“The Closer: The Complete Fourth Season”-Own it on DVD May 26, 2009
- Release Date: May 26, 2009
- Publisher: Warner Home Video
- Price: $25.99 on Amazon.com (Buy It)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 690 minutes
- Special Features: “Police Files” (Unaired Scenes), “To Catch a Lie: Observational Tips From an FBI Interrogator,” “A Day in the Life of a Homicide Detective,” Gag Reel
- Starring: Kyra Sedgwick, J.K. Simmons, Corey Reynolds, Robert Gossett, G.W. Bailey, Tony Denison, Michael Paul Chan, Gina Ravera, Raymond Cruz, Phillip P. Keene, Jon Tenney
- Genre: Crime Drama
I’m a fan of a lot of cable dramas but I’ve never really gotten into “The Closer.” I have seen some episodes in the past and generally enjoyed them but there are far too many great shows on television for me to tune into it consistently. I do think it is one of the better procedurals on TV though so if you like the genre, you should definitely check it out.
Most people (even those who don’t have cable) have probably heard of “The Closer” since it is one of the most successful shows on cable. For those who haven’t, the show starts Kyra Sedgwick as Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson, a brilliant woman who can get even the most hardened criminals to confess to their crimes. The show isn’t just your typical crime drama though, there is some continuity between the episodes. Since I greatly prefer serialized shows over procedurals, this is one of the things that pushes “The Closer” over the heap of average crime dramas in my opinion.
Also working in the show’s favor is its phenomenal cast. Kyra Sedgwick has won a lot of awards for this role and she definitely deserves them. I personally find her accent extremely annoying but otherwise, she is a fantastic actress. The supporting cast (especially J.K. Simmons) is also great and the show seems to find good guest stars for just about every episode.
On the negative side, season four is a bit darker than the episodes I saw in seasons 1-3. The show was already pretty dark to begin with but some of these episodes are a bit too much. I’m sure this isn’t a big deal for most viewers but its just something that I wasn’t particularly pleased with.
Even though “The Closer” airs on cable, the video and audio quality don’t really suffer all that much. The presentation isn’t quite as impressive as it is on network shows but the image overall looks very good. Audio is also good with clear dialog and a decent soundtrack.
“The Closer: Season Four” isn’t packed with extras but there are a few nice features on the set. The two featurettes (”To Catch a Lie” and “A Day in the Life of a Homicide Detective”) are the best extras because they are fairly original. “A Day in the Life” is exactly what it sounds like while “To Catch a Lie” contains tips on how to detect lies. Also included are a few deleted scenes and a gag reel.
“The Closer” is one of the better crime dramas on television so I have no problem recommending it for fans of the genre.
