GIA Blu-ray Review

Gia is an early starring effort from current megastar, Angelina Jolie.  In this made-for-TV biopic, Jolie shows that she has some chops playing tragic supermodel Gia Carangi as a raging id, destined for rapid rise and fall. The film itself is less than perfect, just barely a step above what you might expect from a TV movie, but Jolie's performance is brave (read: she's naked A LOT) and heartfelt. HBO Home Entertainment's Blu-ray disc of the unrated cut of Gia is pretty good, certainly a cut above the DVD edition, but not quite the revelation that it could have been.

It's 1970s New York where designer jeans, disco, and drugs are rampant. America's first supermodel, Gia, portrayed by Angelina Jolie in this Golden Globe award-winning performance, appears to have a charmed life. Sex, money, power, and fame are all here for the taking. When insecure Gia falls victim to life in the fast lane, however, her career and life become a casualty of life on the edge.

I don't really think the film itself needs too much pimping, if you've seen it, you know why you want it. Structurally and stylistically, Gia is a bit of a mess. The film opens with faux-archival interview footage talking about her in the past tense. I really would have appreciated actual archival footage, even if the faces of the real people didn't match the interviewees, it would have lent more gravity to that section of the film. There are numerous interludes with distressed video footage that take you out of the moment in their attempt to look retro. The real saving grace of Gia is the cast, who mostly manage to overcome the rather banal script and cinematography to make something worthwhile.

Taking center stage is Jolie's portrayal of the tragic heroine, pun intended, of the story, rebel supermodel Gia Carangi.  This is a scenery chewing performance par excellence, and believe me, this film needs it. Jolie manages to take a visually tepid film and make it breathe a little.  Her exuberant Gia is a force of nature, a maddening enigma constantly slipping through the fingers of everyone and everything that tries to tame her. Gia earned Jolie a Golden Globe award, and she definitely earned it here.

The supporting cast does it's fair share as well. Faye Dunaway leads the first half of the film with her biting portrayal of modeling agency matriarch, Wilhelmina Cooper. If anyone knows how to vamp on screen, it's Dunaway, and she uses what cache she's earned over the years to positive effect, mentoring Gia, and probably Jolie, on their rise to stardom.  Elizabeth Mitchell also shines as Linda, Gia's confidant, lover, and best friend. They share a lot of screen time, again, most of it nude, and Mitchell manages to balance with Jolie's vigor on screen.  It's a good match.

The Disc:

I don't know what I was expecting with HBO's Blu-ray release of Gia. Since it was shot for TV, I can safely assume that the budget was relatively low and that shows in the production. The image is probably a moderate step up quality from the DVD. One thing worth noting is that the Blu-ray is in 1.78:1, and the previous DVDs were in 1.33:1. Because the film was made for TV in 1998, 1.33:1 is the original aspect ratio, however, I do not know if the film is cropped or opened up for the Blu-ray. I didn't notice any super distracting cropping issues, so I'm not terribly concerned about it, but it is worth noting.  HBO has included no extras, not even a trailer, on this Blu-ray.