The Dukes: An Observation of the Small Screen vs. the Big Screen

One of the perks of writing for a website like Phillyist is that you are able to view movies ahead of time, sometimes by way of a DVD screener sent by a publicist. In anticipation of my recent interview with actor/director Robert Davi, I was sent an advance copy of his new movie, The Dukes, which I watched on my (admittedly very small) home television set last Friday night. I enjoyed the film just fine and looked forward to conducting the interview with Davi the next day.

In talking to him on Saturday, however, I mentioned that I had seen the movie at home last night. He expressed his frustration over film critics viewing the movie on a screener disc. The advance discs are perhaps of questionable quality, without the proper attention that would go into a final DVD version made ready for sale. More of a concern to Davi was that he wants the viewer to be able to see the movie in the theaters, where all the subtleties and nuances of the production value of the film shine through. During the course of our conversation, he mentioned to me that he'd be very curious to hear what my response would be if I were to go see it at the theater after already having seen it at home. He noted that he hadn't asked anyone to do that before and even said "I'll reimburse you for the ticket, I promise." When a guy like Robert Davi asks you for a favor, you do it.

So, Saturday night after dinner with friends I decided to head over to the United Artists Riverview Stadium theater in South Philly to check out the movie. And yes, if you are keeping tabs, this was only about 24 hours after I had first seen the film.

My perception in seeing it in the theater was more pronounced than I thought it would be. The lovely soundtrack really became more prominent through the theater speakers. I have been humming "So Much In Love" and "Sh-Boom (Life Could Be a Dream)" since we exited the auditorium. As a collective audience in America, we are so accustomed to getting a commercial jingle or the latest pop song stuck in our heads, so it's been refreshing to now have Doo-Wop as my inner soundtrack. As a filmmaker, Davi took explicit interest in the overall lyrical quality of the film, using sound to assist in telling the tale of Doo-Wop singers past their prime.

The Dukes is a testament to what can be done on a small budget, used wisely. Davi has maximized the potential of the film with a fantastic cast and production values that show that even without a lot of high tech, a film can still be worthwhile. Davi cites early Italian cinema as his influences, and it shows. The picture reminds me of so many of the European films I've watched over the years, using its large cast of characters to juxtapose the dark complexity of life's troubles against comedy that could almost be classified as slapstick. It's no wonder that the film has done well at film festivals including Cinema Rome Film Festival and Monte-Carlo Film Festival de la Comédie.

It is said that movies are recession proof, though in these days of cutting corners, many people are saying "Oh, I'll just wait for the DVD." But conducting this experiment was a wonderful reminder that movies belong on the big screen, and The Dukes is no exception to that rule.