5.5 | / 10 |
Users | 1.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 2.8 |
A young nurse downloads an app that claims to predict exactly when a person is going to die. It tells her she only has three days to live, and she also feels a mysterious figure haunting her.
Starring: Anne Winters, Elizabeth Lail, Charlie McDermott, Peter Facinelli, Talitha Eliana BatemanHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 20% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
It's impossible to watch Countdown and not think about Final Destination and its various sequels. The two share much in common, dealing with the idea of predetermination and the inescapability thereof. In Final Destination, victims who somehow cheat death are tracked down and repeatedly put in harm's way until they succumb to fate, usually to very bloody result. In Countdown, much the same is true, but it's more hip and cutting edge: a phone app counts down the years, months, days, minutes, and seconds until death. There's no escaping the clock: no deleting the app, no rewriting the code, and even religious protection only goes so far. It's a straightforward concept that by all rights should have resulted in a terrible, bottom dwelling genre film, but it's actually a decent little thrill ride and takes some albeit brief time to dabble in the metaphysical rather than just lump together jump scares for 90 minutes.
Countdown's 1080p transfer scores high for its consistency and accuracy. The 1080p presentation does not stand apart for advanced excellence or any sort of eye-popping visual intensity but it's very capable within the digitally shot parameters and appears to translate the source material to natural, near flawless result. All of the basics are in order. Viewers will note the fine level of detail visible on faces and clothes. While the picture lacks the razor sharp intimacy of the finest digital productions, the transfer seems to squeeze out most of the available information; it's unlikely a UHD would vastly improve upon the experience in this area. Location textures are clear and precise, ranging from hospital room doodads to cell phone repair shop gizmos. Colors are fine, holding true in well lit conditions, such as hospital corridors, while low light arenas, which are dominant during most of the action when characters are near death, produce commendably stable black levels and refuse to push noise too high. One of the more visually interesting moments is when Quinn, Matt, Quinn's sister Jordan (Talitha Bateman), and a priest who is an expert on demons (P.J. Byrne) encircle themselves in blessed salts; when the demon's robe touches the barrier, it catches fire and the orange sparks light nicely against the dark backdrop. Skin tones are spot-on. The image suffers from no distracting compression issues.
Countdown's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is effective without pushing to any sonic limits. The track is fairly straightforward, expanding in action and terror but offering little beyond a basic front side engagement elsewhere. Dialogue drives most of the movie, and it presents with appropriate prioritization, detail, and center placement save for one or two opportunities to reverberate, such as when Quinn and Matt enter into an empty church sanctuary in search of answers to their digital demon-devil. The track finds occasional bursts of sonic expansion and low end extension in the build-up to and execution of its "horror" moments, such as when the power goes out before deaths, notably in a bathroom in chapter nine. Audiences will be able to track sound as necessary and enjoy the weighty expansion as it comes. Atmospheric effects help draw listeners into some of the more sonically dense locations, such as the hospital. This is a solid track; its performance is hardly noteworthy, but it's an effective companion to the movie.
This Blu-ray release of Countdown contains no supplemental content. A DVD copy of the film and an iTunes digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.
One of the things working in Countdown's favor is that the PG-13 rating doesn't equal a watered-down genre experience. For the most part, the Horror comes from seemingly innocuous numbers, and the fear is generated vicariously through the frightened characters and the time crunch they face. There's a little bit of blood and some creepy demonic renderings, but the movie doesn't appear to sacrifice in order to garner a "date night" rating. This is hardly great or compelling cinema, but as disposable, easily digested entertainment it's not half bad. Universal's Blu-ray is featureless, which is a mild disappointment but not a surprise. Video and audio presentations are up to par. Recommended.
2017
2018
2016
2019
2004
2019
2016
2016
2014
Il lago di Satana
1966
2014
2018
1983
Unrated
2017
2003
2016
Collector's Edition
1981
1987
Collector's Edition
1978
Unrated Collector's Edition
2007