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Desperate
Hours
(1990 remake/MGM/UA*)/Dual
(2022/RLJ Blu-ray)/Edge
Of Tomorrow 4K
(2014/Warner 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)/Mutant
Blast
(2018/Troma/*both MVD Blu-rays)/See
For Me
(2021/IFC Blu-ray)/Wolf
Hound
(2022/Lionsgate Blu-ray)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: A- Picture: B/B+/B+/B/B+/B- Sound:
B-/B+/A-/B-/B+/B Extras: C+/C/B/B/D/C+ Films: B-/B/B/C/B/C+
This
group of action and genre films delivers more interesting results
than you might expect...
Michael
Cimino's remake of Desperate
Hours
(1990) is a remake of the 1955 home invasion thriller with Humphrey
Bogart with Mickey Rourke playing the head bad guy on the run from
the law with his brother and another friend. This time, they choose
a house with a divorced couple, Anthony Hopkins visiting his two
children early, with ex-wife Mimi Rogers complaining of this, but
that will soon give way to crazy trouble. Rourke has the help of a
sexy attorney (Kelly Lynch) in a very, very toxic relationship and
hunting them down is a FBI group led by a very smart, dynamic agent
(Lindsay Crouse, really good here) determined to protect the family
and nab the convicts.
Like
the 1955 film, a few parts of this remake have dated a bit, but that
is unavoidable and even interesting to show how times have changed.
Cimino shows once again that he knows his way around any genre and
the film would have been a huge hit, but MGM/UA made a big mistake.
Hopkins drove to Pittsburgh after making this film to make The
Silence Of The Lambs.
They were released within months of each other and considering the
acclaim of the Robert Harris novel and its commercial success, it is
a shame MGM/UA did not sit on Hours
until Lambs
was released. Instead, Freejack
became the first Hopkins film after Silence
and did little business, while a thriller like this would have very
likely fared much better at the box office.
Also
to the film's advantage is having Bond film veteran Peter Hunt (On
Her Majesty's Secret Service)
as Supervising Editor, which gives this film more suspense and
impact. The actors play well against each other, the film has a
unique mood and there are still moments here of shock and suspense
that it is long overdue for this film to find its audience. It
should also be noted that this was part of a small cycle of really
good thrillers that happened to arrive in between the break in the
Bond series (Licence
To Kill
(1989) and GoldenEye
(1995)) that included two other thrillers hat did not get the
audience they deserved: Roger Donaldson's White
Sands
and Peter Hyams' solid remake of Narrow
Margin.
Hollywood has mostly forgotten how to make such adult, smart, clever
thrillers since.
Glad
to see it get its own separate Blu-ray and definitely recommend it!
The
1080p 1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image is not a brand-new HD
master, but it still looks good, though it was shot 'soft matte' at
1.33 X 1 and had early home video versions in that framing. It
looked good that way. Director of Photography Douglas Milsome,
B.S.C., A.S.C., delivers some of his best camerawork here, up there
with his work on Last
Of The Mohicans,
Robin
Hood: Prince Of Thieves
and especially Kubrick's Full
Metal Jacket.
Like all Cimino films, I hope this gets 4K treatment at some point,
but you'll find some good demo shots on this disc just the same.
The
sound is here in a DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix upgrade
that offers mixed results, and a PCM 2.0 Stereo that sounds like the
original soundmaster with its older Dolby A-type analog Dolby System
noise reduction sound (Cimino's previous four films got 70mm Dolby
treatment, so this was a slight stepdown sonically for his work) and
sounds much better overall. Just play it back in Pro Logic or an
equivalent, like Pro Logic II. Cimino veteran David Mansfield again
delivers the music score.
Extras
include a reversible cover with new art on one side, art similar to
the original theatrical release posters on the other side and a
poster, while the disc adds a Stills Gallery, Vintage Making-Of
featurette and an Original Theatrical Trailer.
Dual
(2022) is
a film that never does what you think it's going to do and that is
what makes it a pretty enthralling film to watch. Starring the ultra
talented and underrated Karen Gillan (Guardians
of the Galaxy,
Dr.
Who,
Jumanji,)
a woman is diagnosed with a terminal disease and signs on for a
cloning procedure to 'replace' her after she dies to help aide the
loss to family and friends. However, once the clone spends time with
after almost a year, she discovers that she is now cured and no
longer thought to be terminal. As a result, it is ruled that her and
her clone fight to the death and the winner gets to live on while the
'copy' dies. The film also stars Jesse Eisenberg, Beulah Koale, and
Theo James.
Gillan
does a great job of adapting two different performances in the film
to train your mind to think she is actually two different people.
It's kind of remarkable to me as her performance is primarily pretty
dead-pan. In order to help ensure her win, she's gets combat
training by Aaron Paul (Breaking
Bad
and Westworld)
who turns her from a couch potato into a skilled fighter. The film
raises many questions about cloning and what it would actually be
like if it in a modern society backdrop and makes you think more than
once.
The
film highlights what its would be like from a romantic perspective,
as her boyfriend falls for her 'copy' instead of for the 'original'
as she is similar in looks, but maybe not completely in terms of
personality. What is most impressive about the movie though is it's
misdirection. It never does what you expect it to or take the easy
way out, which makes it more memorable than most films. It is slow
paced and depressing in places, but also pretty funny and satisfying.
Dual
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and a lossless,
English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film is
nicely photographed in a foreign setting and looks and sounds fine
for Blu-ray disc.
Special
Features:
Exclusive
audio commentary by director Riley Stearns
and
The
Making of Dual
featurette
Dual
is an intelligent and thought provoking movie that may not be for
everyone, but it certainly shows that Karen Gillan can hold a film on
her own and that writer/director Riley Stearns is one to keep an eye
on. Go see this film!
Now
on 4K UHD for the first time is director Doug Liman's Edge
of Tomorrow 4K
(2014) starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. The improvements in this
version lie mainly in the 2160p upscaled image with HDR10 that boosts
the already great looking VFX and gives a much needed upgrade to an
interesting sci-fi film that is still entertaining in retrospect.
There have been rumors of a sequel for years and (as of this writing)
no such luck, however this 4K UHD release certainly captures the
artistry put into the making of the film in more detail than before.
Based
on the novel All
You Need Is Kill
by Hiroshi Sakurazaka, the film draws inspiration from some previous
works such as Starship
Troopers
(more the book than the Verhoeven film), Source
Code
and Groundhog
Day
(with the idea of the same day repeating over and over), and perhaps
even a cue or two from Cruise's previous sci-fi efforts War
of The Worlds
and Oblivion.
The only odd thing about this home video release is that it's one of
the first times I've ever seen a studio basically change/modify the
title of the film for the Blu-ray. In theaters the film was simply
known as Edge
of Tomorrow
but now, its being referred to as Live
Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow.
Either way, this movie I feel is going to only grow appreciation
over time and is really an impressive accomplishment. It found a
wider audience in a foreign market than it did in America but
hopefully that will change now with this exciting home video release.
Maybe the new title was a joke that what started in theaters was
still
happening.
Minor
Spoilers ahead:
The
film takes place in the near future, where an alien race known as the
Mimics have invaded the Earth and defeated the world's military
units. It follows Major William Cage (Cruise), a military PR officer
inexperienced in combat, who is deployed into a combat mission
against the aliens unwillingly after he blackmails General Brighman
(Brendan Gleeson) with the threat of exposing him through public
relations. Waking up in handcuffs at a military operating center
named Heathrow (the famed airport converted?), Cage discovers he has
been labeled a deserter and put on combat duty for the invasion under
the command of Master Sergeant Farell (the late, great Bill Paxton).
Though
Cage is killed in minutes on the trenches of combat, he finds himself
starting over in a time loop after killing a large Mimic and getting
sprayed by its acid-like blood. He suddenly begins repeating the
same mission and being killed each time, but soon Cage learns to
better fight the aliens, and he teams up with Special Forces warrior
Rita Vrataski (Blunt) who recognizes his ability to anticipate events
and tells him to locate her the next time he wakes up.
Cage
finds Vrataski at Heathrow and together they meet up with Dr. Carter
(Noah Taylor), a former government scientist and expert in Mimic
biology. Cage learns that the kind of Mimic he killed in his first
loop, an Alpha, resets time when it is killed to give the Mimics an
advantage in battle. Cage inherited this ability when he was doused
in the Alpha's blood as they both died. Vrataski had this ability in
a previous battle but lost it after receiving a blood transfusion.
She tells Cage that they must hunt the Mimics' hive mind, the Omega,
and hit the enemy at its source. Only project is that the only way
to see the Omega is by inheriting visions of its current whereabouts
by way of repeated death. From here, the film gets even more intense
as the search for the Omega turns Cage into a hardened badass with
the ability to know what's coming next.
Edge
of Tomorrow
is presented in 2160p ultra high definition on 4K UHD disc with an
HEVC / H.265 codec, HDR 10, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.20:1, and
new, lossless, English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for
older systems) 48kHz, 24-bit tracks that both sound crisp and clean.
There's also a Blu-ray edition of the film in the set with 1080p
specs that house the bonus material. Some other sites are saying the
Blu-ray looks a tad better than the 4K UHD, but they are obviously
crazy as the sharpness and picture detail is certainly improved.
Special
Features are the same as the previous release:
Operation
Downfall: Adrenaline Cut
Storming
The Beach
Weapons
Of The Future
Creatures
Not Of This World
On
The Edge With Doug Liman
and
Deleted Scenes.
While
Edge
of Tomorrow
may not be Tom Cruise or Emily Blunt's best movie, it is definitely
an interesting sci-fi epic that deserves a bit more love than it has
gotten.
Fernando
Alle's Mutant
Blast
(2018) is a fun Portuguese low budget sci-fi / horror film that has
all the ingredients to make it a proper title to release under the
sacred Troma banner. While the film has big budget aspirations, it
is limited by its budget yet still manages to be a memorable low
budget sci-fi romp. Of course, the at-times gory special effects are
pretty primitive and most of the acting is pretty iffy, but still
some points must be awarded for the effort and imagination put into
the piece.
The
film follows Maria, a fearless soldier, and TS-347 (a sad looking
Terminator
wannabe), a man with superhuman strength, who of whom are being
pursued by a military cell responsible for scientific experiments
that have resulted in a zombie apocalypse. On the way, they will
meet Pedro, a man with few ambitions and a great hangover. Together,
they will try to escape to a safe place, but threat of a nuclear bomb
looms. The film stars Joao Vilas, Maria Leite, and Pedro Barao Dias.
Mutant
Blast
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35 X 1, and standard, lossy
Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo mixes that are passable, but why no
lossless options? The film was most certainly shot on video and
looks and sounds okay considering its budget restraints.
A
second disc is included for the extras, which includes the following:
Making
of ''Lobsterman Caws''
Rat
Pre-Production Test
Troma
Trailers: Original Teaser, International Trailer, 30 Sec Trailer,
Full Trailer
Mutant
Blast goes to Korea - Day 1,2,3
Mutant
Blast or how Lloyd Kaufman became a Portuguese Zombie
Portugal
gets Hit with a Mutant Blast
Special
Effects, Bloopers, and Bottle Cap Challenge.
While
marketing compares the film to that of early Peter Jackson, I
wouldn't quite give this film that much credit. Troma has done a
nice job with the release, however, with two discs that are both full
of content.
Randall
Okita's See
For Me
(2021) stars Skyler Davenport as Sophie, a former Olympian skier who
was rendered blind in a tragic incident. A fiercely independent
woman, Sophie tries to maintain a normal life despite her newfound
disability. Agreeing to house and pet sit at a mansion for the
weekend, Sophie ends up dealing with a small band of thieves who
break in to the property in an attempt to steal seven million in
money stored in a safe in the house.
When
the police come, Sophie does some rash thinking and takes quite a few
wrong turns in the process. What the bad guys don't know is that
Sophie called a 911 blind help hotline called 'See For Me' upon their
arrival and that the Army Veteran Operator on the other end has
hatched a plan to help guide and save her. When all else fails,
however, Sophie must survive by her own gut instincts to protect
herself from these dangerous men and make it through the night alive.
The
film also stars Kim Coates (Resident
Evil),
Jessica Parker Kennedy, and Laura Vandervoort (Rabid).
See
For Me
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1, and a lossless,
English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film is
pretty dark overall and takes place a lot at night, but is pretty
cinematic and looks and sounds fine on disc.
No
extras, sadly.
I
enjoyed See
For Me,
which is a nice spin on the home invasion thriller and features a
pretty badass female lead. I would compare it distantly to that of
Fincher's Panic
Room,
if I was going to compare it to anything. Most notable is the
leading performance here of the character of Sophie by Skyler
Davenport, who does a very convincing job of playing the part of a
blind woman that you grow to care for throughout the film even if she
isn't exactly an innocent character. I would recommend this film.
Michael
B. Chait's Wolf
Hound
(2022) has a good premise in Nazis taking Allied planes that are
still working, then pretending to be Allied flyers to their deadly
advantage. It is not a story you've heard much and that leaves
plenty of potential, but the results are very mixed with subpar
visual effects, mixed editing, acting that tries but does not always
succeed and a result that is more action and even videogame film than
drama and gritty, brutal WWII film.
Lead
actors James Maslow and Trevor Donovan are clearly trying to make
this work, along with the supporting cast, but some mixed direction
and some indecision on what the film is and where it is going stop
this from developing into what could have been a pleasant surprise.
This runs over two hours, so prepare for a long sit should you try it
out.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer is a little
softer throughout than I would have liked, from the CGI visual
effects not being that good to too many soft shots. Maybe they are
using old HD cameras, but the visuals are not that memorable or
convincing.
The
Spanish/French DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix is a little
harsh and hot at times, but is not awful, yet could have been better.
Not the best action mix I have heard for a film of its kind lately.
Maybe they were trying too hard or relying too much on what they
perceived as digital quality, but there you have it.
Extras
include a feature length audio commentary track by Director Michael
B. Chait, Actor James Maslow, Producer Sue Witham &
Writer/Co-Producer Timothy Ritchey, Deleted/Extended Scene, Original
Theatrical Trailer and two featurettes: one on visual effects, the
other behind the scenes.
-
Nicholas Sheffo (Hours,
Wolf)
and James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/