The Joneses Blu-ray
The Joneses is a film about marketing and advertising gone to the extreme starring Demi Moore and David Duchovny as they appear to be the friendly next door neighbors who are really just a marketing scheme.
Film making 15/25
Video 20/25
Audio 18/25
Bonus Features 1/25
Total 54/100
The Joneses gives keeping up with the Joneses a whole new meaning when they are actually hired to pretend they are an affluent but normal family just having fun. The Joneses appear to be the perfect family who seemingly makes money without going to work so they can have all that cool stuff.
Demi Moore stars as Kate Jones and her husband Steve is played by David Duchovny who are hired by a huge marketing company to pretend they are a normal family. Their two kids go to high school, they have all the fancy cars, show off all the latest tech gadgets and live a rich and full but showy lifestyle.
Everything they do revolves around showing off the things they have which you quickly find out is just what they are supposed to do. Steve starts to question what he is dong and things start to go downhill even after Steve's numbers pick up.
Kate is the head of the group but they all report back to a handler who manages their group and gets them all the things they need to show off their products. The kids work hard at showing all the usual toys high school kids want but when Mick, played by Ben Hollingsworth, starts off the trouble.
The family is starting to risk being exposed when police question Mick and their parents about Mick contributing to a party with drinks from one of their companies. Jenn, played by Amber Heard, is the daughter and also gets into trouble when she becomes involved with a married man.
The family falls apart as a marketing scheme when the neighbor reveals to Steve he is going bankrupt because he was just trying to keep up with the trend of spending money on things he didn't need. After the company pulls the plug and sends them on to a new assignment without Steve the film ends when Steve tries to meet with Kate but she wants nothing to do with her.
The Joneses is a biting commentary on finances and responsibility, keeping up with the neighbors can only lead to financial ruin if you're not careful. With today's current financial problems and people's continued lack of common sense in regards to buying what they can afford this movie really hits home.
Problem is even with people losing their home because they were allowed to buy a house they could not afford and the bank let them the film does not get the point across to enough people. Too many people don't want to hear that they should only buy what they can afford and The Joneses pushes this point but not near enough.
I like the idea of using people's greed for object popularity to push products, being in the marketing world on the reviewer end I see it all the time. This movie really hits home at a time when people are doing just what this film shouts out is stupid but many don't think it's a problem.
Many people don't even feel it's an issue but it is pretty obvious when so many people are losing their home due to spending too much money for things they cannot afford. It's not the banks fault for giving people too much money in loans or credit, it's the peoples fault for spending what they cannot pay back.
When the film hits the point right on the head and the family is exposed right in front of the neighborhood people give their shocked and disbelieving attitude as expected. Problem is they go right back to their homes with all their toys in the end and only feel sad that a terrible thing happened to their neighbor but they are alright.
The Joneses is a pretty good film but the movie does not push hard enough about what people are spending their money on and if they can really afford it. I think the biggest problem is the film did not make as big a splash and leave a big enough message that really made people think.
The Joneses did leave a good enough impression but not big enough to make people's heads turn or care enough to change their spending habits. The film was good but not great and the video and audio also leave a lot to be desired with audio taking the brunt of the bad.
The video is pretty good with clear high definition video, audio has a lack of surround but no problems that are too noticeable. Video looks very good and has a clear, almost crystal look to it, especially in their shiny new home with the variety of scenes adding to the films generally good looks.
Audio is very front and center heavy with only an occasional surround use but the audio is also clear and well done for what you get. The lossless DTS-HD Master Audio works well and without any real problems except for the lack of full surround sound use.
Bonus content features two deleted scenes and that is it, like the films message they missed the mark and left out even more with the bonus content. The Joneses was handled well for the most part but someone made the decision to not go for the throat and really use the shock value somehow in the films story to hit people hard.
The film just lacks a real reason for people to take a hard look at what they are doing in their own lives and how they spend money because it lacks a significant punch by the end credits. The Joneses is a pretty decent movie but one that is really only worth a rental and not an inclusion to a collection at all.