Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Heaven's Burning Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 2, 2019

Craig Lahiff's "Heaven's Burning" (1997) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Umbrella Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; audio commentary by writer Louis Nowra and producer Helen Leake; deleted scenes with optional commentary by the director; behind the scenes featurette; short films; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Tough situation

It is more than a bit strange that Heaven’s Burning does not have a better reputation. It looks very stylish and it has the type of edge that the best neo-noir films promote. On top of this, Russell Crow is terrific in it.

The prologue is one big curve ball that almost manages to fool that the rest of the film will be about a newlywed couple with plenty of issues. In a fancy hotel in Sidney, Yukio (Kenji Isomura) tells his wife Midori (Yuki Kudo) that he is going to have a drink with a few colleagues in the cozy bar and she heads back to their room. About an hour later, however, Yukio discovers that Midori has disappeared without a trace and immediately informs the authorities. Meanwhile, in a different part of town a wheelman with a long list of debts named Colin (Crowe) agrees to do a job with a couple of ethnic robbers. Their plan is to hit a local bank -- very, very quickly -- and when later on the stolen cash is divided never see each other again. The robbers enter the bank at the right time, but a clerk activates the security system and one of them gets crushed by a giant steel screen. His partners then take the terrified Midori, who has chosen the same bank to cash a check, hostage and jump in the car with Colin. When the fuming robbers eventually pull over at an abandoned farm miles away from the city a decision is made to kill the foreign girl because she has seen their faces, but instead Colin kills one of them and lets another walk away.

In the days ahead Colin and Midori form an unusual bond and as they cross the country come to realize that prior to the robbery they both had lived lives full of awful lies. At the same time Yukio discovers that Midori secretly hated their prearranged marriage and even had an affair with another one of his colleagues before she ran away, and vows to track her down and punish her for her betrayal. In a different part of the country, the father ( (Petru Gheoghiu) of the shot robber and his son (Robert Mammone) also prepare to hunt down Colin and make him pay for his betrayal.

Director Craig Lahiff was a very gifted stylist and Heaven’s Burning is just another one of his underappreciated films that makes it painfully obvious. Indeed, the visual beauty of this film is so striking that it pretty convincingly sells Australia as a cinematic heaven with seemingly endless perfect locations for anyone wishing to craft a memorable neo-noir thriller.

The violence is graphic but it is introduced with a tiny dose of wicked humor that does not make it repulsive. As Colin and Midori embark on their wild journey it actually becomes essential for the type of exotic atmosphere that makes the film attractive. (There is only one somewhat goofy segment in which the elderly Afghan ‘pro’ feels compelled to explain in great detail how much he loves torturing his enemies).

The unhinged husband is the type of psychopath that would usually pop up in a Quentin Tarantino film but perhaps because he is in a foreign land whose laws and customs he has trouble comprehending his over-the-top outbursts and (re)actions seem legit. It helps that he has a few opportunities to converse in Japanese as well because this allows for some important contrasts to stand out even more.

Ray Barrett plays Colin’s lonely father who has played the role of a tough man for years, but is now coming to terms with the fact that the best part of it ended the moment he lost his wife. A truly wonderful performance.

*Umbrella Entertainment's release of Heaven's Burning is sourced from an exclusive new 4K remaster of the film.

Heaven's Burning Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.38:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Craig Lahiff's Heaven's Burning arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Umbrella Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a lovely exclusive new 4K remaster. From start to finish the film was simply a pleasure to view -- it looked vibrant and healthy, delineation and depth were terrific, and the fluidity had the type of consistency that a proper 4K remaster always delivers. The color grading is also very convincing. There are some absolutely fantastic ranges of nuances that make the outdoor footage and the darker/nighttime footage look simply superb (see screencaptures #5 and 15). There are no traces of digital tinkering or encoding anomalies. Some minor optimizations could have been to strengthen a few areas even more, but the overall appearance of the remaster is very satisfying. I only spotted a few tiny blemishes and dirt spots that could have been removed, but they will not affect your viewing experience. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Heaven's Burning Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with small portions of Japanese). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature, as well as English subtitles for the parts of the film where Japanese is spoken. When turned on, the subtitles appear inside the image frame.

When the disc loads up it defaults to the 2.0 track, and there is no option on the main menu that allows you to switch to the 5.1 track. Therefore, in order to view the film with the 5.1 track you must use the audio button on your remote control to switch from the 2.0 track to the 5.1 track.

I viewed the entire film with the 5.1 track and thought that it delivered all of the dynamic intensity and contrasts that the film needed to impress. Also, there were no balance issues, or other purely digital anomalies to report.

Heaven's Burning Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NOTE: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray release are perfectly playable on North American Blu-ray players, including the PS3.

• Trailer - an original theatrical trailer for Heaven's Burning. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 720p)

• Behind the Scenes - presented here is an archival featurette with raw footage from the shooting of the film. In English, not subtitled. (35 min, 720p)

• Deleted Scenes - presented here is a selection of deleted scenes which can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by director Craig Lahiff. In English, not subtitled. (9 min, 720p)

• Script to Screen - these script to screen excerpts also can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Craig Lahiff. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, 720p)

• Cast and Crew Interviews - presented here is a gallery of archival interviews with cast members and Craig Lahiff which address the casting and production processes, the director's vision for the film and its tone, and the locations that were selected for different parts of the film. In English, not subtitled. (23 min, 720p).
  
  1. Russell Crowe
  2. Yuki Kudo
  3. Craig Lahiff
  4. Producer Al Clark
  5. Producer Helen Leake

• Commentary - this audio commentary features writer Louis Nowra and producer Helen Leake and covers a wide range of topics. Apparently, the initial plan was to set the film in Europe and it was because of some technical difficulties that the story was relocated to Australia. There are interesting comments about the casting process, small a;terations that were made to the original script, an important incident that changed a lot, the blending of violence and humor, etc.

• Shorts and Trailers - presented here is a collection of short films directed by Craig Lahiff, as well as some vintage trailers for his films. All content is sourced from vault masters. (1080p)
  
  1. Labyrinth (1979).
  2. The Jogger (1980).
  3. Coda (Trailer/1987).
  4. Fever (Trailer/1988).
  5. Black & White (Trailer/2002).
  6. Swerve (Trailer/2011).

• Cover - a reversible cover.

Heaven's Burning Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I enjoyed Heaven's Burning so much that I would not hesitate for a second to place it well ahead of the overwhelming majority of 'big' films that Russell Crowe has made throughout his illustrious career. The action is great, the tone of the film is perfect, and some of the visuals are absolutely breathtaking. Also, this is one of those films where it is just so, so easy to tell that the actors that made it had a ball working together. Umbrella Entertainment's Blu-ray release is sourced from a top-notch 4K remaster and comes with a very good selection of bonus features. Definitely check out Craig Lahiff's short The Jogger as it is a minor gem. I really like the quality work that the crew at Umbrella Entertainment is doing for various cult and important classic Australian films, and I hope nothing changes in 2019. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.