BLU-RAY
REVIEW: BULLET TO THE HEAD
7/13/13
OVERVIEW: Blood will boil and revenge will be sought as “Bullet to the Head” arrives onto Blu-ray Combo Pack and Digital Download on July 16 from Warner Home Entertainment Group. Starring the legendary Sylvester Stallone, “Bullet to the Head” follows the unexpected alliance of a New Orleans hit man and a by-the-book Washington D.C. detective on a thrilling quest for payback.
“Bullet to the Head” will be available on Blu-ray Combo Pack. The Blu-ray Combo Pack features the theatrical version of the film in hi-definition on Blu-ray, and the theatrical version in standard definition on DVD. The Blu-ray Combo Pack also includes UltraViolet which allows consumers to download and instantly stream the standard definition theatrical version of the film to a wide range of devices including computers and compatible tablets, smartphones, game consoles, Internet-connected TVs and
Blu-ray players.
SYNOPSIS:
Based on Alexis Nolent's French graphic novel, Du Plomb Dans La Tete, “Bullet to the Head” tells the story of a New Orleans hit man (Stallone) and a DC cop (Kang) who form an unlikely alliance to bring down the killers of their respective partners.
FILM REVIEW: Director
Walter Hill (48Hrs, 1982) brings us this less than stylistic
throwback-to-an-eighties action flick; based on Alexis Nolent's
French graphic novel “Du Plomb Dans La Tete.” Hill seems to
be a strong director with a history of elevating run-of-the-mill
genre pieces by injecting them with broad scope storylines and a
type character-driven approach to action-flick storytelling.
However, somehow his style didn’t work for this latest
release, very well. I would even go one step further and say
that his casting Sylvester Stallone, in the lead role, has hurt
this production tremendously. Moreover and somewhat arguably,
Sly’s acting and action style is too deeply rooted in the
eighties to have any real relevance to today’s action movies.
I find it quite interesting
that in this latest flick, Stallone appears in his first
non-franchise-driven (franchises - Expendables, Rocky or Rambo)
role, since 2001. It kinda’ feels like a little more than
coincidence that this release arrives in theaters right between
Arnold Schwarzenegger's "The Last Stand" and the
upcoming release of Bruce Willis' latest "Die Hard."
One could surmise that this movie provides Sly the chance to
stretch outside his franchise-driven comfort zone and parks him
squarely in the midst of the return of the
“eighties-action-icons club.” A questionable return, I would
argue.
Not surprisingly, there is
certainly the Mardi Gras spirit to Bullet to the Head, which
soaks up the carnival-like glamour and mystery that's so
characteristic of New Orleans (or the version of it that we've
grown accustomed to seeing on-screen). However, this did nothing
for the movie, in my opinion, and to that end it probably took
away from the overall quality of the movie in an extremely
distracting manner. Furthermore, the plot and narrative
conventions are extremely rigid and robotic and make the movie
feel like it is going down some sort of checklist, and resulting
in an extremely predictable climax.
Bullet to the Head does offer
some bits and pieces of panache in a clumsy New Orleans-esque
sorta’ way and action ebbs and flows with some sequences being
pretty cool and others just simply being dreadful to watch (i.e.
the axe duel). Despite the many shortcomings of the tale and its
lead actor, Hill’s efforts do not go totally unnoticed though.
The supporting actors seem to make up for some lost ground while
the overall essence of the movie rings through with the odd
pairing of good guys and bad guys to achieve some level of
closure to the insanity of the storyline.
Largely because of the Hill’s
movie-making style and effort, the movie is not a total lost and
does have some merit. I believe this is more of a weekend type
of movie rental and would be a waste of time and money, to watch
in theaters. Three out of five stars is the best this flick
could ever expect to achieve.
Review
By Movi-Man Stan
BLU-RAY:
The film is
presented in 1080P widescreen in a 1.85:1 aspect ration
preserving its theatrical format. The picture is just
flawless. Not only the picture looks great in
this release, also the sound it is good, a 5.1 DTS-HD Master
Audio (48kHz/24bit) in English that provides a
good complement to the picture. It also includes
English Spanish French
subtitles.
VIDEO:
1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen 1080P
AUDIO:
English 5.1 DTS-HD Master
Audio
Subtitles -
ESDH, Latin Spanish
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Bullet to the Head: Mayhem
Inc.: Get ripped with Sylvester Stallone as he blasts his way through gun training and action choreography as he preps for a bone-crushing axe fight.
DVD disc: Feature film in standard definition
UltraViolet Digital Copy of the film
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