6.8 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A retired mobster goes on a revenge spree after being left for dead with 22 bullets in his body by his former childhood friend.
Starring: Jean Reno, Kad Merad, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Marina Foïs, Joey StarrThriller | 100% |
Action | 97% |
Crime | 81% |
Foreign | 21% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, French SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Lilyhammer: Season One posited Steve Van Zandt as a former mobster who enters the Federal Witness Protection program after having barely escaped an assassination attempt. One of the more disturbing images of the carnage that Van Zandt’s character of Frank “The Fixer” Tagliano survives is the sad sight of Frank’s little dog Lily being decimated in the attack. I mean, it almost seems fair game for gangsters to take each other out in hyperbolic style, but do they need to shoot the dog, too? That same question may append an early scene in 22 Bullets (released in its native France as L’Immortel), where, yes, a gangster named Charlie Mattei (Jean Reno) who finds himself at the wrong end of several guns virtually right off the bat in the film, ending up with the titular score-plus of bullets in his hide, and now lacking one previously living (and loving) mutt who had captured the crime boss’ heart. That’s enough to set even a grizzled kingpin off on a revenge fueled rant, and that’s pretty much what 22 Bullets ends up being. This film reteams star Reno with Luc Besson, who directed Reno in both Léon: The Professional and La Femme Nikita. Besson serves as producer here, but in fact the film plays rather like one of Besson's own films with Reno, with director Richard Berry balancing some excellently staged action set pieces with more penetrating character work. While the film ultimately may not have quite as much gravitas as it seems to be aiming for, it's still great to see Reno depicting a character whose best days may indeed be behind him, but who is definitely not going gentle into that good night.
22 Bullets is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Cinedigm with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. The film has been released several times previous internationally, though this appears to have been culled from the same master that was used for the Canadian release reviewed by my colleague Dr. Svet Atanasov (I come to this conclusion based not on any definite knowledge, but simply from a cursory comparison of screenshots, which seem identical or at least nearly so to my eyes). The film features a number of subtle but noticeable color grading decisions which tend to cast a golden hue over quite a bit of the exterior scenes, but fine detail is never compromised as a result. Berry likes to exploit extreme close-ups throughout the film (see screenshots 6 and 7 for a couple of examples), and those reveal exceptional fine detail. Contrast and black levels are consistent throughout the presentation, and there was no overt artifacting that I noticed in preparation for this review.
22 Bullets features a nicely boisterous DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in the original French. The film has several nice set pieces which allow for good use of LFE and directionality, including the opening gun volley in the parking garage (which includes some impressive lower bursts as well as the shattering of several car windows), and a later chase scene where Charlie is trying to evade two zooming cars while on a mini-scooter. The recurring motif of opera sounds fine as well, and dialogue comes through completely cleanly at all times.
22 Bullets should certainly satisfy most Reno fans who love the actor's previous collaborations with Luc Besson. Besson may not be behind the camera this time, but his influence is most definitely felt in this film. While the plot is perhaps a bit too tangled for its own good, and comes to a probably too pat resolution (replete with a final freeze frame that tends to contradict Reno's voice over), overall this is a really exciting and well done thriller that has the added benefit of some absolutely stunning French scenery. Technical merits of this Blu-ray are top notch. Highly recommended.
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