Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie Review

Stephen King's version of "The Cask of Amontillado" offers a gritty story of revenge.

Reviewed by Dustin Somner April 19, 2010

As far as Stephen King adaptations are concerned, it would seem the less supernatural the better. On the positive side of the spectrum, we have films such as Misery, The Shawshank Redemption, Stand by Me, and The Green Mile, which focus heavily on the character-driven elements that make King such an accomplished writer. Sadly, for every memorable adaptation there’s at least one production that simply missed the mark. Anyone who’s seen Thinner, The Mangler, or Sleepwalkers will likely know exactly what I’m talking about. In the case of Dolan’s Cadillac, we’re given a production that falls much closer to the former category, and deserves a spot on the growing list of successful Stephen King adaptations. Directed by Jeff Beesley from a screenplay written by Richard Dooling, the 2009 revenge film mixes tragedy, irony, and a dash of comedy, to tell the tale of one man’s search for vengeance.

The cell phone conversations between Robinson and Dolan are highly effective.

Spoiler Warning

Robinson (Wes Bentley) and Elizabeth (Emmanuelle Vaugier) are a happily married couple living in the sleeping suburbs of Las Vegas. They both work in the same occupation as elementary teachers, and recently decided to start a family together. One day while Elizabeth is out riding her horse through the barren outskirts of Vegas, she happens upon a cargo truck parked in the middle of a shallow canyon. Keeping her distance, she witnesses a black Cadillac pull up with two well-dressed businessman. One of the men turns out to be a petty criminal named Dolan (Christian Slater), who quickly dispatches the delivery truck driver with a carefully placed bullet to the head. Turning his attention to Elizabeth on the horizon, he attempts to eliminate her as a witness, but she remains one step ahead of his pistol. Upon her return home, Elizabeth and Robinson make contact with an investigator looking to take down Dolan for the smuggling of foreign sex slaves across United States borders. They agree to go into hiding until the case against Dolan is sealed up, and the government can utilize the testimony of what Elizabeth witnessed that day. Unfortunately, two months after entering witness protection by shacking up in cramped hotel room Elizabeth makes a fatal mistake that provides Dolan the opportunity to silence her once and for all. Racked with guilt, anguish, and hatred, Robinson finds it increasingly difficult to let go of Elizabeth’s memory, especially while Dolan continues to operate his business without a care in the world. Knowing he will always remain a mere shell of his former self unless he removes the constant need for revenge, Robinson sets in motion a plan for ultimate payback at any cost.

As I sat down to review Dolan’s Cadillac, I could have sworn I’d read the Stephen King collection “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” (the short story was taken from that novel). However, given what seems to be a slight memory lapse, I can’t seem to recall what took place in the original story. As such, I’m not fit to comment on how closely the film version matches the original concept. Considering that’s a qualification that’s of little interest to anyone stumbling onto the film for the first time, I’m pleased to mention the screenplay manages to incorporate all of the necessary elements to maintain a high level of interest from beginning to end, and delivers plenty of thrills along the way. Revenge-themed productions are always a bit simpler to pull off in comparison with other genres, since they elicit such a strong emotional response from members of the audience, and force us to imagine what we would do in the protagonist’s shoes. In the case of Dolan’s Cadillac, we witness the slow breakdown of a calm schoolteacher as he transforms into an entirely different beast. I’m not implying Robinson becomes psychotic by the closing minutes of the film, but his level of determination coupled with well-placed sarcasm are a clear byproduct of his downward spiral. I’d hate to imagine how most of us would react when faced with the moralistic question of revenge, but the loss of a loved one can be a powerful driving force behind actions we otherwise wouldn’t take. With that thought in mind, consider the delight most members of the audience will feel when the crafty revenge plot is carried out.

As much as I enjoyed the ninety minutes I spent with Dolan’s Cadillac, I can’t say it’s altogether memorable. I’ve experienced other stories that set up more complex acts of revenge, the acting from the recognizable cast is merely average, and there are some elements of the plot that don’t quite add up. For instance, I couldn’t figure out how much time had passed between Elizabeth’s death and Robinson’s quest for revenge. Likewise, Robinson’s desire to land a summer job with the road crew doesn’t seem consistent with the requirements of his plan for revenge, since he doesn’t truly find an opening until the summer’s almost over. These minor quibbles and others like them shouldn’t ruin the experience for anyone interested in simple entertainment, but they collectively prevent the film from achieving a polished feel.

Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate of 21Mbps), Dolan's Cadillac offers a visual presentation that rarely fails to impress. Fine object detail reveals above average texturing on the surface of faces or the fabric of clothing, lending a wonderful sense of depth to the image. There are still occasional medium-distance shots that appear marginally less impressive than the rest of the film, but those scenes are confined primarily to the sun-drenched , day-time scenes that dominate the latter portion of the film. From a coloring standpoint, the film incorporates a wide variety of hues that are largely dependent on the environment of individual shooting locations. One minute we're treated to the neon smeared landscape of Las Vegas, while the next scene drops us within the barren wasteland of the California border. Regardless of the scene, the camera maintains natural tones that never bleed into one another or appear overly saturated. Adding to the overall proficiency of the film's visuals, black levels remain inky deep and contrast demonstrates excellent shade differentiation.

Dolan's Cadillac won't earn the classification of demo-worthy material for your high-definition display, but given the film's low-budget roots, it offers a competent technical presentation that enhances the overall value of this Blu-ray release.

Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Despite the inclusion of a lossless audio track on the disc, the sound design of the film won't knock your socks off. As you've probably figured out by now, Dolan's Cadillac isn't what I'd call an adrenaline-pumping action flick, so expecting a sound design along those lines would set the bar a bit too high. What we're given instead is a dialog-heavy feature with an uninspired musical score and fleeting moments of surround sound incorporation. If you listen carefully to the volume balance in the mix, you'll notice the dialog is favored a bit too heavily in comparison with the environmental effects and musical selections, creating a suspicion that some spoken lines were enhanced a bit too much in post-production. On the positive side, I never noticed any glaringly obvious flaws in the mixing of the audio track (only subtle cues that could reflect personal preference), and I remained impressed with the overall clarity of the various elements within the lossless mix.

You'll certainly find audio presentations much worse than the one delivered on this release, but stacked up against a typical Blu-ray offering, Dolan's Cadillac comes up a bit short.

Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Behind the Wheel of Dolan's Cadillac (1080i, Dolby Digital 2.0, 24:02 min): This making-of featurette covers all aspects of the production, touching on themes of revenge, the adaptation of Steven King's short story, and what drew the cast to their roles in the film. While not the most comprehensive look at the filmmaking process, I'm always delighted when a supplement of this sort moves beyond the typical marketing fluff.

B-Roll (1080i, Dolby Digital 2.0, 19:39 min): Consisting solely of behind-the-scenes footage on various sets, this supplement provides a glimpse of the crew and actors preparing for upcoming scenes.

Dolan's Cadillac Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dolan's Cadillac is an engaging ninety minute character study that begs the question "what would you do?" Your resulting response to that question will likely be a tremendous factor in your overall enjoyment of the film, and may determine whether or not you find replay value after your introductory viewing. Personally, I found the film surprisingly moving in the portrayal of Robinson's quest for closure, but doubt I'll find enough residual value to warrant a repeat viewing. As such, I'd recommend a rental for anyone with a lukewarm appreciation for the revenge genre, and a purchase for those select members of the viewing public who love tales of this sort.