7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Toby Wong (Mark Dacascos) is on a martial arts mission impossible. With a bio-energy module placed in his chest, Toby's awesome martial arts skills are tuned to a super-human level. The only problem is that Toby doesn't want the power. Now, only an army can stop him, and that's just what's hunting him down. As he makes his escape from an ammo-packing posse of hitmen, Toby needs a hostage, Malik (Kadeem Hardison), to drive him to freedom in Los Angeles, where they meet up with more trouble in the form of a quirky, young seductress (Brittany Murphy) who gets caught up in their action.
Starring: Mark Dacascos, Kadeem Hardison, John Pyper-Ferguson, Brittany Murphy, Tracey WalterMartial arts | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: LPCM 2.0
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (384 kbps)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Note: Somewhat hilariously, in my recent Ghost Story
Blu-ray review, I quoted copyright law about how titles can't be copyrighted, sometimes leading to multiple films with the same
title. In that regard, the film currently under discussion
should not be mistaken for the identically titled Drive with Ryan
Gosling.
Chances are that even if you consider yourself an ardent film fan you probably haven’t heard very much if anything about either the director of
Drive, Steve Wang, or
its cinematographer, Michael G. Wojciechowski, and yet, if you are an ardent film fan who pays attention to and appreciates technique,
you
will notice a refreshing level of competency in “simple” things like framings and camera moves from the opening scenes of this film that frankly help
to
elevate it above a lot of other straight to video offerings. As Wang gets into in the fun if just slightly snarky commentary included on this disc,
Drive was “revised” by a producer, and the version that many evidently caught on HBO back in the day is quite a bit different than Wang’s own
preferred version (commendably, both versions of the film are offered on this disc). But no amount of editing and/or redacting can really hide the
general proficiency that both Wang and Wojciechowski bring to this enterprise, which is aided and abetted by some really sharp fight choreography
by
Koichi Sakamoto. Now, any film that has a featured character known as "Advanced Model" has to be accepted on its own frequently gonzo merits,
but
for those wanting a well crafted action flick with a decent premise and some very well done set pieces, Drive should more than fill the bill.
Drive also serves as a somewhat bittersweet reminder of what an engaging presence the late Brittany Murphy could be, and she brings
the
story a somewhat daffy but endearing characterization that brings to mind a kind of weird combination of traits from the perhaps unlikely duo of
Marilyn Monroe and Jennifer Tilly.
Drive is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of MVD Rewind Collection, an imprint of MVD Visual, and FilmRise with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.34:1. The back cover of this release slightly misidentifies the aspect ratio, but discloses this was culled from "a brand new 4K HD scan of the original camera negative". The results are largely quite nice looking, especially with regard to the vividly suffused palette, which offers a range of appealing hues, but which pops particularly well when primaries (notably red) are in the frame. Detail levels are routinely excellent, with elements like the patterned brocade on Deliverance's pink sweater looking precise. There is occasional damage that can spotted, including a couple of relatively large but short blotches, along with more typical things like slight scratches. There are also a few selected moments where densities falter just very slightly. Grain looks natural, occasionally having either a slightly yellowish or purplish quality.
Drive features a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track along with an LPCM 2.0 track. Regular readers of my reviews know I tend to prefer uncompressed audio, but that stated, the Dolby track here does significantly open up both the music (Wang's preferred score) and especially some of the effects work, even if the low end might have been intensified with lossless audio. The LPCM track sounds fine, and both tracks provide good support for dialogue. The disc has kind of funnily been authored so that pressing the Subtitle button on your remote does actually toggle between an "Off" setting and and "English" setting, but there are no actual subtitles on the disc.
Drive: Theatrical Version has been included on this disc as supplemental material. It was sourced from an older, undated master and as a result, the image is not in the correct aspect ratio and may contain coloring issues, grain, damage, and occasional pixellation.For those wondering, this is presented in 1.78:1 and has LPCM 2.0 audio. A number of the changes made for this version are addressed by Steve Wang in the commentary (see below).
Drive doesn't have any outsized ambitions, but it still is a good deal better than its straight to video background might suggest. A decent if derivative premise and some outstanding fight and stunt work make this goofily enjoyable, and this Blu-ray release offers secure technical merits and some good supplements. Recommended.
Ging chaat goo si
1985
Fuk sing go jiu / Fu xing gao zhao / 福星高照
1985
Se ying diu sau
1978
2017
Sai hak chin / Xi hei qian / 洗黑錢
1990
Police Story II / Ging chaat goo si juk jaap
1988
2012
Hai Phuong
2019
Xià rì fú xīng | 夏日福星 | Hong Kong Cut & Extended Cut
1985
師弟出馬 / Shī dì chū mǎ
1980
贊先生與找錢華 / Chan sin sang yue chau gung Wa
1978
Chap ga siu ji / Zá jiā xiǎo zǐ / 雜家小子
1979
2013
2010
Shuang long hui
1992
The Legend of Drunken Master / 醉拳 II / Jui kuen II / Warner Archive Collection
1994
2015
Zui quan
1978
2018
拳精 / Quán jīng
1978