Resurrection Blvd. The Complete First Season
June 2004 Reviewed by: Anthony Di Marco Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Mediocre writing and acting, and a predisposition toward soap-opera sappiness, made me shake my head as I watched Resurrection Blvd. Within the first few minutes of the pilot episode I knew I was in for it. The situations and relationships of the characters and the boxing plotline gave me a sense of déjà vu.

The fantastic, well-choreographed fight sequences save this series from being an absolute disappointment. Arranged by Jimmy Nicholson of Rocky fame, the boxing matches percolate with intensity and power. Sadly, what happens in the ring only takes up a fraction of screen time. Since this was one of the first virtually all-Latino shows on television (cast and production), one hates to complain, but the energetic effort that went into this show far outweighs the result.

The story revolves around the Santiago family and how one brother’s success as a boxer comes to a tragic and predictable end. All the standard characters are in attendance: the patriarch, Roberto, who sees his personal success through the achievements of his son; the sister, Victoria, who falls into deep guilt and depression after her protective brother takes a bullet for her; the brother, Alex, who quits medical school to carry on the Santiago boxing tradition; and mute Uncle Ruben, an ex-boxer who sits quietly on the periphery, observing the actions of his family. Ruben is the wisest, the one who, despite taking one punch too many to the head, knows what matters in life.

Resurrection Blvd. tries to take itself seriously by hedging its bets on the importance of family. The Santiagos lead separate lives during the day, while living under the same roof by night. Yolanda (Ruth Livier) is an aspiring lawyer who still finds time to help her Aunt Bibi (Elizabeth Peña) cook breakfast and dinner for the male-dominated household. The women are caricatures and come off as meddling females in a man’s world. I understand that this is a Latino family -- from a culture steeped in passion and pride. The problem is that none of the characters seems real. Their situations are too convenient to believe.

The show’s flaws are more apparent when compared to The Sopranos and Six Feet Under. These HBO series run circles around their Showtime counterpart. Their plotlines are interesting, original, and somehow believable -- even when the situations are hard to believe. And the characters rarely overstate their point. The cast of Resurrection Blvd. is made up of good-looking people, but this doesn’t mean they are good actors; here is no subtlety or transparency to the acting. Scenes that should build tension and credibility fall apart under the weight of stilted and strained exposition. When Alex (Nicholas Gonzalez) has a fight with his coach over the death of a friend, the argument does not feel like two people expressing themselves. It feels like two actors trying to act out the emotions of two characters. The scene triggers laughter instead of reflection. The worst offender of overwrought expression is Livier as Yolanda. She approaches her character with all the control of a butcher hacking away at a slab of meat. The emotional peaks and valleys in her performance made me wince countless times.

The images on this DVD approach the quality of well-produced cinema. Black levels are solid and color saturation is vibrant and rich. There is a little MPEG noise, but nothing detracts from the overall viewing experience. Audio is about standard for TV fare and exhibits good dynamic range with very good vocal intelligibility. Joseph Julian Gonzalez’s score for the pilot is slightly derivative but strong and memorable; the main theme sounds like it borrows ideas from James Newton Howard’s score for The Fugitive. After the pilot, Gonzalez handled narrative cues while the Latino band Los Lobos lent their talents to the opening credits. I personally preferred composer Gonzalez’s treatment to Los Lobos.

Like many first-season television series on DVD, this set came with zero extras. I would be more likely to ignore such an oversight if this was two years ago. Now such an omission is hard to understand. An interview with the actors, some insight into the Latino culture, or an explanation of the filmmakers’ approach to the material may have added perspective to the show’s purpose. On the positive side, the DVD packaging is the best I’ve seen for a television series. A cardboard sleeve encloses five durable, ultra-thin, plastic DVD cases. Even if the sleeve were to fall apart the plastic cases would keep the DVDs safe from harm. They integrate well with a DVD collection.

Adding Resurrection Blvd. to your collection, though, all depends on how much you enjoy boxing over acting.

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