Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Dog Pound Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 17, 2011

Screened at the Berlin International Film Festival and Winner of Best New Narrative Filmmaker Award at the Tribeca Film Festival, French director Kim Chapiron's "Dog Pound" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; short cast and director profiles; and raw footage from the film's appearances at various film festivals. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

You follow my rules!

French helmer Kim Chapiron’s latest film Dog Pound, which won Best New Narrative Filmmaker Award at the Tribeca Film Festival last year, reminds about John Frankenheimer’s Against the Wall (1994) -- both films are almost unbearably intense and overflowing with pessimism; both are also free of politically correct moralistic preaching.

Frankenheimer’s film recreates the notorious uprising by inmates of the Attica Correctional Facility in upstate New York, which occurred on September 13, 1971. To this day, the uprising remains the bloodiest in American history.

Dog Pound is set in a young offenders institute for teenage boys in Enola Vale, Montana, and follows the deeds of three new arrivals - Butch (Adam Butcher, Privileged, The Bend), Davis (Shane Kippel, TV's Degrassi: The Next Generation), and Angel (Mateo Morales, TV's The Border). As the boys are registered, it quickly becomes obvious that they are filled with anger and hatred, and lacking the desire to believe that their lives could be different.

Butch, the quietest and most introverted of the three, is quickly attacked by the ward bully, Banks (Taylor Poulin), and his pals. Instead of punishing them, however, the guards lock him up in the 'hole'. Later on, Butch confronts Banks.

Davis is slightly easier to communicate with. He is also easier to manipulate. Banks steals his brand new shoes and later on sells him some bad drugs. When he tries to protest, he is immediately told to keep quiet if he wants to live.

Angel, the youngest one, is a loner. He loves his mother but not the rest of his family. Though it is never explained why, eventually it becomes clear that he must have been mistreated, perhaps even disowned by his family.

The institute is a jungle where the strongest and most brutal boys are in charge. The guards know who the troublemakers are but aren’t willing to confront them. In fact, most of them seem pleased that someone else is doing their job. Eventually, they try to regain control but fail.

Loosely based on the Alan Clarke's violent 1979 British drama Scum, Dog Pound is Chapiron’s second feature film (his debut was the underwhelming horror picture Sheitan, starring French superstar Vincent Cassel). It is shot predominantly with non-professional actors and real troublemakers - Poulin, for instance, was released from a young offenders institute shortly before filming began - and maintains a certain level of authenticity that most similarly themed films lack.

The film belongs to the relatively unknown but exceptionally gifted Butcher, who is already set to appear in an episode of the upcoming Steven Spielberg produced TV series Falling Skies. His anger outbursts are simply extraordinary.

Cinematographer Andre Chemetoff, who also lensed Romain Gavras’ much talked about Notre jour viendra a.k.a Our Day Will Come (2010), deserves a lot of credit for the film’s very convincing gritty look. A strong atmospheric soundtrack with original tunes by Balmorhea, K'naan and Nikkfurie also adds up to it.

Note: Last year, Dog Pound was screened at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Dog Pound Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Kim Chapiron's Dog Pound arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment.

The film's gritty look is captured very well by the AVC-encoded high-definition transfer. Even during the hand-held camera footage, the majority of which is rather dark, detail is very good, while clarity is arguably as good as it could possibly be. The French director's preference for warm and earthy colors is also respected - the variety of blues, greens, browns, grays, and blacks never look manipulated. Edge-enhancement is never a serious issue of concern. The high-definition transfer also isn't plagued by heavy artifacting or aliasing. There are no traces of heavy noise reduction either. Naturally, the image consistently conveys wonderful depth and fluidity. Lastly, there are no serious stability issues. I also did not detect any purely transfer-related anomalies to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Dog Pound Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English LPCM 2.0. For the record, Optimum Home Entertainment have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Generally speaking, the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has a strong dynamic amplitude, but do not expect it to test the muscles of your audio system. The surround channels are not overly active either; Balmorhea, K'naan and Nikkfurie's soundtrack, however, has clearly benefited from the loseless treatment. The dialog is crisp, clean, and stable, but I had to use the optional subtitles because some of the slang is rather difficult to follow. Lastly, I did not detect any pops, cracks, hissings, or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Dog Pound Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Cast and Director Profiles - short profiles, as well as scene tests, for key characters from the film and director Kim Chapiron. In English, not subtitled.
  
  -- Angel (2 min, 1080/50i).
  -- Bad Guys (2 min, 1080/50i).
  -- Banks (2 min, 1080/50i).
  -- Butch (2 min, 1080/50i).
  -- Davis (3 min, 1080/50i).
  -- Kim (2 min, 1080/50i).

• The Tour - raw footage from various screenings of the film and the public's reactions to it. In English and French, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (4 min, 1080/50i).

• Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for Dog Pound. In English, not subtiltred. (3 min, 1080p).

Dog Pound Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Optimum Home Entertainment continue to produce very strong Blu-ray releases of classic and important contemporary films. Bravo! French director Kim Chapiron's Dog Pound is one uncompromisingly brutal, disturbingly realistic film whose star, Adam Butcher, is simply irresistible. I can't say I enjoyed Dog Pound, but I was definitely impressed. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.