Rent Insignificance (1985)
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
A modern fable of post-World War II America. On a hot night in 1953 a Professor (Michael Emil), an actress (Theresa Russell), a Senator (Tony Curtis) and a football player (Gary Busey) meet in a New York hotel. The characters are not given their real names in the film, but are clearly meant to be Albert Einstein, Marilyn Monroe, Senator Joe McCarthy and Joe Dimaggio. As well as resembling the well-known figures, the actors are also recognisable as a cross- section of America at that time. An acting and writing tour de force rather than a statement on sports, politics, sex symbols or relativity, the film has a fluid progression of flashbacks and flash-forwards focusing on the fictional Einstein's current observations, childhood memories and apprehensions for the future. Theresa Russell, as Marilyn Monroe, holds the film together as the key linking element while Tony Curtis is a glorious ham as the hard-drinking, paranoid Senator. Joe Dimaggio (Gary Busey) is stolid and does not comprehend his famous wife while Einstein (Michael Emil) is sweet and childlike and closest to Monroe's own personality. - Actors:
- Gary Busey, Tony Curtis, Theresa Russell, Michael Emil, Will Sampson, Patrick Kilpatrick, Ian O'Connell, George Holmes, Richard M. Davidson, Mitchell Greenberg, Raynor Scheine, Jude Ciccolella, Lou Hirsch, Ray Charleson, Joel Cutrara, Raymond J. Barry, John Stamford, Desirée Erasmus, David Lambert, Cassie Stuart
- Directors:
- Nicolas Roeg
- Producers:
- Jeremy Thomas
- Writers:
- Terry Johnson
- Studio:
- Network
- Genres:
- Comedy, Drama
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch If You Liked One Night in Miami..., Films to Watch If You Like..., Getting to Know..., Getting to Know: Marilyn Monroe, Introducing a British Film Family, Roeg and Bertolucci: Remembering the Masters
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 21/06/2021
- Run Time:
- 109 minutes
- Languages:
- English Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono
- Subtitles:
- English
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.85:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- That's Insignificance: 1984 making-of featurette
- Gone Roeg/Imitation of a Scene: fifty minutes of new interview material on the making of Insignificance
- Alternative audio track featuring Stanley Myers' isolated musical score
- Theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
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Reviews (2) of Insignificance
Roeg film, but extraordinary DVD transfer - Insignificance review by CP Customer
Roeg films are always worth watching as he has a unique way of seeing things and this is reflected in his films unlike any other film maker.
I first saw this film while at college during its initial cinematic release, and remembered it fondly.
However, this DVD transfer is staggeringly bad, really bad, and it significantly detracts from the film. The quality (4:3) is a bit like its been shown on TV (in the 80s) and someone recorded it at home on their VHS, and then when DVDs started popping up they picked up a cheap DVD recorder then dialled down the quality and knocked off a very quick copy. Of course, I don't know how it was produced, I'm only commenting on what it looks like. If you borrow this DVD, you, like me, will be shocked at how bad it is.
Horrible transfer - Insignificance review by BB
I have to agree with the previous comment. This is a truly horrible transfer to DVD. Roeg is one of the great British directors. The cast are all at the top of their game. They, like the potential audience for this film, all deserve better than this truly ugly transfer - no subtitles, washed out colours and fuzzy soundtrack.
A good, funny, intelligent, thought provoking film rendered unwatchable. I guess that's some kind of an achievement.