6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.3 |
A man is released from prison to help American and Chinese authorities pursue a mysterious cyber criminal. The dangerous search leads them from Chicago to Hong Kong.
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Leehom Wang, Tang Wei, Viola Davis, Holt McCallanyDrama | 100% |
Crime | 56% |
Thriller | 37% |
Mystery | 16% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish: DTS 5.1
French: DTS 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Michael Mann's most timely film may also be his least impressive. The acclaimed filmmaker's (The Last of the Mohicans, Heat, Collateral) cyber-crime Thriller Blackhat tackles the dangerous, and largely unseen, world of cyber terrorism and digital manipulation for personal gain, but it does so as soullessly as the machines that make it happen. Worse, the characters are nearly as vapid and are practically vaporware in the larger scheme of things, shells full of promise and potential that fall victim to bad code, incompatibility, and generally sluggish performance. Silly but relevant computer analogies aside, Blackhat fails to capture the imagination, playing with a heavy-handed procedural feel as it methodically and without passion maneuvers through basic genre trope, interspersed with glimpses of Mann magic, largely bay way of expertly staged and lifelike shootouts and a general top-end exterior craftsmanship.
The future of warfare.
Blackhat's 1080p transfer enjoys solid production all around but it never reaches the heights of format greatness. The movie plays with a somewhat flat feel about it. Even brighter scenes aren't dazzling, settling for a solid color foundation and good general definition. The palette is fairly pedestrian with some splashes of brighter coloring in dense city signage and bright green radiation suits but is otherwise heavy on the dull side with only solid basic coloring at the core. Details are likewise solid but not eye-popping in presentation. Faces reveal good amounts of intimate lines and pores and clothes are likewise wells defined, whether more basic T-shirt fabric textures or more precise and complex heavy military uniform lines. Skin tones don't struggle too much with wayward coloring but blacks tend to waver a bit between slight crush and mild paleness. A moderate amount of noise interferes with some of the darker backdrops.
Blackhat features an oftentimes impressive but occasionally misfiring DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. On the plus side, the track offers a big, wide stage that handles subtle effects and large, dense elements equally well. Whether light sounds of modern communication maneuvering through the stage in the opening moments or deep, heavy gunfire echoing through an enclosed space midway through the movie, there's an unmistakable sense of welcome fullness and vitality to the track. Minor street level ambience helps set the stage for the film's more densely populated locations, while larger open air shootouts are defined by hard-hitting gunfire and realistic impacts in flesh and metal surfaces. Explosions are also potent and deliver a healthy bit of energy into the stage. The track can get a little rattly at the very bottom, however. Dialogue is, surprisingly, the most inconsistent element. It seems to drop out momentarily at the 4:36 mark (repeatable on rewind), as it also does later during some "pillow talk" around the 45-minute mark that's more a fading effect than a full drop. There are several occurrences when dialogue simply sounds detached (the 19-minute marks being good examples, particularly as the man with whom Hathaway is speaking seems dubbed over when the camera's pointed at an over-the-shoulder angle). There's a general unevenness to verbal cadence throughout the movie that can become a distraction.
Blackhat contains three featurettes. Inside the Blu-ray case, buyers will find a DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy.
Blackhat is easily the most disappointing and frustrating film in the otherwise good-to-brilliant Michael Mann canon. On one hand, the movie is timely and feels like it should be important, have something to say, offer something to get the audience swept up in the very real dangers of behind-the-scenes hacking. With the flat characters, dull story, and failure to connect with the audience, it feels like the writers spent more time AFK than working on the script. Maybe Mann can release a patch somewhere down the line in the form of a director's cut that tightens the movie, but as it is now it's bloatware with little in the way of substance to offer. Universal's Blu-ray release features good, but not great, video and audio. Supplements are few. Rent it.
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