Immortality Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		2.5

Immortality Blu-ray Movie Review

Should this release live forever in your Blu-ray collection?

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 28, 2013

Love is what I feed on.

Even in the old days of Bram Stoker and Bella Lugosi, there was a certain sexiness, a certain "forbidden fruits" sort of vibe to vampirism and the entire genre made famous on blood suckers and bats and dark Eastern European castles. In the most modern incarnation vampires have evolved into straight heartthrob sex symbols, with the promise of immortality an inviting notion with drawbacks that seem to be far outnumbered by the positives of experiencing endless romance on a scale no human ever could imagine (thanks, Stephenie Meyer). But it's perhaps the middle ground where the genre finds its most interesting tales, stories that forego bats and castles and fangs and capes but also eschew the sort of lovey-dovey "vampirism as the new sexy" vibe. Immortality, also known The Wisdom of Crocodiles, embraces a new sort of spin by developing a character with particular wants and peculiar needs to survive his affliction. The picture foregoes most of the superficial and examines the deeply rooted inward characteristics that paint vampirism as neither deliberately heinous nor incessantly romantic but rather a real affliction that takes its toll on mind, body, and soul all.

This is just one of many kitchen knives you could own!

Steven Grlscz (Jude Law) isn't the suave lady's man that defines his surface. Inside he's a troubled individual with a dark secret, a man engaged in a constant struggle to live and live with himself. He one day rescues a suicidal woman from stepping in front of a speeding subway car. She rejects him, initially, but falls for him eventually. And he kills her, sinking his teeth into her throat and bleeding her out until death. When the body is accidentally unearthed, Steven becomes subject of a fairly intense police investigation led by Inspector Healey (Timothy Spall). Meanwhile, Steven meets another young woman, the mysterious, confident, and somewhat emotionally impenetrable Anne Labels (Elina Löwensohn). What Steven finds in Anne is more than a victim but rather a woman he cannot control but cannot ignore, someone who might very well be the one to end his string of violence or, perhaps, represent a prize he simply cannot have. Either way, their romance will have a lasting effect on who Steven is, and what he does, for the rest of his existence.

Immortality blends together romance and personal reflection with a unique flavor quite unlike anything else out there. Director Po-Chih Leong's film is certainly one made of mood and subtle dramatic currents that define a slower-paced and reflective sort of film that largely ignores action and sometimes even glosses over superficial details in its pursuit of expanding the protagonist's deepest, darkest secrets, in essence creating perhaps the ultimate inward look at a unique perspective in vampirism while almost completely ignoring the usual outward characteristics. Leong's skillful touch accentuates dramatic nuance, making nearly every shot a micro-story within the much larger narrative. The film is at its best in its developing act and slightly more straightforward second as Steven forms a fascinating and unexpected bond with his law enforcement pursuer. Juicy themes and clandestine meaning abound, but the film becomes a bit too melodramatic in its wishy-washy final act that morphs into something of classic soap opera dealing with the back-and-forths of a difficult romance before revealing its secrets and pushing towards a conclusion that's not particularly predictable. Still, it's a satisfying journey that neither rewrites Vampiric lore nor alters one's perception of the genre, but Immortality at least leaves its audience with more to think about than mere blood and bats or teenagers who grace half the posters for sale at Wal Mart.

Jude Law is quite splendid as the outwardly cool but inwardly troubled soul who seeks out women not solely based on physical appearance or emotional compatibility but rather those whom he can manipulate for his own personal gain, a unique gain to say the least. But with his needs come a self-loathing; "a mistake," he calls himself, and Law runs with that dichotomy of playing up the exterior façade while exploring the deeper, troubling dilemmas tearing away at his soul with a balance becoming both the character and an actor of his skill. Through his actions and words -- both with Anne and Inspector Healey -- Law's Steven unearths some very well scripted ideas on nature, the role of good and evil, and his own existence in an imperfect world, but a world in which his contributions can and do make differences on either side of the proverbial scale. The movie is very well made, more an artistic expression crafted on film than a generic straightforward Romantic Thriller; the film's thoughtfulness and emphasis on exposition is reinforced by its subtle cinematic expressions and score. Po-Chih Leong's direction isn't outwardly breathtaking, but his subtle mastery of the story is. It's too bad moviegoers haven't heard more from him, particularly in films with similarly deep contexts.

Immortality Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Immortality's high definition transfer displays its share of problems, but it also holds its own, particularly given its budget-friendly pricing. Echo Bridge's high definition transfer generally satisfies despite some warts, which include a bit of light wear-and-tear, a hint of softness in places, occasionally spiky grain, and some distracting motion jitters. Otherwise, this is a fairly consistent, nice-looking image. Details are never quite so razor-sharp as they might be, but more often than not -- and in close-ups in particular -- viewers will find some very nice, steady, accurate, film-like details on human faces. Elsewhere, the image benefits from the upped resolution of Blu-ray and heightened clarity the format provides, but this one never really reveals any kind of breathtaking details. Colors aren't poor, but they're far from brilliant. There's a hint of dullness to them, but the transfer does offer a fair, consistently decent palette that never gets in the way or stands out as particularly problematic. Black levels are decent, and flesh tones never too far from the norm. Again, for a budget release, this one's not half bad.

Immortality Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Immortality features a fairly bland DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack. The film doesn't require much of its sound, and the track doesn't offer much in return. Music isn't particularly vigorous, sounding instead a little reserved, timid, maybe, and not fully clear. Spacing is adequate, but not seamless. Listeners will enjoy a fair little atmosphere on a college campus; light chatter, singing birds, and a chiming clock are nicely implemented. Punches don't hit very hard, and passing background traffic during one of the action scenes comes across as somewhat mushy. Dialogue is largely clear and remains in the middle portion of the stage. It's certainly not a track to challenge even modest sound systems, but Echo Bridge's presentation should get listeners through the film without too much difficulty.

Immortality Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

All that's included is Behind the Scenes (SD, 6:57), a look at the picture's themes, casting, and technical details of the shoot.

Immortality Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Audiences searching for a superficial Vampire movie that's mostly about blood and/or sex appeal should pass on Immortality, or then again maybe they shouldn't. The movie is very good at what it does, to a point; sometimes, and in the third act in particular, the film just gets weighted down too much by its own deeply explorative ambitions. It's far from a typical crowd-pleaser but it's perhaps just a little too extreme in the other direction. Nevertheless, the sum of the whole far outweighs any drawbacks of the parts. This is an extremely well-crafted, smartly acted, and well-versed picture that explores various themes thoroughly and is only sometimes a bit too ambiguous in its purpose. Echo Bridge's Blu-ray release of Immortality features occasionally problematic, but usually satisfying, video. A decent soundtrack and one extra are included. As usual with Echo Bridge releases, this isn't the pinnacle of Blu-ray quality but the low cost combined with a good film and acceptable technical specs make this one easy to recommend.