Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Captive Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 16, 2021

Director Jerry Jameson's Captive is the film based on the true story of a wanted murderer and the young drug addict with whom he comes into contact while on the run. The film is mildly spiritual insofar as a God-centric self-help book plays a role in the film, but it is otherwise a rather straight tale of desperation of two kinds and of two life perspectives intersecting at a critical moment. The film is well acted though a little stiff and flat on the technical end.

In 2005, single mother Ashley Smith (Kate Mara) is trying to recover from a serious drug addiction. She’s lost everything. She was deemed an unfit mother and the state took her child from her. One day at recovery, she’s given a copy of Pastor Rick Warren’s book, The Purpose Driven Life. She tosses it in the trash but fate -- or perhaps the will of a higher power -- will return it to her again. Meanwhile, convict Brian Nichols (David Oyelowo) violently escapes from prison and becomes the subject of a citywide manhunt. Ashley and Brian’s lives intersect when fate brings them together. He takes her captive in her own apartment. With little hope for escape or ever seeing her young daughter again, Ashley takes the opportunity to reflect on her life and seek answers in the Rick Warren book rather than through her drugs while, hopefully, reaching something long-buried inside the killer: his own humanity and sense of purpose in his life.

Captive Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Paramount releases Captive to Blu-ray on a 25GB BD-R disc. The 1080p Blu-ray presentation, sourced from a digital shoot, is perfectly acceptable for detail and color. Essential elements – faces, clothes – are appropriately sharp and nicely detailed. There are many close-ups in the film, vital in capturing a character's thoughts or essence as they maneuver through their personal and shared crises, and the Blu-ray is well capable of rendering eyes, for example, with enough clarity to gaze into souls, even if the story doesn't allow for any real, or at least significant, character depth beyond the surface. Still, the clarity to such essentials is very welcome, and environments – Ashley's apartment, primarily, but also police offices – are sufficiently sharp and well detailed. Colors are a strength, too. The aqua green tile in Ashley's bathroom is a standout while some colorful clothes and cars and a few other critical tones prove well saturated. There's no feeling of oversaturation or flat tones. This is a happy medium color spectrum presentation. Skin tones are healthy and black levels are fine. However, low-light noise appears in abundance. There are no other egregious source or encode issues to report.

Captive Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack brings a satisfying, full listen that takes advantage of the entire soundstage. The track is heavier on atmospherics and various sound effects than it is music, which is presented with quality stretch along the front, well balanced surround integration, and fine fidelity through the range. The track features several potent gunshots early in the film and some good surround extension and detail, like when helicopters fly around the stage in search of the suspect in the 37-minute mark. Rain saturates the stage at the 59-minute mark and thunder cracks and rolls in the distance as well. Bustle in the police station where officers and personnel are desperately seeking Nichols is nicely defined as well. Dialogue is clear and center focused for the duration.

Captive Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Captive includes two featurettes. No DVD or digital copies are included. This release does not ship with a slipcover.

• Journey Through Darkness: Filming Captive (1080p, 28:49): In an-depth making-of that looks at story, characters, themes, and the like. It also includes interviews with the real Ashley Smith.
• Faith and the Purpose Driven Life (1080p, 5:50): Exploring faith and the Rick Warren book and their roles in the film.

Captive Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Captive isn't very captivating. Where there's room for a smart, insightful story of the transforming of the heart and spirit is a fairly vapid story that lingers on the surface and never feels like it explores the characters' personal transformations, both from the shared experience and the Warren book, with any kind of serious insight. And considering that's the central storyline, the movie simply doesn't work too well. It is acted well. Mara and Oyelowo are strong individually and in their shared screen time together, easily the best thing about an otherwise forgettable film. Paramount's burned BD-R disc does deliver satisfactory picture and sound qualities along with a couple of extras. Worth a look at best.