Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Deception Blu-ray Movie Review

'Deception' won't have you fooled at the end.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 22, 2008

You were dead long before I met you. You just didn't know it yet.

Don't be deceived by Deception. The box would have you believe it's some sort of erotic thriller, perhaps in the guise of Basic Instinct, but it's not. The film's plot is tied to eroticism, and it plays a key component in developing the primary action, but Deception is, at its core, a terribly average suspense thriller. If the film's opening minutes don't clue you in that we're in for nothing more than an admittedly slick, fairly well-made, decently acted, yet unimaginative picture, then you haven't seen all that many movies. Featuring typical thriller credit typeface, standard thriller music, and the conventional dark, foreboding thriller look, Deception greets perspective viewers with a face we've met before and a handshake we've judged a hundred times. Movies like this aren't inherently bad, and Deception is no exception. It's formula through and through, and there is nothing necessarily wrong with that. Films like these pad the resumés of its stars and crew, put a few bodies in theater seats, and sell a few Blu-rays. The key is to make the film just good enough not to insult audiences, and Deception walks that fine line but never crosses it. It's an enjoyable enough movie, does a good job of holding audience attention in the face of predictability, ends as we expect it to, and sufficiently kills two hours of your life with little to no regrets.

Me? Nothing. Just admiring my reflection in the conference table.

Jonathan McQuarry (Ewan McGregor, Black Hawk Down) is a lonely accountant with barely a semblance of a social life. Working in a New York high rise late one night on his latest audit, he meets Wyatt Bose (Hugh Jackman, The Prestige), a hotshot attorney, and the two quickly become friends. When they accidentally take each other's cell phones, Jonathan begins receiving random calls on Wyatt's phone, and the female on the other end simply asks, "are you free tonight?" Jonathan plays along and soon finds himself engaged in a series of one night only sexual encounters with many of New York's elite businesswomen. Jonathan loses himself in this world, one that becomes an obsession, until he rendezvous with a woman whom he's met before on a subway platform and has obsessed over ever since. She is simply known as "S," (Michelle Williams, TV's "Dawson's Creek"), and breaking all the rules of this exclusive club, the two bond and become more than random sexual partners. When S mysteriously vanishes from their hotel room and Jonathan loses touch with Wyatt, he begins to suspect the worst, and he is indeed forced into a multi-million dollar theft of the firm he's auditing, under the threat that S will die should he not comply.

Deception is a fairly interesting picture, and works best if you know next to nothing about it coming in. It never overtly hides its intentions, but it does obscure them well enough to hold your interest. Deception is a film of two distinct halves, the first working far better than the second. The tale of a shy accountant befriended by a sociable lawyer who slowly breaks his new friend out of his shell and leads him down a path towards a series of no-strings intimate encounters with other high-profile socialites, is the film's strong half. "No rough stuff, no business talk, and no names. Intimacy without intricacy," he is told by a woman whom he later sees on the cover of a business magazine and identified as "The Wall Street Belle." Ewan McGregor turns in a solid performance as the reserved, practically nerdy accountant lured into this risqué world, and his performance, particularly in this first half, is the glue that holds the film together. It is in the second half, however, that the film becomes an exercise in futility, a cat-and-mouse game of "deception" where the audience can see the ending coming several reels away. It's not always obvious just how it will play out, so the "getting there" part isn't half bad, and is what makes the movie passable, but the end destination is always understood. Hugh Jackman's character is completely one-dimensional and, well, not all that bright. He's a villain with a "master plan" full of more holes than the desert where they filmed that Sigourney Weaver/John Voight movie Holes. He seems genuinely shocked when the holes are exploited, and the audience is genuinely shocked that a character, and a plot, is as hit-and-miss as this one. It's no real fault of Jackman's; he plays the role well enough with what he has to work with, which isn't much. Nevertheless, Deception offers nothing of the sort. The plot is as clear as the high definition video accompanying the film, and as transparent as the windows high definition sets are often compared to.

Deception Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

No deception here. Deception looks great on Blu-ray, the film's 1080p, 2.40:1-framed transfer sharp as a tack and a pleasure to watch. Deception is a dark movie but remains glossy and vibrant, thanks to some slick photography (the work of cinematographer Dante Spinotti shines through; he's worked on such films as The Insider, Heat, and L.A. Confidential) and nice, bright contrasts to the many dark corners of the film. Black levels are remarkable throughout, always an inky, deep black with not even a hint of anything but perfection. Detail is also uniformly excellent, whether we are seeing close-ups of the actors or more ordinary objects, such as columns in a subway station that feature excellent texture and a lifelike reproduction and depth. Much of the film is dark, with clothing, locales, and objects tending to be black and gray, particularly during the first half of the film, which consists of numerous nighttime sequences. However, the film brightens up considerably with a number of daytime scenes during the final act, providing plenty of eye-popping color. These sharp and lifelike daytime scenes furnish the transfer with strong, deep, highly detailed pictures, both near and far. The transfer is rarely soft, and flesh tones appear consistently accurate. If nothing else, Deception is a handsomely photographed film that looks wonderful on Blu-ray

Deception Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Deception arrives on Blu-ray with a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless surround sound audio track. The movie is a dialogue-heavy thriller with a plethora of sequences that add a bit of dramatic flair to the picture. The disc does an admirable job of creating an excellent atmosphere, whether we are in a bustling office with voices, the ringing of telephones, and other true-to-the-environment niceties, or in a dimly lit club with pulsating beats and hard-hitting lows that surround viewers and place them firmly in the midst of the action. Bass plays a role throughout the film, as several scenes are accompanied by some impressive lows. One scene in particular, found in chapter 16, will rattle your windows and send your pets scurrying for cover. Dialogue holds up very well, even during the loudest scenes where the music never tones down too much in favor of the dialogue; the two play in great harmony one against the other. The quieter scenes feature the strongest dialogue reproduction with a crisp, center-focused authority, emanating from the speaker with just the right volume and intensity. Surrounds are never overly active, but they do work hard at creating seamless environments, much like those described above. Deception does not offer the most robust soundtrack, but it is certainly no slouch as it admirably moves the action forward.

Deception Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Deception reveals its secrets on Blu-ray through a handful of bonus materials. Starting things off is a commentary track with director Marcel Langenegger. The director goes back and forth between describing the action on-screen and discussing why we are seeing and hearing what is in the film. Langenegger seems somewhat apprehensive and not quite sure what to say. He offers some fine insights, but the track is rather haphazard and is a tough listen. In his defense, this isn't a terrible first effort, not only for a film, but for a commentary track. I look forward to seeing what he does in the future. A Passionate Process: Dissecting 'Deception' is a picture-in-picture track that plays over the film for those of you with Bonus View (Blu-ray profile 1.1) enabled machines. Showcasing various aspects of the filmmaking process, from special effects to casting, each segment is available to view individually (presented in 1080i high definition) and separate from the film for those without the required equipment. The track plays over the film in a rather large box on the bottom left-hand side of the movie. There are 14 features total. Exposing 'Deception:' The Making of the Film (1080i, 18:18) is, as described, a basic feature where the cast and crew talk up the film and one another, featuring behind-the-scenes and film footage in the process. Club Sexy (1080i, 10:14) takes a look at the world of private sex clubs, how they were researched to make the film more realistic, and how the idea was implemented into the film. Rounding out the extras are two deleted scenes (1080p, 2:15), an alternate ending (1080p, 3:06), all with optional director commentary, and 1080p trailers for What Happens in Vegas and Street Kings.

Deception Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Deception may be the very definition of Hollywood mediocrity. Hardly viewed in theaters, failing miserably to recoup it's small budget, and barely registering a bleep on all but the most hardcore of filmgoers' radar screens, Deception is neither the next great thing, nor is it complete rubbish that will sweep next year's Razzie Awards. It just sort of "is," a description that, sadly, fits far too many movies these days. Featuring two stars who have done better, and will continue to do better in the future, a first-time director (Marcel Langenegger) looking to make his mark in Hollywood, and a script that leaves little to the imagination, Deception is an average, forgettable film that does nothing to stand above the crowd. 20th Century Fox brings another of their films to Blu-ray with stellar results. Featuring a very cinematic, pleasing transfer, a solid lossless audio track, and a fairly ordinary set of supplements, This Blu-ray edition of Deception will please anyone who chooses to check it out. Deception makes for a nice Saturday night rental.