6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 2.2 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.2 |
Bob Maconel is about to have a bad day. Another eight hours of sitting in a dull gray cubicle, ignored by his co- workers, existing in a world where he feels completely out of sync. On this particularly bad day, Bob crosses the line from potential killer to inadvertent hero and in the process saves Venessa's life. This invisible nobody saves the object of his desire only to have her ask him to end her life.
Starring: Michael DeLuise, Christian Slater, Jamison Jones, Anzu Lawson, Elisha CuthbertDark humor | 100% |
Surreal | 43% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
None
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 2.0 | |
Audio | 2.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
The right time will come.
He Was a Quiet Man is a quiet little film, an unassuming picture with limited appeal and
an
even more limited exposure, and it is now being released on Blu-ray with minimal fanfare.
Everything about the film's existence has painted the picture of a movie that's been repressed,
held
back, and not
given the opportunity to compete with the big boys of the cinematic arena. Nevertheless and in
a little twist of slight irony, the film's rather
reserved approach and limited appeal does blend right in with its primary plot and the plight of its
lead character, making it an interesting case study of life inside art imitating the exposure of said
art in the real world, in a roundabout sort of way. Wide release or not, misunderstood or not,
little seen or not, He Was a Quiet Man delivers an intriguing but ultimately sterile picture
that's takes the easy way out at the end, the film just another that seems to have everything
going for it before tossing out a curveball that many viewers will see coming as it leaves the
pitcher's hand, and to follow the baseball analogy, this hanging curve isn't hit out of the park but
is instead slapped into the outfield for a bloop single, which in and of itself is enough to make the
crowd cheer.
I could see the squirrels, and they were married...
He Was a Quiet Man lumbers onto Blu-ray with a serviceable 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer. The sharper scenes throughout the film take on a slightly over-processed, artificial look, but the image does exhibit fairly strong detail in select scenes and a color palette that's not the most natural or vibrant but certainly acceptably reproduced. However, the image often ventures into an excessively soft and fuzzy state of existence. Various scenes even go so far to look like they were captured on low-grade video, exhibiting a veritable absence of definition, sharpness, and object texturing, not to mention showcasing some unsightly jagged edges, aliasing, and compression artifacts. Fine detail can be fairly good in the more stable close-up shots; Slater's face reveals various bumps, pores, and strands of facial hair nicely, but for the most part, He Was a Quiet Man's 1080p transfer lacks much definition and takes on a routine, dull, and flat appearance. Certainly plagued with an inconsistent and ever-shifting visual transfer, it's difficult to tell where filmmaker intent and the picture's original elements end and where faults in the transfer begin.
He Was a Quiet Man fizzles on Blu-ray with a mediocre Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack; no lossless or uncompressed options are included. This is fairly routine, dialogue-intense stuff with little in the way of punch and excitement; the opening scenes of the film do deliver a bit of low end information, and a few sound effects later in the film -- primarily that of a plane lumbering through the soundstage -- offer a fairly significant amount of bass that shakes the walls but lacks the utmost clarity associated with tighter and superior lossless efforts. Additionally, only a few surround effects are implemented; a train seems to pass through the soundstage in one shot and is accompanied by a decent sonic presentation that gives the sensation of the vehicle traversing through the listening area, but the sense of space and flow is limited. The track delivers but a series of minor supportive atmospherics in the office locale; employee chatter, ringing phones, and the like barely register even at reference levels, leaving the listener feeling detached from the environment. Several gunshots ring out with a puny thump that barely registers as a firearm discharge from a purely sonic perspective. Dialogue reproduction is generally sound, but listeners shouldn't expect much more than a straightforward presentation with He Was a Quiet Man.
No special features are available.
Nobody remembers the guy who singled off a hanging curve but rather the guy who hit the home run to drive him in, which is why He Was a Quiet Man is a success in and of itself but not necessarily all that memorable in the grand scheme of things. An interesting journey into a warped mind that's negated by a copout finale and made-for-TV special effects, He Was a Quiet Man nevertheless works until the end, and even then, there's enough good here -- intermixed with plenty of bad -- to make this one worth a watch. This Starz/Anchor Bay Blu-ray release delivers a technical presentation that's a mixed bag, both the 1080p picture and sound qualities of varying proficiencies but neither flat-out awful. Unfortunately, the presentation is not supported by any extra content. He was a Quiet Man is an intriguing little picture that cinephiles will want to spend 90-some minutes with and perhaps even see twice, but the quality of the disc and absence of extras makes this one best enjoyed as a rental.
2013
2006
@Zola
2020
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2011
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1991
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Ultimate Collector's Edition
1975
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2009