5.8 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
An American civilian sets out on his own to find Osama Bin Laden.
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Russell Brand, Amar Chadha-Patel, Adrian MartinezComedy | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
There weren't too many Americans who didn't want Usama Bin Laden dead or captured, a few before 9/11 and certainly after 9/11, but few wanted to get him more than Gary Faulkner (Nicolas Cage), a Coloradan who took to the seas, then the skies, to travel to Pakistan to do the job the United States military wasn't getting done. Army of One tells his rather comedic, and in some ways sad, true tale of patriotism, idealism, naïveté, and a whole bunch of other things in there, too. An interesting film more for the relaying of the true story rather than anything the movie does especially well with the content, Army of One makes for an interesting watch that's more likely to elicit a response around the character rather than his action, as brave, foolhardy, or somewhere in between it may have been.
Army of One's 1080p transfer lacks the polish and realism of superior digitally shot productions presented on Blu-ray. The source material leaves the image appearing texturally flat and bland, devoid of seriously punchy colors, and lacking the razor-sharpness of high end digital shoots. It's not uncommon to spot smeary corners around the frame even in relatively close-up elements around the foreground. Detail rarely impresses beyond the broadest spectrum, failing to bring out the finer points of facial hair and textures, clothes, terrain, or odds and ends around various interior locations. The color palette appears slightly desaturated, with even the would-be splashy red and blue on the hang glider struggling to put forward the sort of richly vibrant hues one would expect. Flesh tones favor a touch of pastiness while black levels, seen, for example, during a couple of nighttime exteriors in Pakistan, hold fairly deep. Source noise is sporadic and light, and no major encode issues are apparent. The only drawback here, really, is the photographic style that doesn't translate to a pristine image.
Army of One invades Blu-ray with a no-frills, largely straightforward, and unmemorable DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Much like the video counterpart, any shortcomings or disappointments seem more from the source rather than the transfer-to-Blu-ray process. The presentation is largely front-heavy, with music enjoying adequate width out to the sides, playing with fair clarity. Neither surround nor low end accompaniment are serious helpers, but do chime in on occasion for subtle support. A few discrete effects, particularly near the beginning, represent the near-peak for the track. TV and radio chatter emanate from various positions around the stage, as does the voice of "God." The transitions form speaker to speaker are seamless; the track uses both discrete and one-off imaging in these moments to good effect. A cold Pakistani wind gusts about the stage moments later. It's not until midway through that the track finds anything else of substantive value when the Muslim call to prayer springs to life and awakens Gary with its sudden, piercing shriek. Otherwise, the track is largely straightforward. Dialogue drives most of the film, and it's well prioritized and adequately clear with a natural front-center positioning.
Army of One contains on supplement. Making 'Army of One' (1080p, 7:07) takes a quick look at the character and the real person behind him, the movie's cadence, story threads, Cage's transformation for the role, support performances in the film, Larry Charles' direction, shooting locations, and more. A DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV digital copy are included with purchase.
Army of One tells an admittedly intriguing story of one of the most unique men ever plucked from the annals of real life and repurposed for the screen. Cage is good in the lead but the movie never quite sorts out how it wants to portray the character, and the audience may never quite decide how to respond to him, either. It's an interesting film, one that's worth watching if only as a springboard for further study into Gary Faulkner's life and adventures. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray features decent video and audio that are more a product of a lower end production than anything else. One extras is included. Rent it.
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