Review by Gary Tooze

Production:

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Video:

Audio:

• Casting The Passengers (10:34)

• Space on Screen - The Visual Effects of Passengers (7:27)

Digital version with code

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Description: Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt star in a high-stakes adventure about two passengers, Jim and Aurora, onboard a spaceship transporting them to a new life on another planet. The trip takes a deadly turn when their hibernation pods mysteriously wake them 90 years before they reach their destination. As they try to unravel the mystery behind the malfunction, they begin to fall for each other only to discover that the ship itself is in grave danger. With the lives of 5000 sleeping passengers at stake, only Jim and Aurora can save them all.

 

 

The Film:

Morten Tyldum‘s latest film Passengers is an interesting byproduct of both Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence‘s recent success. The film, which I’ve been told was greenlit based on their star power alone, is one that has a constant tug-of-war going on between its directing and writing.

On one part, you have a script by Jon Spaihts that’s full of curiosity and excitement, itching at the notion of loneliness and selfishness in a way that’s occasionally raw and honest, despite its creepiness, while also being sort of sweet and cute in a way that’s going to grab the attention of those simply seeking a sci-fi romance.

Excerpt from The Daily Rotation located HERE

 

His awakening triggers the auto-support systems throughout the whole craft and Jim wanders around this vast empty ship, wide-eyed and then panicky as he realises he has 90 more years to go. Rehibernation is not an option. He has access to no information other than the eerily unhelpful recorded hologram “help” messages intended to be watched on disembarkation. Most unsettlingly of all there is the regulation sci-fi robot: an android bartender called Arthur, played with uncanny-valley smileyness by Michael Sheen. Stricken with desolate loneliness, Jim mopes among the other pods and falls in love with one sleeping beauty of a fellow passenger – journalist Aurora Lane, played by Jennifer Lawrence. Jim piningly plays her autobiography-vidblogs archived on the ship’s computer database. He feels he’s got to know her. He could pry open her pod, wake her up, pretend it was another malfunction like his. Could Aurora be his helpmeet, created from the rib of his anguish? Does Jim have the right to condemn her to his own terrible fate?

Excerpt from The Gaurdina located HERE

Image :    NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

Passengers looks pretty sweet on Blu-ray from Sony. The image is rife with eye-popping futuristic and space-related effects. No denying the film's impressiveness in this regard and the 1080P does a strong job of exporting that. It is dual-layered with a supportive bitrate for the 2 hour film. This Blu-ray has a consistent appearance with no notable flaws. It looks about as good as a modern film, of this nature, can on the format. I'd actually love to see it in 4K UHD - lots of eye-candy sequences. Colors are rich, detail crisp and there is plenty of depth.  This Blu-ray is a good one to show friends and family to help show off your system and keep boys and girls happy.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was a bit shocked at the lesser caliber audio transfer for such an 'effects'-heavy film. We get a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround track at, respectively, modest 2119 kbps and only 16-bit. The, plentiful, special effects carry weight but, I'm assuming, not reaching the heights of depth or separation they could have with a more robust HD transfer. It sounds adequate but no floor rattling. Thomas Newman (In the Bedroom, Erin Brockovitch, American Beauty, Shawshank Redemption) does the score and its quite adept at suiting the film requirements and shifting moods as well as exporting tech-notable buoyancy. Dialogue was clear and there are optional subtitles on the region FREE Blu-ray disc.

Extras :

 

 

BOTTOM LINE:
So what the deal with Passengers? - 'a high-tech romance perhaps hoping to appeal to both genders on a date-night. Does it work? I think so - more kudos to the performances (Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt) which shine almost brighter than some of the space effects - often carrying the film. I thoroughly enjoyed Passengers although it has its predictable moments and went on a shade long for my tastes. Still very much worth seeing for most - the 'fluff' factor is there but dampened by the sci-fi. How's that? The Sony Blu-ray presentation is a great one and it adds some value with the supplements. Yes, recommended! 

Gary Tooze

March 9th, 2017

 

		Also available in 4K Ultra HD Editions