Go: Doug Liman's Tarantino-Inspired Crime Comedy Comes to 4K (Limited Edition 4K)

The Film:

When Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece "Pulp Fiction" came out in 1994, it revolutionized the industry by playing with story structure in a rather unconventional way, or at least in a way that was unconventional at the time. Through his use of sharp dialogue, fascinating characters, and intertwining storylines that were laid out in a non-linear fashion, he delivered a groundbreaking film that left an indelible mark on cinema, and also brought with it a slew of filmmakers who wanted to make something just like it.

Out of all these imitators, one that's considered one of the better results is "Go" from director Doug Liman, who had previously given us the hit indie "Swingers," and screenwriter John August, marking his theatrical debut. Featuring some well-known names like Katie Holmes, Taye Diggs, and Jay Mohr (and some rising stars like Sarah Polley, Timothy Olyphant, and William Fichtner), the film ended up being an unfortunate box office disappointment, but received mostly decent reviews from critics & audiences, who enjoyed its fast-paced tangling of tales.

27 years later, Arrow Films has decided to put this late-90s crime comedy in the spotlight by giving it a tremendous UHD upgrade and throwing in a hefty amount of bonus material both new & old, so now it's time to go back and take a look at this little cult favorite to see if it perhaps deserved a little more attention back during its original release, or if it was simply a film trying too hard to reach for heights it could never achieve.

As the film opens, we meet Ronna (Sarah Polley), a grocery store clerk who is desperately trying to earn enough money to prevent herself from being evicted. She is approached by Zack (Jay Mohr) and Adam (Scott Wolf), who were hoping to buy some ecstasy from her co-worker Simon (Desmond Askew), but he's gone off to Las Vegas with some friends, leading to Ronna attempting to make the deal instead. She goes to Simon's dealer, Todd (Timothy Olyphant), but doesn't have enough money, forcing her to leave her friend behind as collateral while she tries to work it out with the buyers.

However, when she goes to meet them, she gets suspicious of Zack and Adam's friend Burke (William Fichtner), forcing her to flush the pills down the toilet, and subsequently try to replace them with fakes to get her friend & the money back from Todd. Naturally Todd eventually discovers the phony pills, leading to a confrontation that will have some of our characters colliding (quite literally) and others later still as Simon's trip to Vegas brings home some consequences.

A rather peculiar thing happened while I was screening "Go" in that, despite swearing that I had never seen it before, much of it seemed oddly familiar. This led to two possibilities, neither of which are particularly flattering, with one being that I had possibly seen it way back (probably during high school) and completely forgotten about it, or, being a big fan of Tarantino's films (especially "Pulp Fiction"), it could simply be the use of many of the same elements that gave it the feeling of "been there, done that."

As mentioned, neither one casts it in a particularly good light, but putting them aside and just looking at the film itself, we find three stories that do eventually collide, with each one attempting to generate some tension & thrills along the way. Screenwriter John August is at least partially successful in starting it up, but where he struggles a bit is in maintaining it. The first story, which focuses on Ronna getting into a pickle over some drugs, builds up a small bit of tension a couple of times, but defuses it rather quickly in both instances. The second story tries to do the same thing with Simon & his companions getting into an unexpected situation with a strip club bouncer, but the best he can manage here is a car chase that doesn't last very long. The third story, which begins by focusing on Zack & Adam before jumping back to the others, doesn't have much in the way of tension at all, ultimately resolving in rather simple ways.

This is not to say that these stories are bad, for they are mildly entertaining, but they really don't grab you as much as they should. With Tarantino being August's obvious inspiration here, you would think he would've aspired for more engaging tales that went in more unpredictable directions, on top of coming up with more intriguing dialogue for the film's more uneventful portions (you'll likely recall QT's incredible ability to have his characters discussing fascinating topics even when there isn't much happening). August's stories are partially there, you just end up wishing that he had gone further and done more with them.

On the whole, "Go" is a strange little mixed bag of a film. It does indeed have some fun & exciting bits to it, and it's interesting to see this ensemble of stars & stars-on-the-rise bring it to life, but in the end, it just can't help feeling like a somewhat pale imitation of what it was aspiring to be. There's certainly nothing wrong with aiming really high, but when you do, it shouldn't be all that surprising if you can't even get close to the absurdly high level you're endeavoring to reach.

Video/Audio:

"Go" comes to 4K in a 2.39:1, 2160p Ultra High Definition transfer of marvelous quality, with the new restoration, sourced from the original camera negative, looking beautifully sharp & clear throughout the entire 102-minute duration. Likewise, the original lossless 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack is excellent, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and music in outstanding quality. Overall, Arrow Films has done a marvelous job in both departments for the film's new upgrade.

Special Features:

Commentary with Critics Bryan Reesman and Max Evry (New)

Commentary with Director Doug Liman and Editor Stephen Mirrione

From the Word Go (22 Minutes) (New): An interview with screenwriter, co-producer and second unit director John August.

A View Askew (21 Minutes) (New): An interview with actor Desmond Askew.

Archival Making-of Featurette (6 Minutes)

Deleted Scenes (14 Sequences, 25 Minutes)

God (11 Minutes): John August's 1998 short film featuring Melissa McCarthy, shot using the short ends of film stock from the

production of Go with much of the same crew, presented in high definition for the first time on home video.

Optional Audio Commentary on God with John August, Melissa McCarthy, and Editor Douglas Crise

Conclusion:

Doug Liman's "Go" is an odd little mixed bag of a film, one that obviously aspires to be just like Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece "Pulp Fiction" with its intertwining stories & comedic crime elements, but despite a talented ensemble and a few fun & exciting moments throughout, it just can't come anywhere close due to screenwriter John August's inability to keep up the tension of his tales, ultimately leaving us with a somewhat forgettable imitation.

Score: 3/5

Available on Limited Edition 4K starting tomorrow.

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