Convict
(2014/Indie Rights/MVD Visual DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: B- Extras: D Film: C
Convict
(2014) is a typical prison drama/action film directed by Australian
filmmakers David Field and George Basha. The film follows the story
of War Veteran Ray (played by George Basha) who is pulled away from
his fiancee and ends up in prison, where he is pushed to his physical
and mental limits under the reign of an evil Prison Warden who will
stop at nothing until he has broken all of his inmates. The film is
very bleak and dark, so don't be expected to be uplifted at its
finale. It truly shows the evil of prison and the heartlessness that
some men possess.
The
film is pretty thematic as I've read, similar to the filmmaker's 2009
feature film named Combination, with is also thick in thematic
subtext. Here, the guise of prison is more of a commentary on
conflicts between the characters dealing with race, violence, and
different cultural differences - all of which are pretty commonly
found in these sort of prison films. The film stars George Basha,
David Field, Millie Rosie Heywood, and Richard Green.
I
found it to be well made from a production standpoint and not without
its moments, but ultimately a predictable film that will appeal more
to fans of gritty Australian cinema or prison movies in general. Of
course, there are moments were the male prisoners have to sexually
abuse other men and scenes where violence takes over and they become
unhinged that adds to the feeling like we've seen it and been there
before.
The
film is presented on DVD in standard definition with a 1.77:1
widescreen aspect ratio and a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The
color correction of the film, specifically in outdoor scenes are very
blown out and on DVD, some shots even look a bit out of focus. The
film could definitely benefit to a HD upgrade as many shots also have
a loss of detail, but a Blu-ray seems to have been issued, so...
The
underwhelming DVD menu and capture selection scenes may make you
cringe, however the worst part is that the only extra here is a
trailer.
If
you like violent prison films, then you may enjoy this. I found it
to be stereotypical of the genre, the cycle and predictable.
-
James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
