4.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Lilith, an infamous outlaw with a mysterious past, reluctantly returns to her home planet of Pandora to find the missing daughter of the universe’s most powerful S.O.B., Atlas. Lilith forms an alliance with an unexpected team – Roland, a former elite mercenary, now desperate for redemption; Tiny Tina, a feral pre-teen demolitionist; Krieg, Tina’s musclebound, rhetorically challenged protector; Tannis, the scientist with a tenuous grip on sanity; and Claptrap, a persistently wiseass robot. These unlikely heroes must battle alien monsters and dangerous bandits to find and protect the missing girl, who may hold the key to unimaginable power. The fate of the universe could be in their hands – but they’ll be fighting for something more: each other.
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Edgar Ramírez, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ariana GreenblattAction | 100% |
Adventure | 50% |
Comedy | 7% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Variety just published an article detailing a perhaps surprisingly unbroken run of unmitigated box office disasters released by Lionsgate over the past several months, and though that old adage states "there's no such thing as bad publicity", it probably stung the creative folks behind Borderlands just a bit that their film was singled out in the article with both a still from the movie as well as that all important "star billing" (i.e., the film is mentioned first in the article's list of Lionsgate's flops). Borderlands is a big, colorful, flashy and often extremely noisy film, and for those who are content to coast on a series of baroque visuals, cartoonish characters and an almost overwhelming sound design, it may well suffice perfectly well for an hour and half's entertainment. Those wanting an actual story, not to mention the arrival of a perceived "tentpole" for an assumed franchise (something that's kind of hilariously hinted at in some of the supplements, probably produced before the film's abysmal theatrical exhibition performance), might want to keep looking.
Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc in this package, which Il feel probably gives an overall
better representation of the palette in particular than had I sourced screenshots directly off the 4K UHD disc, which by necessity would have been
downscaled to 1080 and SDR.
Borderlands is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. Captured with Arri
Alexas and finished with a 4K DI, this is a stellar looking presentation, no matter what one may think of the actual film. An already excellent
1080 presentation is clearly afforded both noticeable upticks in fine detail, but probably even more noticeably a significantly energized
palette. Despite the prevalence of CGI, most of which actually looks surprisingly sharp in this 4K presentation, there is such a glut of whimsical
production design on display throughout the story that there are consistent opportunities for really precise renderings of everything from textures on
costume fabrics to some of the more outlandish props that are utilized. Close-ups offer admirable detail levels on faces and other features. The palette
is one of the film's undeniable assets, and it receives a rather interesting set of highlights courtesy of Dolby Vision / HDR. Rather interestingly, some
"signature" elements like Lilith's hair can actually attain just a bit more of a rust color rather than outright orange in this version (pay attention for
example to the early bar scene where Lilith "meets" Atlas, at least virtually), though at other times it has the same general bright orange look that is
more ubiquitous in the 1080 version. Certain scenes which are either graded or lit toward certain hues also offer some more vibrancy here, including
the very early scene bathed in red where Tiny Tina is "rescued" (?) by Roland, or, later, when the team is in a quasi-sewer and things are bathed in a
kind of sickly yellow green color. Despite these stylistic quirks, detail levels remain perhaps unexpectedly consistently strong throughout. A very
light dusting of digital grain is probably more discernable at this resolution than in the 1080 version.
Borderlands features a pretty bombastic Dolby Atmos track, one that takes full advantage not just of "traditional" surround channel engagement, but clear emanations from the Atmos speakers, as in the scene where Tiny Tina rains explosions down on Lilith. The track is consistently alive with side and rear channel placement of all sorts of ambient environmental effects, and the interstitial action scenes offer some powerful bursts of LFE. Things are "turned up to 11" quite often throughout the story, meaning perceptions of dynamic range may ultimately seem somewhat limited, though there are some at least relatively quieter dialogue scenes. All spoken material, whether dialogue or narration, is presented cleanly and clearly. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.
Both the 4K UHD and 1080 discs in this package sport the same slate of supplements:
Maybe due to the fact that advance word was so negative about this film, or perhaps also because I have never played the video game version and so had absolutely no frame of reference, my "expectations bar" was properly suitably lowered so that I actually was reasonably entertained by Borderlands. Is it some underappreciated masterpiece unduly rejected by critics and audiences? Hardly. But neither is it a complete, unmitigated disaster in my opinion. The story is, yes, derivative and pretty predictable, but there are some fun characters and the production design and cinematography give the film an engaging look. Technical merits are first rate and the supplements rather enjoyable, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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