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Blu-Ray : Worth a Look
Ranking:
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Release Date: June 28th, 2022 Movie Release Year: 1985

The Coca-Cola Kid

Overview -

What happens When Coca-Cola finds out there’s an area in the world where the greatest soda doesn’t have a market share? Why, they send in their best troubleshooter - The Coca-Cola Kid. Dušan Makavejev directs this charming, quirky, if also a bit unfocused fish-out-of-water romantic comedy featuring a great leading turn from Eric Roberts, with Greta Scacchi, and Bill Ker. Thanks to Fun City Editions with Vinegar Syndrome, this eccentric little 80s gem earns a terrific A/V presentation and a nice selection of bonus features. Worth A Look

When a small-town Australian soda maker refuses to convert his factory to Coca-Cola production, the parent company sends in its whiz kid “troubleshooter” Becker (Eric Roberts, The Pope of Greenwich Village and Star 80) to resolve the issue. The previously unflappable Becker, however, finds his own resolve challenged by Australia’s unique character and characters—namely Terri (Greta Scacci, The Player and White Mischief), his beautiful and very eccentric secretary, and McDowell (Bill Kerr, Gallipoli and Razorback), the stubbornly independent soft drink entrepreneur. Serbian auteur Dušan Makavejev (Montenegro and W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism) brings his celebrated off-kilter and boundary-pushing sensibilities to this classic screwball comic set-up, so that the narrative remains refreshingly unpredictable, unconventional and subversive throughout.

Becker, Terri and McDowell originate in the short stories of award-winning Australian writer Frank Moorhouse, who adapted them for the film’s screenplay. The film’s attractive primary locations—cosmopolitan Sydney and the stunning Blue Mountains region—are stylishly shot by Mad Max cinematographer Dean Semler. The original songs, including the incredibly catchy “Coca-Cola Jingle,” come from Tim Finn, founding member of popular New Zealand rock band Split Enz. For this worldwide Blu-ray premiere, The Coca-Cola Kid has been restored in 2K from its 35mm interpositive.

directed by: Dusan Makavejev
starring: Eric Roberts, Greta Scacchi, Bill Kerr, Chris Haywood, Max Gillies
1985 / 98 min / 1.85:1 / English DTS-HD MA 2.0

Additional info:

  • Region A Blu-ray
  • New 2K restoration from its 35mm interpositive
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Booklet with a new essay by Spike Carter
  • Newly recorded audio commentary by film programmer Lars Nilsen and Fun City Editions' Jonathan Hertzberg
  • “Dark and Bubbly,” a newly filmed video interview with star Eric Roberts
  • “The Real Thing,” an archival video interview with star Greta Scacchi and producer David Roe
  • Image Gallery
  • English SDH subtitles

Purchase Original Edition From Vinegar Syndrome.

OVERALL:
Worth a Look
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
Blu-ray Disc
Video Resolution/Codec:
1080p AVC/MPEG-4
Length:
98
Aspect Ratio(s):
1.85:1
Audio Formats:
English LPCM 2.0
Subtitles/Captions:
English SDH
Release Date:
June 28th, 2022

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

Coca-Cola is king. Sure there’s that Pepsi stuff but no one else has the worldwide reach of the number one soda company in the world. But there’s something up with Australia. Sure, folks down under can pop a bottle of the dark delicious bubbly soda, but sales just aren’t where they should be. So Coca-Cola sends in their best troubleshooter, Becker (Erick Roberts) to get things back up to snuff. Only Becker didn’t expect to deal with the romantic advances of his secretary Terri (Greta Scacchi) and he didn’t count on finding a virtual dead zone where the world’s best cola beverage isn’t sold or consumed thanks to an eccentric soda magnate McDowell (Bill Kerr). 

You’ve probably seen The Coca-Cola Kid without actually seeing it. This fish-out-of-water film runs the plot-point playbook. Upstart corporate know-it-all gets schooled on eccentric local customs, falls in love, respects the opposition, and becomes a better man. No surprises. As I said, it’s a pretty familiar story. However, what makes this one work is the flavor of this outing - and I don’t mean the titular beverage. 

Director Dušan Makavejev crafts a fun easy breezy comedy from a clever script by Frank Moorhouse. From Eric Robert’s corporate-focused Becker to Scacchi’s flamboyant Terri to Bill Kerr’s entertaining McDowell, every character is given plenty of attention and focus. You steadily get to know these people and their ways and watch them evolve. While little is shocking or unexpected about their character arcs, it’s a nice story and these great actors carry the dramatic emotional load while keeping the show light and entertaining. 

Where The Coca-Cola Kid falters is there is a little too much going on. While it’s nice that the film isn’t strictly following the romantic comedy map, some of its detours go in odd directions seemingly for the sake of being odd. Some instances are used to reinforce Becker as out of his depth in a foreign land with different ways of doing things, but then others are just flat bizarre. I still don’t quite get the point of Terri having her gay friend hit on Becker at a party, but, it happened. The Hotel waiter who has the wrong idea about Becker? Yeah, that's another curious addition to the story. At 98-minutes, the film itself isn’t long, it’s these strange detours that make it feel far longer than it is. 

Aside from the plot deviations, The Coca-Cola Kid proves to be an entertaining jaunt. Shot on location throughout Australia, it often has the look and feel of a travelogue that just wants you to soak in the beautiful locations. The cast headlined by Eric Roberts is great with Roberts and Scacchi, in particular, offering up some great performances. When the film is on point it’s a nice little show and well worth checking out. 



Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray
The Coca-Cola Kid comes to Blu-ray from Fun City Editions with Vinegar Syndrome. Pressed on a BD-50 disc, the disc is housed in a standard clear case with reversible insert artwork. If you order through Vinegar Syndrome you can score a limited slipcover. The disc loads to a standard main menu with traditional navigation options. Also included is a 10-page booklet.

Video Review

Ranking:

The Coca-Cola Kid works some magic on Blu-ray with a splendid 1080p transfer reportedly sourced from a new 2K restoration. Especially with the scenic locations, there are many moments where this image is simply gorgeous. Details are strong throughout allowing for facial features, clothing textures, and production design to come through beautifully. You get to fully appreciate all of the 1985 designs and styles. Colors are fairly good with strong primaries. My only niggle is reds feel pushed a tad giving skin tones an overly pinkish hue. Black levels are also strong with a nice sense of image depth and shadow separation. The party dance scene is a little thick though and you almost lose track of who anyone is. Elements are in great shape without any serious age-related issues to report.

Audio Review

Ranking:

While the video presentation is great, I’m giving a lot of credit to a damned impressive LPCM 2.0 mix. From calm quiet intimate conversations to loud busy streets or parties or factories, this track is steeped in rich atmospherics for a welcome immersive quality. Dialog is clean and clear throughout without issues unless you struggle with some of the thick Australian accents. Scoring offers up nice emotional beats and the new Australian-themed Coca-Cola tune is a genuine earworm to the point you’d swear it was official marketing and not made up for this film.

Special Features

Ranking:

While The Coca-Cola Kid doesn’t deliver a huge number of bonus features, what it lacks in quantity it makes up for with quality. In addition to the 10-page booklet, you pick up a nice informative audio commentary with Lars Nilsen and Jonathan Hertzberg from Fun City Editions. After that, you get a couple of cast and crew interviews but the nicest of the bunch I’d say is the relatively short but welcome interview with Eric Roberts recalling his experiences working on the film and his career. 

  • Audio Commentary featuring Lars Nilsen and Jonathan Hertzberg
  • Dark and Bubbly - Interview with Eric Roberts (HD 11:07)
  • The Real Thing - 2009 Interview with Producer David Roe and Greta Scacchi (HD 32:16)
  • Image Gallery
  • Theatrical Trailer

The Coca-Cola Kid was one of those movies I’d never seen but heard of in passing. Without a strong recommendation, I never sought it out so this was a first-time outing and an overall pleasant experience. The film offers up a welcome fun energy and a want to entertain the audience. The general plot is familiar but the locations and the great cast make it feel fresh enough to give it your attention. A nice easy-breezy movie for a summer afternoon. Fun City Editions with Vinegar Syndrome delivers a solid Blu-ray release for The Coca-Cola Kid. Scoring a great A/V presentation, the film looks and sounds fantastic and the collection of bonus features is certainly worth giving them extra time for. If you’re up for trying something new or revisiting an old favorite you haven’t seen in a long time, check out The Coca-Cola Kid. Worth A Look