Product Description: Primo & Secondo, two immigrant brothers, pin their hopes on a banquet honoring a famous musician to save their struggling restaurant. Genre: Feature Film-Drama Rating: R Release Date: 6-NOV-2007 Media Type: DVD
Amazon.com: Critics tripped all over their big feet to praise Big Night, and in doing so performed a grave disservice to this fine little film. They fooled audiences into believing it was a "super movie" instead of a home movie buoyed by friends and family. Consequently, many viewers were disappointed. Big Night is an intimate look at the immigrant struggle to attain the American Dream, set in New Jersey in the 1950s. Its disproportionate success gave co-directors Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott, who also star in the picture, the green light to follow up with a smug, unsuccessful second venture called The Imposters. Tucci wrote Big Night with his cousin Joseph Tropiano, and they based the story on the experience of growing up in a large, proud Italian family. The brothers in Big Night--chef Primo (Tony Shalhoub) and businessman Secondo (Tucci)--have come to New Jersey to open a bistro named The Paradise that serves the finest in traditional, authentic Italian cuisine. Their every move is foiled by rival restaurant Pascal's, which serves mile-high servings of spaghetti and meatballs and flasks of bad Chianti at exorbitant prices. Primo is disgusted by the fact that Americans want cheap pasta instead of risotto, so Secondo hatches a plan to boost business: rumor has it bandleader Louis Prima is travelling through and will dine at The Paradise that very night. Secondo gambles to bring the finest dinner ever cooked--at the risk of losing his shirt and being reduced to exile to the old country with his tail between his legs. Big Night is a film that will easily invite comparisons to other "food" fare like Babette's Feast and Eat Drink Man Woman but, though Tucci insists his story is "about the struggle between art and commerce and the risk of staying true to yourself," the media refused to let it stay a small, comparative work. The movie, and the buzz around it, became a parable for the essence of the film itself: art vs. commerce. --Paula Nechak
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Binding: DVD Brand: DRIVER,MINNIE EAN: 9780767802536 Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC ISBN: 0767802535 Item Dimensions:25 Label: Sony Pictures Languages:EnglishOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 2.0 SurroundEnglishSubtitledSpanishSubtitled Manufacturer: Sony Pictures MPN: 043396810198 Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Sony Pictures Region Code: 1 Release Date: April 07, 1998 Running Time: 107 minutes Studio: Sony Pictures Theatrical Release Date: September 20, 1996
Customer Reviews
Tucci & Shaloub at Their Best
A wonderful film that showcases the extraordinary talents of Stanley Tucci (younger brother "Secundo") and Tony Shaloub (older brother "Primo"). Not only is it hard to believe that they aren't Italian-born, it's hard to believe they aren't really brothers. This is an extremely well-written piece that makes you wish you were a customer in their restaurant. Order some Italian take-out, crack open a bottle of chianti classico, pop in the DVD, and enjoy!