Crush, The (Blu-ray)
Anthony Arrigo
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Starring Alicia Silverstone, Cary Elwes, Jennifer Rubin, Kurtwood Smith
Directed by Alan Shapiro
Distributed by Scream Factory
Everyone remembers their first crush. Most originate on the playground or in a classroom, but odds are some had their first rendezvous with “love” after being smitten by someone far out of their age range. Maybe it was your mom’s attractive best friend, or one of your dad’s colleagues. These crushes are usually innocent and kinda cute in a not-at-all-pedo sort of way. They burn hot and are fleeting, since most rational teens will understand it just isn’t to be and perfectly normal adults will make that abundantly clear. But what about those times when the pangs don’t go away? What if a benign bout of limerence gives way to obsessive behavior and unhealthy delusions – or worse? This can be a real nightmare if you are an older man being pursued by a younger girl who is a few plates short of a full china set. Suddenly rape allegations and being ostracized from everyone around you becomes a very real possibility. This is the stuff of nightmares, and in The Crush (1993) it becomes a reality.
Nick Eliot (Cary Elwes) is a writer who has recently moved to Seattle, Washington and is in dire needs of some new digs. Nothing fancy; he just needs a place to clear his mind, do some writing, and lay his head at night. After striking out on the apartment front, Nick scores big time when he is able to rent out the fixer-upper guest house behind a tony mansion in a suburban neighborhood. His new landlords Cliff (Kurtwood Smith) and Liv (Gwynyth Walsh) Forrester are friendly, but what catches Nick’s eye is their daughter, Adrian (Alicia Silverstone), who is 14-going-on-30. Adrian is instantly infatuated with Nick, fawning over him and attempting to seduce him however possible. She even assists his writing career by sneaking in late one night and rewriting a piece, earning Nick accolades from his new boss, Michael (Matthew Walker).
One night, during a party in the main house, Adrian invites Nick to drive her to an old lighthouse. Dangerous move. There, the two share a brief kiss before Nick’s other head starts thinking and realizes this is a very, very bad idea. He can chalk it up to an honest mistake, a lapse in judgment, but for Adrian their lip-smacking moment is an accelerant for that unrequited love. Her emotions upend when Nick starts to pal around with one of his co-workers, Amy (Jennifer Rubin), who sees Adrian as little more than a confused teen. Oh, how wrong she is. Dejected, Adrian begins to make Nick’s life a living hell. She keys the word “cocksucker” into his vintage car. She deletes crucial files on his computer. She plans an attack on Amy. She does whatever she can to make Nick realize he has made a poor decision by rebuffing her advances. When nothing seems to make him come around, Adrian plays the trump card and accuses Nick of rape. Now, he faces a serious uphill battle as framed evidence and a “battered” young girl make his defense nearly insurmountable. After he’s fortunate to get bailed out by Michael (who also fires him), Nick does whatever he can to prove Adrian is the crazy one and clear his name.
Oh, how I miss ‘90s shlock. The music. The hairstyles. The fashion. You should see some of the suits Nick wears in this film – unbelievably tacky. He’s such a milquetoast guy, yet Adrian, who is oozing so much sex appeal it could fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool, thinks he’s the bee’s knees. The Crush is packed with awful entertainment and thriller clichés, making it a riot of ridiculous proportions. One of my favorite tropes used here is the Concerned Best Friend, which in this case is Cheyenne (Amber Benson), Adrian’s equestrian buddy. She knows Adrian is crazy and she has all sorts of stories to corroborate Nick’s concerns. She could conceivably tell him this information at any moment and maybe help end all this madness. But you know what she does instead – “Hey, Nick, I know some things about Adrian that are very concerning but I won’t tell you now, let’s talk later”. And we all know “let’s talk later” is movie speak for “I’m going to be horribly injured soon and won’t be able to talk later”.
Nick, for his part, also does a poor job of at the very least keeping Adrian out of his space. Adrian frequently sneaks into his home, messes with his belongings, stalks him repeatedly, calls him over a hundred times… so what does he do after all that? He comes home and leaves his front door open and his phone on the hook before plopping into bed. Dude…
There was some real-life controversy after the film premiered, too. Writer/director Alan Shapiro didn’t make this story up whole cloth; he primarily got the inspiration from an actual incident involving a neighbor of his. Stupidly, he gave the female antagonist the same name as her real counterpart: Darian Forrester. Because of this “Darian” was dubbed to “Adrian” for DVD and subsequent releases. If you pay close attention when people say Adrian’s name, you can either see the mouth movement is off or, more easily, you can tell the voice saying her name doesn’t belong to the actor speaking.
The Crush is a deliciously cheesy slice of trashy ‘90s cinema, with plenty of absurd twists and turns before it arrives at a rather satisfying conclusion. Elwes might not be the most convincing object of desire but, geez, is Silverstone perfectly cast. Looking at her now even, does she age? Even at 16-years-old (her age during the shoot) she looks deceptively older and if the words “jailbait” were tattooed on her face most men would still have to remind themselves jail is a cold place. I shudder to think of the irony when she met with Hollywood producers to discuss this role… Clueless (1995) may have been her big breakthrough but for me, my first crush on Alicia was fittingly found here.
Framed at 1.85:1, with a 1080p image, The Crush looks typical of mid-‘90s production values. The print is clean and shows minimal wear and tear. Colors are accurate, though lacking in any true vibrancy. Film grain is surprisingly minimal, and it appears as though some minor DNR has been applied to the image. Some shots look rougher than others but overall this is a strong effort with few real faults.
The same cannot be said of the audio, however, as there is an inherent phasing issue with the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track. What does that mean, exactly? Basically, the track is all over the place. Most film sound mixes flourish based upon discreet placement of effects and dialogue, with a proper balance given to each so that the track can mimic what our ears might expect to hear. Because of this phasing issue there is no balance. Some effects lack weight while others are far too heavy. Dialogue can be tinny or oppressive, music cues lack punch, and source music is blown-out. This is not Scream Factory’s fault, and there is a disclaimer that appears after you hit play explaining no better elements were available, but this is still one of the worst sound mixes I have ever heard on a Blu-ray release. Chances are most viewers won’t notice it too much, but those who are more audibly adept will recognize the issues. A 2.0 stereo track is also included, though I don’t know if it ameliorates the problems inherent to the source. Subtitles are available in English.
Writer/director Alan Shapiro delivers an audio commentary, as moderated by Nathaniel Thompson.
“The Doting Father” – Actor Kurtwood Smith seems like a super cool guy, and he drops in here to discuss his role in the film as Adrian’s loving father.
“Stung by Love” – Actress Jennifer Rubin sits down for an interview, although it’s hard to hear her over that sweater choice. Yikes.
The film’s theatrical trailer and a TV spot are also included.
Special Features:
- NEW Audio Commentary with writer/director Alan Shapiro
- NEW The Doting Father – an interview with Kurtwood Smith (10 minutes)
- NEW Stung By Love – an interview with actress Jennifer Rubin (13 minutes)
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spot
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The Crush
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Special Features
Categorized:Reviews
