Wayne's World: 30th Anniversary "Party On!" Steelbook - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Wayne's World: 30th Anniversary "Party On!" Steelbook



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


​

Movie
We're not worthy! We're not worthy!

Ah yes, Wayne’s World, one of the most successful films based off of a SNL skit ever (along with Blues Brothers), and also a time capsule back to my youth. Back in 1992 Mike Meyers was a funny comedian, and Dana Carvey was king of the comedy roost (comparatively). He had done a good run on SNL, but this was his first motion picture based off of his Wayne character from SNL, and it was the movie that shot him to super stardom overnight (sadly leaving Dana Carvey in the dust in many ways). It was goofy, a bit insane, but pure early 1990s head rocking fun, just as the mass phenomenon of hair metal and 80s rock excesses were winding down before grunge took over (and instead of partying on, songs were about depression, drugs and how much their life blew).

Best friends Wayne (Michael Meyers), and Garth (Dana Carvey) live in Wayne’s mother’s basement and make a public access TV show called Wayne’s World. Basically just the two metal heads rocking out and having a good old time (Sasha sort of modeled his character of Cody in Step, by Step off of them in a way) and enjoying life. However, movie executive Benjamin Oliver (Rob Lowe, in a post sex tape scandal that revitalized his career) who sees the potential in putting the show on mainstream and polishing it up, decides to give the boys a visit and see if he can “con”-vince the lovable dopes into signing over the show to him so he can put it through the executive blender and put out something the public will enjoy. All the while macking on Wayne’s new girlfriend Cassandra (a 25 year old Tia Carrere, hot off of Showdown in Little Tokyo).

It’s basically the SNL skit expanded into your typical movie plot. Garth and Wayne think they’re going to make it to the big time, only for the fat cats and executives to harsh their buzz and try to make things all corporate and business like. There’s a love interest with Cassandra, lots of hi-jinks and 80s/90s rock music, and the typical happy ending (little fun tidbit, the director Penelope Spheeris and Mike Meyers fought so hard over the final cut ending of the movie that Mike Meyers forced her out and blocked her from coming back in the 1993 sequel) that is so typical of 1990s comedy films.

As much fun as it is, Wayne’s World is a product of it’s time. It was back in the days of the 1990s when hair metal was still around and SNL was actually funny. Mike Meyers new he struck gold with his Wayne character, and after being forced from on high to share the screen with “Garth” (Carvey being the big name back then), they made over $100 million (which back then was a huge thing for a budget movie that was shot in 34 days). HOWEVER, it is a bit hokey and the dumb humor just doesn’t strike home as much as other classics of the same ilk. It’s funny, but if you didn’t grow up in the 80s and early 90s then a lot of the humor just won’t hit as hard. I guess you could say that it’s a product of it’s time and works great for nostalgia, but just isn’t clever enough or timeless enough to stand up to things like Christmas Vacation or Fast Times at Ridgemont High.




Rating:

Rated PG-13 for sex related dialog




Video:

This 1.78:1 framed AVC encode for the steelbook is the same encode used for the 2017 release of the movie, which is a rather uninspired, but genuinely decent encode most of the time. The film opens up with some VERY obvious print debris, but cleans up after that with only a speckle or two here and there. Detail is generally nice, but doesn’t really stand out as super sharp and clear. Colors are a bit on the warm side, with a typical ruddy look that is indicative of the 1990s. While the film’s aesthetics won’t really pop most of the time, I did notice that it was softer than it could have been and the obvious film debris at the beginning of the movie just begs for this to be remastered. Solid, but never jaw dropping, it’s at least clear from OBVIOUS artifacting like heavy handed DNR or compression issues. Simply put, it’s an aging master that could use a face lift, but is still generally pleasing to the eye.









Audio:

The audio track is about the same as the video. It’s solid, but nothing to write home about. The 5.1 Dolby TrueHD mix is very lively in the front of the room with copious amounts of 80s and 90s rock songs, but it doesn’t have that big of a rear room presence. Bass is very mild and subtle, adding in some oomph during the musical numbers, but never really making itself known for the rest of the film. Vocals are clean and clear for the most part, and surrounds do get some mild ambient noise, but this is really a 3.1 mix with only minimal usage of the .1 channel. There’s some ooomph with the sound of plane blasting over head, but generally speaking this is a very rote and bland sounding mix, and something the film has suffered with ever since the VHS days. It is what it is.










Extras:

• Director's Commentary
• Extreme Close-up
• Theatrical Trailer

Final Score: ​

Wayne’s World is purely a product of the early 1990s, and while still hilarious to us older folks, isn’t as relevant to a younger generation. It’s still funny to this kid who grew up right during this time period, and it pretty much MADE Mike Meyers what he is today, but I still look at it as a growing up movie, not something I would put on yearly like Christmas Vacation. The Blu-ray is still the same 2017 encode and audio mix, and the only thing NEW you’re getting is Paramount’s new Steelbook packaging. Much like the steelbook of Planes, Trains and Automobiles, if you already have the movie there is zero need to upgrade unless you’re a rabid steelbook collector. Personally I think the film needs a HEAVY remaster and put in the Paramount Presents lineup of 4K remasters. Fun movie, solid watch.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Mike Meyers, Dana Carvey, Robe Lowe, Tia Carrere, Brian Doyle-Murray, Lee Tergesen, Kurt Fuller
Directed by: Penelope Spheeris
Written by: Mike Myers (Characters), Bonnie Turner, Terry Turner (Screenplay)
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 AVC
Audio: English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1, French DD 2.0, Spanish DD Mono,
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
Studio: Paramount
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 94 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: January February 1st, 2022

Recommendation: Check It Out

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I saw this in the theater and it was a great movie to see..

Not sure if you were aware, for the Queen Bohemian Rhapsody movie, they purposely put in the line with Mike Meyers about the studio executive wanting a song that kids could bang their heads to while in the car so that it could be tied obviously with this movie where they are all banging to Queen Bohemian Rhapsody song. lol. Not sure how accurate (true) it is but anyways, it was in the film as a tie in.

 

[Todd Anderson]

Paramount is digging deep into their archives....!

 

[Michael Scott]

Paramount is digging deep into their archives....!

“Garth, marriage is punishment for shoplifting in some countries.”