The Family Stone
June 2006 Reviewed by: Randall Smith Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Family gatherings can be complicated, whether by childhood rivalry, a loud-mouthed uncle, or a six-hour drive to grandma’s house. Getting the loved ones together for the holidays can be more stress than fun, the Christmas holidays in particular. The Family Stone is the story of the Stone clan, a tight-knit New England family, during the days leading up to Christmas. Dermot Mulroney’s character, Everett, is bringing home his longtime girlfriend with the intention of asking his mother for his grandmother’s wedding ring. The family’s first impressions of her stick, everyone’s feelings get hurt, and we laugh ourselves all the way to an emotional end.

The video quality of the DVD was incredible. I could tell in the opening moments of the film that it was going to rate well. In chapter 4, as Parker and Mulroney are driving to the family’s house, a windshield full of reflections separates the actors from the camera, yet the details of the faces are still sharp and in focus. The detail isn’t only in the faces, but also in the reflections of the tree limbs passing overhead. The scenes inside the house are also quite remarkable. Most seemed to use the natural light of a real room, rather than a Hollywood set. Yet the camera catches every last visual characteristic of the action. The end result is one of the best video transfers I have seen in quite some time.

Even though I knew the DVD soundtrack was in Dolby Digital 5.1, I didn’t expect it to be a dynamic or enveloping mix. Stereo would have been enough to deliver the dialogue; the story simply didn’t require any extra help from the audio. There was a moment though during an outside scene filmed in a snow flurry that the surround speakers briefly came alive. The dialogue was always clear and audible, never standing out of the scene.

The DVD has a bunch of fun extras. A standard blooper reel, deleted scenes, and audio commentaries are included, but the most enjoyable extras to me were the five featurettes, my favorite the Q&A session with the Screen Actors Guild and the cast of the movie. I have long been a fan of Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers), brother of Luke Wilson, who plays Ben Stone; in this short feature I became a fan of both brothers. Luke’s personality shines, as well as that of the rest of the cast, and that gave me a feeling that the chemistry they shared on screen was real. The Family Stone is a very enjoyable experience on DVD. With a funny, quirky story line, well performed by an ensemble cast of stars, it is a relaxing film that lets you simply sit back, unwind, and enjoy.

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