5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The story centers on Charlie, a Los Angeles billionaire financial whiz who goes into self-imposed exile in Tijuana after his empire is revealed to have been a Ponzi scheme. While looking for the woman he abandoned there 25 years before, Charlie is pursued by a Mexican gangster, a federal agent and thugs sent by a former client looking to retrieve his money.
Starring: Aidan Quinn, Andy Garcia, Mario Van Peebles, Danny Pino, Gina GershonDrama | 100% |
Crime | 37% |
Video codec: MPEG-2
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.00:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A cataclysmic event like the Bernie Madoff scandal hurts many people, but it's a gift to storytellers, because it expands our notion of the possible. Before Madoff, viewers would scoff at the notion of a character who bilked investors for billions while operating openly for years under the noses of authorities. That could never happen, they'd say, adhering to the time-honored principle of most commentators that, to paraphrase Hamlet, if something isn't dreamt of in my own personal philosophy, it can't possibly be. One clever variation of the Madoff saga has already been spun by the creators of the TV series, Damages. A morally weightier version arrives courtesy of writer-director R. Ellis Frazier, who found himself wondering what would happen if someone like Madoff had gone on the run instead of turning himself in. Where would he go, and who would pursue him? Frazier's fictional con man, Charlie Wright, differed from the real Bernie Madoff in several key respects. He was younger; he had no family; and most important, his Ponzi scheme did not collapse leaving him broke. On the contrary, Wright managed to secrete several billion dollars of ill-gotten gains before he vanished, or at least enough people believe so to make chasing him worth their while. One always assumes that a man with a lot of money will live well, even on the run. But a man with a lot of money who can't go to the authorities lives in constant danger, because he's a target for all sorts of unsavory elements. And that's only part of Charlie Wright's troubles.
Across the Line is framed on Blu-ray at the odd aspect ratio of 2.00:1. Since the film never had a theatrical release, one cannot say, strictly speaking, that the Blu-ray departs from the original aspect ratio, but then again, 2.00:1 isn't a recognized standard that one could expect to see in a local theater. Since the film was shot digitally with the Red One system, it's possible that this was the camera aspect ratio, as I've been informed that the Red One offers this AR. Then again, the shooting AR could simply have been 1.78:1. No definitive information is provided either way in the supplements. Since Frazier's previous feature, The Line, was shot on film and framed at 2.35:1, it can reasonably be assumed that Across the Line would have had the same AR, if it had ever been released theatrically. In any case, at no point does the Blu-ray image feel cramped on the sides, nor does there appear to be excessive headroom at the top. The 1080p image has been encoded with the MPEG-2 codec. While this is the least efficient codec available for the job, it manages to perform decently here, because the raw data from the Red One compresses easily. With a few minor exceptions, which I'll get to in a moment, the image is extremely clean and detailed, with deep and solid blacks. Colors are never particularly saturated or intense with the Red One, but they are vivid. The L.A. scenes are dominated by cool blues, even in daytime, while the scenes in and around Tijuana are overwhelmingly yellow, brown and occasionally green. The white attire favored by Jorge Garza and the red dress that Mary puts on for her initial meeting with Charlie stand out vividly. The handful of shots that show video noise are long shots, all of them aerial, establishing various views of the city and providing transitions. The noise does not appear to be caused by compression, and it was probably part of the original image capture, since it is so specifically limited to these few shots.
As with The Line, Maya Entertainment has provided a Dolby Digital track, but no lossless option. While the lack of a lossless track is regrettable, I do not count myself among those who consider its omission sufficient to condemn a Blu-ray disc as inadequate. I prefer to listen to what's there on the disc, and in fact the DD 5.1 track on Across the Line is quite impressive. It's a subtle and understated mix that forgoes the more cliched opportunities for bombastic effects (such as the stadium ambush scene) and instead looks for unexpected moments to introduce layers of sound. A notable example occurs in the extended encounter between Charlie Wright and Jorge Garza in a Tijuana police station. The surrounds are alive with distant voices echoing and calling out words you can't make out, but you're very much aware, as Charlie must be, that you're in a strange place where events have outstripped your control and things are happening all around that you don't understand. The film has many such subtle uses of sound. The original score, credited to Kim Carroll, also makes effective use of the full surround system. Carroll's music often follows an approach pioneered by film composer Maurice Jarre, who believed that a film's music should blend with its sound design and effects. Thus, for example, during the deadly game of stalk and evade that follows the stadium ambush, Carroll has instruments bouncing back and forth within the soundfield, echoing and underlining the action on screen. You don't end up humming his score, because it becomes just another part of the film's events.
The back cover of the Blu-ray case indicates that the disc contains "deleted scenes" and director Frazier's short film entitled Baines, but these are nowhere to be found on the disc (unless there's an exceptionally well-hidden easter egg). An additional special feature listed on the case is included:
Like Frazier's previous feature, The Line, Across the Line was made independently, attracted a stellar cast filled with name-recognition actors, but had to be released directly to video when Frazier could not find a theatrical distributor. Don't let the lack of theatrical release dissuade you. The film is technically proficient and has more substance than much contemporary studio product. It caught me by surprise, and I recommend it highly.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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