Production: Sony
Video: 1080p - 16:9 - MPEG-4 AVC (Region 0)
2:4:1 aspect ratio
Audio
English: PCM 5.1 (uncompressed), English: Dolby Digital
5.1, DUBs: French: Dolby Digital 5.1,
German: Dolby Digital
5.1, German:
PCM 5.1 (uncompressed)
Subtitles
English SDH, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese,
Chinese, Arabic, Hungarian, Korean, Thai, none
Disc: Dual-Layered Blu-Ray (50GBs)
Runtime: 1:29:24
Extras:
• Screen-specific audio commentary with director Mangold
• New Screenwriter
commentary (Michael Cooney)
• Deleted Scenes with optional
director commentary
(in 1080!)
• Storyboard comparisons
(in 1080!)
• 'Making Of...' Featurette: 'Starz on the
Set' (not in
hi-def)
Disc: 50GB Blu-ray Disc
Release Date: April 3rd, 2007
Standard Blu-Ray case
Synopsis:
What if every choice we ever make was already made for
us? What if there really were no coincidences in life
and our destinies were already predetermined? Ten
strangers with secrets are brought together in a savage
rainstorm: A limo driver (John Cusack), an '80s TV star
(Rebecca DeMornay), a cop (Ray Liotta) who is
transporting a killer (Jake Busey), a call girl (Amanda
Peet), a pair of newlyweds(Clea DuVall and William Lee
Scott) and a family in crisis (John C. McGinley, Leila
Kenzle, Bret Loehr), all take shelter at a desolate
motel run by a nervous night manager (John Hawkes).
Relief in finding shelter is quickly replaced with fear
as the ten travelers begin to die, one by one. They soon
realize that, if they are to survive, they'll have to
uncover the secret that has brought them alltogether...
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The Film:
Here's a Hollywood thriller with a very capable cast, a devious script juggling a host of characters, and top level studio production values, all of which combine to launch a big twist about two-thirds through. But initial admiration soon fades into a feeling of emptiness. Michael Cooney's bustling screenplay is obviously inspired by Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians, as disparate travellers converge at a remote motel on a stormy night, only to find their number whittled away one by one. Among the increasingly fearful flotsam, limo driver Cusack, fugitive call girl Peet and hassled cop Liotta seem likely to survive longest in the face of the escalating body count. There are things to enjoy. Cusack is all nuts and bolts professionalism, as he delivers screeds of deftly disguised exposition. Spirited direction milks the isolated tumbledown setting for copper-bottomed suspense and almost masks the mechanical aspect of one inventively grisly demise following another. The scheming narrative ably marshals teasing red herrings and diversionary ruses before hitting us with a doozy of a reversal.
Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE.
The Video:
Gorgeous image quality on this MPEG-4 AVC Blu-ray transfer from Sony. The film is very dark throughout most scenes and the 1080P resolution supports the contrast details exceptionally well. This is one of the better film images I have seen in the new formats. Dual-layered and the transfer is tight, clean and shows some remarkable detail at times. If I was giving a numeric rating it would be 4.5/5 with only some very minor noise stopping a perfect score. This is a very impressive visual presentation.
Screen Captures
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Audio:
There is an excellent uncompressed PCM 5.1 track included as an option with a standard 5.1 and some DUBs (note one of the German options gives an uncompressed PCM option as well). There are significant background sounds (it is raining through most of the film) so the separated audio presentation greatly benefits. The action and gore are fairly limited and the subtle use of jumpy sound cues helps the suspense-driven narrative. Dialogue was clear throughout and I didn't have to touch the volume control once. It is supported by a host of subtitle options (ready for sale in other parts of the world - hence the region 0 status) including English SDH, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Arabic, Hungarian, Korean and Thai.
Extras:
There is one major addition beyond those included from the SD version
which include a screen-specific commentary from Mangold. It's not
stupendous but he makes some decent points - focusing a lot of the
characterizations. "Starz: On the Set" is a very brief,
uninspired, 13-minute slap-dash promo-like making of with some
soundbites to cap it off - feel free to give this a miss. There are 4
deleted scenes with optional Mangold commentary - they aren't
particularly relevant to the final product but are in HD! - which is a
nice touch. Also in HD are three Storyboard Comparisons entitled "George's
Death", "Lou's Demise" and "Rhodes' Backstory." There
are also some 'Coming to' trailers but not one for 'Identity'.
New for Blu-ray is screenwriter Michael Cooney's commentary and I enjoyed it more than the old one from Mangold. He makes some intelligent observations and is a guy who apparently know his stuff. A very pleasant inclusion.
Menus
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BOTTOM LINE: Director Mangold (as in 3:10 to Yuma) seems quite adept at skirting around the Hollywood brand - in this case the obvious horror-thriller dynamic elements. While at the same time retaining marketing-appeal fragments with some creativity, and in the end presenting an adept, thought-provoking and entertaining piece of work that is less damaged than might otherwise be expected because of encapsulation within the studio system. There is craftsmanship here to be sure and the writing is strong while performances are noteworthy when infrequently called upon. This is no masterpiece and has some flaws but they are easily eclipsed by the, often brilliant, formula deviations and aura. The film has an obvious darkness which juxtaposes a well-lit psychological adventure into the human mind. I really enjoyed it - even a second time. The DVD is one of Sony's better high-definition forays. The image is the best available, audio is strong and the extras complete a great package. Yes, I strongly recommend.
Gary Tooze
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