Sony // 2005 // 224 Minutes // Not Rated
Reviewed by Judge David Johnson // May 31st, 2005
Two teams, two days, $1,000.
Wow, my wife just loves this show. Trading Spaces exerts this supernatural hold on her -- and judging by its interminable shelf life, it's resonated to households all over the place.
For those of you who've been on a space mission to Neptune the last decade or so, here's how the show works: Two friends or neighbors apply to the show and agree to give up a room of their house over to the makeover masterminding of an interior designer. Couples swap rooms and work with the decorator to totally renovate the space, all at a budget of $1,000 -- and they have 48 hours to do it. Meanwhile, Paige Davis, the smiley host with enough energy to power the national grid of Iceland for a month, jumps between rooms, pitching in with work and offering advice that no one seems to follow. There is one carpenter for the two teams to share (for a long time, that role was filled by Ty Pennington, host of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition). An hour later, the friends swap back and walk into their new rooms, eyes closed, anxiously awaiting the final result. The new rooms are dramatically different, and, in the opinion of this humble reviewer, more often than not as ugly as yak balls. Still, most of the folks seem to get a real kick out of the rooms (though the ones that loathe the changes are always the most entertaining).
Doug Wilson is one of the designers known for unique and flamboyant designs. This DVD features five full-length episodes, all with Wilson as one of the designers. His creations range from the wild (the transformation of a living room into a quasi-Caribbean paradise) to the cool but ludicrously impractical (installing real cars into a kid's bedroom).
That's about it. Five episodes featuring Doug Wilson. If you've seen the show and are big fan, then this disc is for you. If you're looking for ideas on how to make your home brutally ugly on a low budget, well, this disc for you too.
The episodes are presented in their original 1.33:1 full-frame format and look perfectly fine. The Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo mix is up to the task, but has little to do. Whatever. The only extra is a batch of additional footage and "outtakes"; I was expecting people falling off of ladders into paint or drilling a 1/4" hole into their forearm, but mainly it's just a bunch of designers screwing around.
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Scales of Justice
Judgment: 84
Perp Profile
Studio: Sony
Video Formats:
* Full Frame
Audio Formats:
* Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo (English)
Subtitles:
* None
Running Time: 224 Minutes
Release Year: 2005
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Distinguishing Marks
* Designer Outtakes
Accomplices
* Trading Spaces Official Site
http://tlc.discovery.com/fansites/tradingspaces/tradingspaces.html