An Affectionate Hollywood Send Up Graced by Murphy Times Two
Steve Martin, who wrote the film as well as stars, plays Bobby Bowfinger, a would-be auteur with James Cameron ambitions, but Ed Wood talent. Armed with a bad sci-fi script called Chubby Rain, covert access to studio equipment, and a group of supporting players of questionable talent, including the ingenue Daisy (Heather Graham) and aging drama queen Carol (Christine Baranski), Bowfinger seizes one last chance for Hollywood success. Determining that action star Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) would be the perfect leading man for his film, but with no way to ever secure the actor's services, Bowfinger stages an elaborate con. His movie will star Kit Ramsey. Only Kit Ramsey never need know about it. For some scenes, Bowfinger hires a double, the dim-witted, good-natured Jif (Murphy again). For the rest, he keeps his camera and crew well hidden, and sends his cast out to ambush the star, letting Ramsey's startled reactions serve as his "acting."

Like Martin's previous L.A. Story, Bowfinger is an affectionate spoof of the vanities of Tinseltown. Martin loves the city and the film industry and it shows in his writing. It's easy for movies like this to provide caricature instead of characters, but Martin doesn't give in to that temptation. Even characters most prone to broad strokes, like the bed-hopping Daisy, come across as human. Martin and director Frank Oz make great use of the geography of Los Angeles, contrasting Bowfinger's seedy milieu with tony mansions and swank restaurants in Beverly Hills. Bowfinger is frequently hilarious with a formidable ensemble of actors working at the top of their form. Murphy, in particular, given the best non-family film role he's had in years, is a delight to watch — whether as delusional, paranoid movie star Kit and the sweetly flummoxed Jif.

Special Edition DVD Features a Spectacular Transfer and a Host of Bonus Features
Universal presents the Bowfinger DVD in anamorphic widescreen with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Sound options include English versions in Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby 5.1 DTS, as well as a French option in Dolby Surround Sound. Both picture and sound are spectacular, crisp and crystal clear.

To access the movie, options, and extras, Bowfinger features a gleefully funny animated menu of Jif's run across the freeway, a rare instance of a menu truly capturing the spirit of the movie. The disc features a host of bonus features, although, alas, many are negligible. There are half a dozen trailers, including Bowfinger's, plus four more comedy trailers, including one for Liar Liar, in the "Recommends" section, and finally in the "Universal Showcase," the trailer for the Norman Jewison drama The Hurricane — a non sequitur on this otherwise ebullient DVD. The advertised DVD-ROM features are merely links to the movie's web site and other Universal sites. Outtakes are comprised of merely two minutes of the actors blowing takes, mostly by cracking up each other. Not exactly scintillating material.

The three remaining bonuses are more substantial. The disc includes two deleted scenes — a lengthier version of Bowfinger introducing his plans for Chubby Rain to his small crew, and a scene showing just how Bowfinger discovers where Kit Ramsey lives. Both provide good examples of the types of editorial choices Frank Oz had to make to cut Bowfinger's length and perfect its timing. The second scene is also very funny — you'll never look at dry cleaners the same way again.

Bowfinger also includes a 23-minute long featurette on the making of the film that includes interviews with Oz, Martin, Murphy, Baranski, Graham, and co-stars Jamie Kennedy and Terence Stamp. It's not exactly in-depth, but neither is it strictly promotional puffery. Graham and Kennedy say very little of any import, but the others, particularly Martin, Murphy, and Stamp at least add a dash of wit to the piece. A sequence featuring Frank Oz rehearsing the freeway scene by running across the freeway himself also adds charm to the featurette.

The final special feature on the Bowfinger disc is Oz's audio commentary. This may not be the commentary everyone hoped for — after all, Martin wrote it. Martin's the one noted for his humor; this commentary should have been his. Ah, well, nothing's perfect and to Oz's credit, he does attack the commentary with enthusiasm. He's occasionally dry, but, for the most part, he keeps the tone light and he tries to be informative. Bowfinger went through many changes, both in the script — as the actors added their own improvisations — and in the editing. For the most part, Oz focuses on those changes, describing the evolution of the film — explaining, for instance, that the observatory climax was originally set atop the Capitol Records building, but safety issues demanded a change and pointing out where some scenes were reshot after certain plot points still seemed unclear in the final edit. Oz started out as one of the people behind the Muppets and that sweet-natured, friendly quality comes through loud and clear on his commentary.

Gripes about the plethora of superfluous trailers and DVD-ROM features aside, Universal has done a great job in bringing Bowfinger to DVD. For lovers of Hollywood or those who just enjoy poking fun at it, Bowfinger is a joy to watch. Now that the film is on disc, it's a joy to be had 24/7 in the privacy of your own living room.