Studio: Criterion Collection / Sony
Release Date: September 26, 2023
Rating: PG-13
Film: 4/5
PlotThe brief but incandescent life of rock-and-roll trailblazer Ritchie Valens is immortalized in this enthralling biopic from another Mexican American icon, Luis Valdez, the father of Chicano cinema. With sweetness and swagger, Lou Diamond Phillips embodies the 1950s California teenager who, forged by his fiercely supportive mother (Rosanna DeSoto) and rebellious brother (Esai Morales), rises from his farm-working roots to chart-topping fame in the early days of rock—until one fateful night that haunts music history. Propelled by a hip-shaking soundtrack featuring Los Lobos and Carlos Santana,
La Bamba captures the electric vitality of an artist who bridged cultures to create his own American dream.
My ThoughtsThis film came out in my senior year of high school and when I saw it at that time, I loved it. In fact, I went to see it in theaters multiple times because I liked it so much. Why do you ask? Well, first a bit of history. The first record I ever bought was Dan McLean’s “American Pie”, which was inspired by the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper. The story of how these young artists died always intrigued me and I was happy to see a film about Valens finally get release (Holly’s story was covered in The Buddy Holly story, which is also a great movie).
I haven’t watched the film in well over 20 years and it’s aged quite well. Sure, the story has the usual Hollywood tropes, but it’s arguably Lou Diamond Phillips’ finest performance of his career and while he’s much better looking than the pudgy Valens, but that doesn’t really bother me.
My expectations whenever reviewing a Criterion title are very high and this one doesn’t disappoint. In fact, I really can’t find any flaw in the presentation. Detail is off the charts and if I didn’t know any better, I’d think I was watching a native 4K presentation and not 1080p. Colors pop off the screen, depth of filed is excellent, and film grain is left in-tact. Not to be outshined is the DTS-HD MA 5.1 track which sounds much better than it should since it comes from a native 2.0 track from 1987. Dialog is always intelligible and during the musical sequences, the soundstage really opens up and the music has never sounded better.
Video 5/5
Audio 5/5 (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
Special Features: • Luis Valdez
• Two Audio Commentaries
• Trailer
• The Director’s Chair
• Remembering Ritchie
• Audition Tapes
• Leaflet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaEWHrwF0fc&ab_channel=SonyPicturesHomeEntertainmentConclusionI had a lot of nostalgia watching this film again after so many years and I enjoyed it just as much today as I did when I was 18. As expected, Criterion hits a home run with the presentation and the supplements are definitely worth the time investment if you’re a fan of the film. Highly recommended.
Reference Review System:JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 110” 2.35:1 Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Kaleidescape Strato + Server
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
Dual Rythmik FV15HP2
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner
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