7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.3 |
Johnny is a 19-year-old drug dealer in Los Angeles. He comes from a good family, owns his home, several cars and enjoys partying with his friends. When his friend Jake reneges on a debt, Johnny and his boys kidnap Jake's 15-year-old brother, Butch, and hold him as a marker. Even though Butch has numerous chances to escape, he doesn't. He enjoys partying with them, losing his virginity and having a good time—until something goes horribly wrong.
Starring: Ben Foster, Shawn Hatosy, Emile Hirsch, Christopher Marquette, Sharon StoneCrime | 100% |
Biography | 32% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 1.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Former N’Sync member Justin Timberlake takes part in an ambitious but ultimately far from convincing attempt at recreating the history of legendary fugitive Jesse James Hollywood. Strong profanity and even stronger hip-hop beats are in abundance here but the story stutters and eventually comes to a dead end delivering a hollow message. Pic is released in the United Kingdom by Icon Film Distribution.
Johnny Truelove (Emile Hirsch), a small time drug-dealer with big-time plans, and his friend Frankie (Justin Timberlake) create a serious mess when they kidnap Jake Mazursky’s (Ben Foster), a feisty junkie, little brother. Jake vows to find Johnny Truelove and his posse and teach him a lesson. While he is searching for the goon things start to get out of control.
Jake’s dad Butch (David Thornton) and his mom Olivia (Sharon Stone) get on the search as well. But instead of helping Jake they blame him for his brother’s fate. In the meantime, Johnny Truelove and Frankie begin to realize what they’ve done. In an attempt to cover up their criminal deed the duo goes a step too far.
Johnny Truelove
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC, and granted a 1080p transfer Alpha Dog is released in the United Kingdom by Icon Film Distribution. I know that this film was released on HDDVD by Universal Pictures but I have never seen their disc so unfortunately I will be unable to provide you with a comparative analysis. The UK release of Alpha Dog, subject of this review, is indeed of very good quality. It reveals a very consistent look boasting an impressive degree of clarity and detail. The daylight scenes are lush, vibrant, and quite "popping" while the nighttime scenes offer plenty of detail. The color-scheme is also intact. The nighttime scenes on the other hand are just as impressive as they reveal plenty of detail without suffering from any print inconsistencies (the final, and most dramatic, scene is a great example). The quality of the actual print is also very good – I did not detect any specks, debris, or dirt. As expected, Alpha Dog boasts a very contemporary look which the Blu-ray transfer preserves adequately. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc which you will be able to play on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).
There are three different tracks on this Blu-ray release: English: DTS-HD 5.1, English: Dolby Digital 5.1, and English: Dolby Digital 2.0. I opted for the highest denominator and was pleased with my experience. The DTS-HD 5.1 track is, generally speaking, very well balanced. The dialog is mixed well with the soundtrack (plenty of hip-hop tunes) and I did not detect any issues to report here. There weren't any pop-ups, dropouts, or hissing(s). Furthermore, the basics for the DTS-HD 5.1 mix are quite strong – the bass is full and rich and the high frequencies are also intact. The rear channels get a decent amount of traffic but are not overly potent. The key scenes where you will notice a great deal of movement are the action scenes and aside from them there is absolutely nothing else that will surprise you. My only concern here is the occasional lack of transparency with the dialog (during some of the mass scenes multiple lines of dialog overlap each other and as a result it becomes problematic to figure out exactly what is being said). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature and they do appear to be split (the sub-text appears in and outside of the image frame).
The only piece of supplemental material on this disc is the "Cautionary Tale: The Making Of" which provides plenty of comments from the cast and director (Nick Cassavetes, Sharon Stone, Justin Timberlake, etc). The majority of these comments address the technical difficulties the cast endured during production (as well as their appreciation for the director's apparently very loose style of filming) as well as the impact the script, based on a true story, had on them. Please note that you will be able to watch the Making Of on your Region-A PS3 or SA without any trouble at all.
Alpha Dog spurred a number of different feelings in me. It made me feel angry, disappointed, and eventually incredibly sad. There is a lot in this film that shows how terrible human beings could be. What is truly shocking, however, is seeing a lot of the destructive emotions channeled through kids with a complete lack of respect for each other. This being said, I cannot really say that I liked Alpha Dog. It is the type of film I find revealing but in the larger scheme of things pointless as it effectively glorifies more of what it attempts to dismiss. The Blu-ray disc release, courtesy of Icon Film Distribution, is of very good quality. In fact, having seen more than eight different catalog titles from the UK distributor, I am nothing but impressed. They are indeed on top of their game and providing very competent treatments for the films they own.
Limited Edition
1993
2001
The Criterion Collection
1993
1990
2015
Mastered in 4K
2013
Remastered
1990
2015
2002-2008
2004
2020
2008
2012
2005
1998
2010
2008
1991
2008
Cidade de Deus
2002