Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

65 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 27, 2023

65 opens with this text: “Prior to the advent of mankind, in the infinity of space, other civilizations explored the heavens.” In other words the movie takes place a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away... until a spaceship crash-lands on earth, 65 million years ago, and conveniently in the hours before the cataclysmic collision that cost the dinosaurs their reign on the planet. 65 is a film with a somewhat campy story that tries to (more or less) steer clear of camp in favor of a forward moving action film that holds no pretenses beyond the adventure. It works in some spots and not in others, but in the aggregate the picture satisfies essential cinema demands as good, lean popcorn escapism. It doesn't try to be too much and doesn't try to be too little, finding that Goldilocks sweet-spot for disposable entertainment.

After a catastrophic crash on an unknown planet, pilot Mills (Adam Driver) quickly discovers he's actually stranded on Earth…65 million years ago. Now, with only one chance at rescue, Mills and the only other survivor, Koa (Ariana Greenblatt), must make their way across an unknown terrain riddled with dangerous prehistoric creatures in an epic fight to survive.

One of the things that the movie does well is to focus on the characters rather than the world. It’s not so much about throwing spectacle after spectacle at the screen: it’s about survival and grounding the survival in reasons to live. Admittedly, those reasons are fairly generic, which amount to, for Mills, a basic desire to return home to his family. The action takes place across what is, for Mills and Koa, alien terrain, and there are dinosaurs, and there are threats and hazards and doubts and fears, but the movie does not push and push and push towards the external supports but instead it does its best to hold focus on the characters' internal struggles and desires to get home. Even as Mills becomes increasingly bloodied and the world more dangerous, it’s always that intimate, internal drive pushing him and Koa to their destination. The film doesn’t try to overwhelm the audience with Jurassic Park/World ooh-and-ah. Audiences don't get to "know" any of the dinosaurs; they're just part of the world that must be overcome to reach safety.

Otherwise, the movie follows a fairly standard construct that features Mills and Koa traversing prehistoric terrain, encountering dinosaurs, and Mills shooting dinosaurs. This takes place outside, in caves, across tricky terrain, and through water, and much of the movie is therefore very similar. But that's the story. It's a point "A" to point "B" journey where peril abounds but peril that Mills' rifle overcomes more or less with ease at every turn. The movie isn't bad, and that it's very lean at under 90 minutes discounting credits speaks to the filmmakers' understanding that it need not be a prolonged affair certainly helps to minimize the monotony. Still, where the movie really delights in the first act it loses some momentum in the second and doesn't do much to recover in the third. The film is simply a linear progression as Mills becomes increasingly bloodied and the dinosaurs become increasingly bigger. It's enjoyable but hardly revolutionary.

65 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sony's Blu-ray release of 65 offers a very solid picture. The picture was digitally shot and does hold to some light-to-moderate noise but is otherwise free of any source or encode artifacts. The picture is clear and satisfying, offering excellent definition to prehistoric terrain, high detail inside the ship, and razor-sharp textural details in faces and clothes. Audiences will find opportunity to scrutinize various elements in practically every scene, and even digital elements, which are seen aplenty, are nicely integrated and equally well defined. Color output is strong, too, with much of the movie appearing fairly cold and bleak but still presenting excellent opportunity for tonal vividness out in the world, or for example on some sandy red material that Mills uses to show Koa the path through the world and to a functional escape shuttle. Black levels are consistently healthy and skin tones look natural as well. This is a very fine presentation from Sony.

65 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sony brings 65 to Blu-ray with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The companion UHD features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack. Blu-ray listeners may be getting shortchanged on the number of active channels with this release, but they are not being shortchanged on activity. An opening outer space sequence, in which a spaceship flies through an asteroid field, is reminiscent of the crash-landing sequence from Pitch Black, which offers similar dynamics: rocks pelting and penetrating the ship, alarms and other elements blasting inside the vessel, the crash into the planet, with various sections jettisoning from the ship as well. That sequence from Pitch Black was always, and remains, one of my favorite audio reference moments dating even back in the DVD era, and this may likewise become one of those favorite reference moments for the future. The track continues to impress with nicely immersive atmosphere on the planet and plenty of big support elements during action. The track faithfully and relentlessly pushes forward with impressive yield in both subwoofer and surround usage, both very balanced and engaging, holding clarity and precision even during the most active moments. Musical clarity is very good, too, and stage engagement satisfies with dominant front-end placement and healthy back wrap. Dialogue is clear and center focused for the duration.

65 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of 65 includes a few extras. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with a non-embossed slipcover.

• Deleted Scenes (1080p, 8:03 total runtime): Included are Red Powder, Look at Me, Koa's Stick, Mills builds a Fire, and Mills Says Goodbye.
• Set in Stone: Filmmakers (1080p, 4:21): The filmmakers discuss their longtime desire to make this movie, filmmaking tactics, and more.
• Future of Yesterday: Creating the World of 65 (1080p, 4:56): Looking at props, content design, set pieces, locations, sound design, and more.
• Primordial Planet (1080p, 2:30): A brief documentary-style look at Earth of 65 million years ago.
• Final Showdown: Concepts to Screen (1080p, 10:14): Full-screen storyboards juxtaposed with the finished product in a bottom-right window.
• Previews (1080p): Additional Sony titles.

65 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

65 doesn't demand that its audience turn off the brain, mostly because there's not much here to stimulate the brain one way or the other. If the film is good at anything, it's good at focus and forward momentum. That's also a downfall considering that the film plays with obvious repetition once the story is established. Still, it's a decent excursion and, at under 90 minutes sans credits, it doesn't overstay its welcome in its repetitiveness. Sony's Blu-ray delivers excellent video and audio paired with a decent selection of extras. Recommended.