6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.2 |
A young boy is arrested by the US Secret Service for writing a computer virus and is banned from using a computer until his 18th birthday. Years later, he and his new-found friends discover a plot to unleash a dangerous computer virus, but they must use their computer skills to find the evidence while being pursued by the Secret Service and the evil computer genius behind the virus.
Starring: Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie, Jesse Bradford, Matthew Lillard, Laurence MasonTeen | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Elementary’s at times whimsical modern updating of the venerable character of Sherlock Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) has the iconic detective often utilizing 21st century tricks of the trade that would have probably confounded Arthur Conan Doyle’s original formulation of this unforgettable personality. Among those techniques is Holmes’ appeals to an Anonymous-esque group of computer hackers called Everyone, a relationship which is fraught with certain humor, as the Everyone collective routinely insists that Holmes humiliate himself (often in public) before they hand over whatever information it is Holmes has asked for their help to glean. Fans of Hackers, a film that offered Jonny Lee Miller one of his first starring roles, might wonder if Everyone’s hidden population might include one Dade Murphy, Miller’s computer obsessed character, who is first shown as an 11 year old whose expertise at crashing the then nascent internet leads to a supposedly precipitous drop of a whopping seven points on the New York Stock Exchange, as well as the blue screen of death on thousands of other computers, all of which saddles his family with a huge court ordered fine and a stern warning from a no nonsense judge that Dade is forbidden from getting near a computer or even a touch tone phone (hey, it was the dial up era) until he turns 18. The film then segues forward seven years to find Dade and his mother (Alberta Watson) moving to New York City for her to pursue a new job offering and Dade to enjoy the supposed delights of attending high school in the Big Apple.
Hackers is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Shout! Factory with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.34:1. While elements are in generally very good condition, there may be just a slight amount of fade in evidence, as things like flesh tones can look just a little pallid or skewed toward the pink side of things at times. Otherwise, though, the palette is refreshingly vivid, offering some evocative purples and blues in scenes like an arcade where Dade bests Kate's all time high score on a game. Some of the recreations of computer imagery are relatively soft and unconvincing looking, but overall the image offers very good to excellent fine detail (you'll be able to see tiny elements like the fine hairs on Miller's ears in several close-ups). The film has a higher than average amount of opticals, and as should be expected, sharpness and clarity are minimized during these moments. Contrast is solid throughout, offering decent shadow detail in several dimly lit environments. Grain resolves naturally and the presentation has a commendably organic look.
Hackers features a winning DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mix that offers excellent separation for the film's frequent use of source cues. Dialogue is well rendered and well prioritized. The film's sometimes silly sound effects are also presented cleanly and clearly. Fidelity is fine, though dynamic range somewhat restrained aside from a couple of scenes where, for example, the feds come barging through various doors to take hackers into custody.
Hackers is unavoidably a bit of a time capsule, and it will probably strike younger viewers as impossibly quaint. The film would have been more effective had it established the coterie of hackers in a bit more of a detailed fashion, rather than simply positing it all as a fait accompli. Miller and Jolie are a lot of fun in early roles (though Jolie has one of the more unfortunate hairstyles of her career), and the supporting cast is by and large quite effective as well. Director Softley invests the film with appealing visual panache while also keeping things well paced, something that helps the film to overcome some of its narrative stumbles. Technical merits are generally strong, and the supplemental featurette is excellent. Recommended.
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