Mirrors – Unrated (Fox Blu-ray)
Picture: B+
Sound: B+ Extras: C Film: C
Kiefer
Sutherland has always been an actor that I’ve wanted to like, unfortunately his
films are more miss than hit and over the years he’s become more of a
disappointment. His career is then revitalized with the hit series 24, and just when fans think he is has
the clout to pull off a return to the big screen, he pulls of a film like
Mirrors, which is like a slap in the face to those who had any hope in
Sutherland becoming a more prolific actor, you know…like his father.
Maybe
Sutherland had more faith in director Alexandre Aja, who directed the remake of
The Hills Have Eyes, which was an
admirable remake that we covered here. Mirrors
though is nowhere near the film as it becomes tangled in its own psychological
mess. The film focuses on a former cop (Sutherland) who is attempting to
make sense of his life, his circumstances, and he winds up as a security clerk
guarding the remains of a Mayflower department store in New York City.
What seems like a mundane and routine job soon becomes a horrifying nightmare
as terrifying images become all-too-real in the stores mirrors and now he must
find a way to reveal the secrets behind the stores mysterious past in order to
save his future.
In some
way or another, we have seen better examples of this film, even 2003’s Gothika (reviewed here) worked in more substantial ways. It’s not to
say that the execution behind the film falls short, but the story combined with
too many unoriginal ideas only cause the end result to fall a bit flat and feel
too much like things we’ve seen done before and done better.
Arriving
to Blu-ray from Fox, the film receives a strikingly strong 2.40 X 1 High
Definition transfer in 1080p. The film is filled with a variety of dark
scenes or highly stylized near-grayscale scenes that look very pronounced and
demonstrate the range of color and depth that Blu-ray can offer, even in darker
scenes. While the overall palette of colors is far more subdued in
nature, the Blu-ray handles this well and still extracts the level of
resolution that we are beginning to get used to on Blu-ray release that are
done well.
Likewise
we have an impressive DTS-HD 5.1 sound option that is lively and engaging with
lots of playful directional effects throughout that work well for a suspenseful
film as the soundtrack helps play with our emotions. The mix is pounding
at times, while other times it’s sparse, but every nuance comes through with
accuracy and clarity and does help bring the film to life, even if it’s nothing
super original.
Extras
include a digital copy, plus both the theatrical and the unrated versions are
available on this 50GB disc. Audio commentary by Aja, the making of
supplements are included as well, plus deleted scenes and alternate ending with
directors optional commentary, there is also the D-Box motion control system
and all this stacked together make for an impressive collective for a mediocre
film, fans will likely enjoy the extras though.
- Nate Goss
