Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.0

Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 13, 2023

Somewhat hilariously given some thoughts writer and director Michael Oblowitz shares on the commentary included on this disc, my colleague Brian Orndorf mused in his review that "perhaps the picture was initially imagined as a return to police movies of the 1970s". That's now a bit funny because Oblowitz mentions he wanted the film to be a throwback to the nineties, but then comedically goes on to announce that the nineties were the culmination of what started happening in the seventies and eighties. Um, yeah, that's how time works, some may be thinking. No matter what decade is attempting to be evoked, though, Confidential Informant never completely gels and it in fact may end with at least a couple of major questions still hanging in the air.

New York cops Moran (Dominic Purcell) and Thornton (Nick Stahl) have some history together, having fought as brothers in arms overseas, and that camaraderie informs the first part of the story as the two try to attack the burgeoning use of crack. When some unexpected health news sends Thornton into shock, he tries to come up with a plan to provide for his wife Anna (Kate Bosworth) and their young son, which is when the trouble really starts. Suffice it to say that while Moran is more or less in cahoots with Thornton, some meddling Internal Affairs types named Learner (Russell Richardson) and Hickey (Mel Gibson, almost frighteningly hyperbolic at times).

There's an at least somewhat interesting premise here that is never fully developed, and instead things tend to bog down in any number of "kitchen sink" moments as the cops attempt to navigate their personal lives within the context of a very traumatizing career. The film is arguably not helped by some stylistic choices that attempt to give a grindhouse look to what might have done better as a gritty but still glossy quasi-Scorsese effort.

Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Confidential Informant is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. There's not much technical information online that I could find, and the commentary is hobbled by some weird noise issues so that I only spot checked it, and therefore didn't hear cinematographer Chris Squires mention what camera was used, but one way or the other, I'd merely suggest looking at the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review and see how you feel about the way things look. On top of some really strange pea green grading that is repeatedly used, the image has been pretty aggressively tweaked to resemble 16mm (or really grainy 35mm), with the results being downright fuzzy to the point that things can look positively out of focus at times. The "grain" or whatever you want to call it becomes pixellated on more than one occasion, with some chroma anomalies that tend to bring bursts of yellow and/or blue across the frame. I guess it was done intentionally, but that doesn't mean it looks very appealing.

Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The audio side of things fares somewhat better with a decently immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that makes good use of both ambient environmental sounds and a typically pulsating score. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Director Michael Oblowitz, Composer Roy Hay and Cinematographer Chris Squires


• Trailer (HD; 2:31) offers those interested a drinking game of sorts, where you can take a snort every time you see a digital blue lens flare. You're gonna have a hangover.

Additionally, a digital copy is included, and packaging features a slipcover.

Confidential Informant Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I guess I could indulge in a bit of black humor and say the torch has been passed from Bruce Willis to Mel Gibson into the seemingly unending series of lower budgeted Lionsgate releases that are more or less DTV offerings. Like Willis' many quasi-cameos, Gibson was probably on set for a day or two to get his interstitial moments in the can, leaving the bulk of the dramatics to the rest of a committed but underserved cast. Technical merits are a little iffy on the video side but fine on the audio side, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.