Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Bloodshot Blu-ray Movie Review

Part man...part machine...all Diesel.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 12, 2020

With Bloodshot, first-time director David S. F. Wilson adapts the Valiant Comics character of the same name with technical proficiency but without that hook to draw audiences into the world and leave the theater craving more. There's an obvious want to see this kick off a franchise but that seems unlikely, not only because the material as it's presented here is rather tepid and generic but also considering the entire state of the moviemaking world where it might only be surefire blockbusters and independently funded films going forward. Will there be room for middle-of-the-road movies like Bloodshot over the next few years? That remains to be seen, but it would be surprising to find this particular picture as the seed for something big moving forward with sustained box office performance and rabid fanatics eagerly awaiting the next installment.

Do and die...

In Mombasa, a highly skilled American operator named Ray Garrison (Vin Diesel) breaches a target structure ahead of orders, kills a handful of bad guys, rescues a hostage, and saves the day. But when the nefarious Martin Axe (Toby Kebbell) and his goons get the jump on him, they kill his wife Gina (Talulah Riley) and put a bullet in his brain. He awakens to news that his body was donated by the U.S. Military to Rising Spirit Technologies where he has been brought back to life under the watchful eye of Dr. Emil Harting (Guy Pearce) not with sorcery but rather with technology. Ray now possesses radically advanced regenerative powers thanks to a bloodstream made of nano robots that quickly rebuild damaged tissue making him all but invincible. When Ray hears a song that triggers the memory of Gina’s death, he breaks protocol by breaking out of the facility in search of revenge. But Ray will soon discover that there’s more to his story than he has been led to believe, that killing Martin may only be the beginning of a long, bloody journey of self-discovery and freedom.

Bloodshot never quite carves out its own unique identity. It looks a lot like a video game and borrows its key plot elements from several other sources, playing like a mishmash of RoboCop meets Wolverine meets the T-1000 where scientific enhancement and unstoppable regenerative abilities make the perfect killing machine. “Bloodshot” is a scientifically created, radically advanced superhero, not born on another world but given a second chance as one of the first of a new breed of human. The film finds its drama in how and why he has been created and used in the world, and of course it's not as straightforward as it may initially seem. That the movie twists the narrative partway through is no surprise, and neither is that it's not exactly rocket science to decipher the truth prior to its reveal. Still, there's just enough meat, borderline stale as it might be, to make the experience enjoyable enough to warrant a watch, particularly as there's general gunplay, parkour-type action, car chases, heavy duty fisticuffs, and digital effects aplenty to satisfy any genre fan.

Like everything else about the movie, the action scenes are well choreographed and blend practical and digital elements well enough, but there's not much here to really push the envelope. Bloodshot's action meets the standard for modern choreography and visual structure but like the lead character it doesn't push any boundaries. That's the whole movie in a nutshell, really. It's entirely acceptable, even palatable, as it's made of off-the-shelf components and ideas that altogether make for a perfectly fine, but perfectly forgettable, experience. Even Diesel doesn't seem to quite know what to do with the part. There's little opportunity for him to infuse any real personality into the character, in a way understandable given the topsy-turvy character twists-and-turns that necessarily alter the performance's shape and focus as the film moves along. Diesel is fine in isolation, handling those ebbs and flows with enough machismo on one end and light humor on the other with a bit of heart in between. He satisfactorily shifts gears between killing machine and tenderhearted man. His co-stars are flatter, though; none of them have opportunity to stretch thanks to the paper-thin characters they inhabit. Toby Kebbell has some fun as Martin Axe, and the performance is only elevated as the truths about his character are revealed partway through the film.

Bloodshot Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Bloodshot was digitally photographed and smoothly makes the transition to Blu-ray. The presentation is stout and sturdy, presenting high end close-up details without fault or flaw. Intimate pores and hairs are regularly in evidence, and some of the film's scenes even pass for film quality; take a look at the sequence in which Ray meets Wiggins (Lamorne Morris) in chapter 10 for an example. The movie's locations are likewise sharp and revealing and the digital effects enjoy fruitful definition, though they do sometimes look a hair cartoonish compared to what one might find in a more lavishly budgeted production. Colors are healthy through the film's varied lighting parameters and color timing specifics. There's a good long stretch partway through where the frame is bathed in red, and within there's good tonal definition and variance to be found and the stretch is without any serious look of artifacts getting in the way of the dusty, smoky, location. At other times, the picture takes on blue or green tinting, looking like something out of The Matrix. But it's very well balanced and seemingly accurate to the filmmakers' vision. Black levels are fine and skin tones are healthy if understandably reflective of the shifting color timing. It's also a bit noisy in low light and various establishing shots, notably in the film's opening minutes, don't hold up to the same level of clarity and sharpness standards, but the bulk of the image looks quite nice.

Bloodshot Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Bloodshot's Blu-ray includes a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack whereas the companion UHD features a Dolby Atmos presentation. This track is solid as-is, though upon comparison it's easy to notice the spacial limitations inherent to the 5.1 track versus the more widely expanded Atmos track. Nevertheless, this one handles duties admirably, with action obviously serving as the sonic highlight. Gunplay produces tangibly effective results for shot depth, bullet travel, and impact intensity. Vehicles zigging and zagging around the stage during some high energy chase sequences are engineered to delightful effect, and the climactic battle offers a multitude of high energy output elements with plenty of surround and subwoofer integration to please any Action fan looking to exercise their ears and sound systems. Music engages widely and with solid clarity while environmental details are pleasantly integrated, such as when the track opens up at the rehab center in chapter four and again in chapter 11 during some "flashback" sound effects. Dialogue is well prioritized, efficiently detailed, and grounded in the front-center channel.

Bloodshot Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Bloodshot contains outtakes, a couple of featurettes, and deleted and extended scenes. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release does not appear to ship with a slipcover.

• Outtakes & Blooper Reel (1080p, 1:59): Humorous moments from the shoot.
• Initiate Sequence: Directing Bloodshot (1080p, 9:16): Looking at the character's comic book roots, story themes, the work of translating the character to the screen, Dave Wilson's work as director and the qualities he brought to the project, the visual aesthetic, satisfying fans, digital effects work, sets and shooting locales, crafting key scenes, and more.
• Forgotten Soldiers: The Cast of Bloodshot (1080p, 11:13): A closer look at the ensemble cast and the characters portrayed in the film.
• Deleted & Extended Scenes (1080p, 12:09 total runtime): Included are This Is What We Fight For, Why Can't I Remember Anything, Eric Evacuates, Alternate Ending, and Alternate Ending with Filmmaker Commentary.
• Previews (1080p): Additional Sony titles.

Bloodshot Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Bloodshot has "franchise" written all over its periphery, but this debut film isn't all that endearing (and likely not enduring) and not quite strong enough to see a clear pathway towards more. It's a perfectly fine film as it is, reasonably entertaining and sure to satisfy Action junkies, but it also reeks of "been there, done that." And that's fine. It's competent, enjoyable, and generally well made and performed. It's just not likely to spawn the next big thing, particularly in this current environment. Sony's Blu-ray is quite good in the aggregate, obviously less than the UHD in terms of A/V output but both are fine on this format. The extras aren't world-changing but do just enough to bring fans a little closer behind the scenes. Worth a purchase on a Black Friday sale.