Phil Alden Robinson’s touching, whimsical, fantasy/drama 'Field of Dreams' is our generation’s 'It’s a Wonderful Life'; a life-affirming, feel-good fable about family, baseball and daring to dream. Kevin Costner strikes just the right note of innocence, cynicism, wonder and earthiness as Ray Kinsella, an ordinary Iowa farmer who hears a voice telling him to plow under his corn and construct a baseball field. Soon after, ghosts of long-dead baseball players -- including Ray’s and his father’s idol, the disgraced "Shoeless" Joe Jackson—show up to play ball. Ray soon embarks on a journey of discovery -- egged on by his mysterious "voice"—that ultimately leads him to a reconciliation with his long-dead father. 'Field of Dreams' isn’t about baseball per se, but it uses baseball as a metaphor for life and the afterlife.
Sounds corny? You betcha. This movie’s plot is a tough-sell, and the challenges the filmmakers underwent to convince studio bosses that this would work onscreen is just one of the topics covered in both a made-for-laserdisc documentary and a running audio commentary by the director, both of which are priceless features of MCA/Universal’s deluxe Signature Collection Edition of 'Field of Dreams'.
The film is letterboxed for its theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1, though nothing is gained to the sides of the image when compared to the full-screen version. Nevertheless, the framing is always satisfactory. The colors are richer and the contrast level is more pronounced when compared to the previous MCA letterboxed reissue. The framing is almost the same on both letterboxed versions, with a slight "shift" to the right on this new disc (a sliver of additional picture information is seen on the right while the same amount is cut off the left; the top and bottom lines are identical). The sound is also the same—the film basically plays in monaural, with stereo/surround effects that highlight James Horner’s lovely score.
Following the film on side 2 is the theatrical trailer. Having seen the movie dozens of times (it’s one of my all-time sentimental favorites), I was eager to see the trailer (somehow, it eluded me in theaters during the summer of 1989). Well, the trailer is really awful, at least from a marketing point of view. But that only reaffirms what a tough sell this movie was, and that its multi-layered plot cannot—and should not—be compressed into a 2-minute highlight reel.
On sides 3 and 4 there’s the made-for-laser "scrapbook"—a virtual journal of the making of 'Field of Dreams' that covers every aspect of the film’s production. Through present-day interviews with director Robinson, James Earl Jones, Timothy Busfield, composer James Horner and production designer Dennis Gassner; in addition to 1989 interviews with "Shoeless Joe" author W. P. Kinsella (the source novel), Robinson, Kevin Costner and Burt Lancaster, we’re treated to a no-stone-left-unturned history of the film, peppered with many fascinating anecdotes and examples of what the director simply calls 'Field of Dreams' moments—unexplained, unanticipated "accidents" or occurrences that gave everyone pause enough to feel that there was a good cloud hanging over the production, a positive omen that made the arduous summer shoot that much more meaningful.
One of the many highlights of the documentary is an in-depth interview with composer Horner—the power of the film’s emotional core is due in large part to Horner’s majestic score, and it’s really great to see a laserdisc documentary spotlight this oft-overlooked and underappreciated area of filmmaking. Horner’s score is isolated on the analog tracks (in stereo) of side 3. The musical program is identical to the existing CD of the soundtrack, though it would have been nice to include some of the orchestrations and music cues from the movie that were not included on the CD. Also, it would have been considerate of MCA to program appropriate chapter stops corresponding to the individual music tracks of the soundtrack (take a look at Criterion’s 'Taxi Driver' or Image’s 'The Fog' to appreciate how isolated music tracks can be chapter-stopped individually for easy access).
The audio commentary track by director Robinson and cinematographer John Lindley is highly informative. Without detracting from the wondrous spirit of the film and without ruining its magic, they dissect the movie and explain how they achieved the visual effects, justify their many creative compromises and relate with great fondness their experiences working with such a terrific cast and crew.
The supplementary section also includes still frames of posters; hundreds of photographs; text articles about baseball, corn farming and the real "Moonlight" Graham; and the entire screenplay. The gatefold jacket opens up to reveal 6 pages of photos, just like a real scrapbook album. The chapter stops are identical to the previous letterboxed version (with the same chapter titles, too) and the perfectly-timed side break has been duplicated as well.
'Field of Dreams' turned out to be the great Burt Lancaster’s final film appearance. Watching his magical performance as "Moonlight" Graham and knowing that it’s his final role gives the film that more emotional resonance. This wonderful film is a fitting epitaph.
On a financial note, don’t think I haven’t taken notice that MCA/Universal’s retail price for a 2-disc Signature Collection laserdisc has progressively risen over the past few months ($69 for 'Dragon'; $79 for 'Tremors'; $89 for 'Field of Dreams' and $99 for the upcoming 'Apollo 13'). Normally, I’d take this opportunity to complain, but as long as enough supplementary material is crammed into the discs to warrant a higher price tag, then all’s cool. In the case of 'Field of Dreams', I can safely say the plentiful supplementaries justify the price increase.
Vital statistics: MCA/Universal; 4 sides; CLV/CAV; Widescreen (1.85:1); Stereo Surround; Chapter stops; Closed captioned; $89.95.
S. Damien Segal.
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