voice. There are tons of bonus features to boot. Highly Recommended! 

Order Your Copy of One From the Heart on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray