Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		5.0

Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 13, 2009

Co-produced and promoted in France by Mathieu Kassovitz, who won the Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1995 for his “La Haine”, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s gritty and disturbing war drama “Johnny Mad Dog” (2008) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors TF1. The film is based on Emmanuel Dongala's novel. This is an English-friendly and, surprisingly, Region-Free release.

Welcome to Liberia!

Having just seen Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s Johnny Mad Dog, I am trying hard to come up with the right words to describe to you how I feel. Shocked, stunned, speechless and terrified are the ones that come to mind.

An unknown African country (Liberia). A civil war has erupted. The President has been killed and the government forces disbanded. The UN forces have tried to move in and help some of the wounded, but angry rebels from rivaling tribes are now roaming the streets, threatening to kill anyone who questions their authority.

The rebel leaders have gathered hundreds of kids and armed them. Many can barely carry their automatic rifles but are nevertheless ordered to enter the capital and kill all dogos. Once they finish their mission, the rebels would move in. The kids call themselves Death Dealers.

Fifteen-year-old Johnny Mad Dog (Christophe Minie) is in charge with a squadron of Death Dealers. Most of his soldiers are three, four, even five years younger than him. All of them are drugged. They are told that they need to free the national TV station.

Johnny Mad Dog and his soldiers enter the capital. On their way to the TV station, they kill anyone that even looks at them. They have fun.

Once at the TV station, Johnny Mad Dog and his soldiers rape the country’s news anchor. Then, they kill everyone who has not yet escaped. Unsure what else needs to be done, the Death Dealers head back. But there is no one to kill now -- the capital is a ghost city.

Johnny Mad Dog is a disturbingly graphic film, one that does not care about political correctness. It is also pumped with so much anger that the moment it starts, it simply implodes. There are scenes in it that can leave you speechless for days.

I don’t know what to say about the acting. Johnny Mad Dog and the rest of the characters in the film are played by former child-soldiers. As the end credits roll, you will see photos of many of them holding rifles, smiling at the camera. These kids have killed before.

Filmed on location in Monrovia, Liberia, Johnny Mad Dog looks incredible. Director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire and cinematographer Marc Koninckx have truly captured the wild beauty of this forgotten by God African nation. From the terrific panoramic vistas to the terrifying mass killings, everything in Johnny Mad Dog screams perfection. The team of top-notch producers is also to be commended for the film’s superb look - Benoît Jaubert (Les deux mondes), Mathieu Kassovitz (La Haine), Elisa Larrière (Avida), Genevieve Lemal (L'enfant), Alexandre Lippens (Indigènes), and Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire.

*I don't typically offer disclaimers, but I think that Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s Johnny Mad Dog deserves one. As you could see, my review for it is rather short. This is intentional. I think that the less you know about Johnny Mad Dog, the more likely it is that it will have the same impact on you that it had on me. Also, I think that you should be at least partially warned about its graphic nature.

Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire' Johnny Mad Dog arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors TF1.

This is a fantastic transfer! Contrast it impeccable, clarity very impressive and detail stunning. The large panoramic vistas from the Liberian coastline have that marquee popping look that many desire. On the other hand, the nighttime scenes are natural looking, with a good dose of film grain and at the same notably nuanced. The film's color-scheme is also impressive. Reds, blues, greens, yellows, browns, blacks and whites are lush and well saturated. They are also incredibly stable. Furthermore, neither macroblocking nor edge-enhancement is an issue of concern with this transfer. I would also like to specifically note that Johnny Mad Dog looks incredibly stable when blown through a digital projectors. For the record, there are absolutely no scratches, debris, dirt, or specks that I detected. All in all, this is a rock solid transfer that does justice to this incredible film. (Note: Even though this disc is marketed as being Region-B, it is in fact Region-Free. This is certainly quite surprising as TF1 are known for their "locked" Blu-ray output. Furthermore, there is no PAL content on the disc, so you should be perfectly fine playing it on any Blu-ray player, regardless of your geographical location).

Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Afrikaans DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. I opted for the Afrikaans DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and later on did a few random comparisons with the French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track for the purpose of this review.

The audio treatment is as impressive as the video treatment. TF1 have delivered a superb Afrikaans DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that literally transports you right in the middle of the massacres. The bass is deep and incredibly potent, the rear channels very active and the high frequencies not overdone. There are numerous scenes in Johnny Mad Dog where gunshots are heard from all sorts of different directions. As a result, there are a few very interesting echo effects that you should notice. Jackson Tennesse Fourgeaud's soundtrack is not prominent but it is nevertheless very effective. The dialog is crisp and clear. This being said, occasionally you may catch a phrase or two from the Afrikaans, but you will definitely need to use either the French or English optional subtitles. For the record, when turned on, the subtitles appear inside the image frame. Finally, there are no pops, cracks, hissings, or dropouts that I detected.

The French dub is actually quite good. Obviously, the core of the French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is identical to that of the Afrikaans DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track (I compared a few of the shootouts and they sounded identical to me). The intensity of the dialog is where you would notice a difference. This being said, I strongly recommend that you opt for the Afrikaans DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. It is, without a doubt, incredibly strong.

Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc are in PAL. Therefore, unless you have a Region-Free player capable of converting PAL to NTSC, you won't be able to view them on your North American TV.

Making Of - this featurette is as impressive (and graphic) as the actual film. It takes us on a trip to Liberia and the specific locations where Johnny Mad Dog was shot. In French, not subtitled. (52 min, mpeg-2).

"A Dios" - a short film by director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire about a poor Colombian boy fascinated with the front panel of a broken TV. With imposed French subtitles. (5 min, mpeg-2)

"Matalo!" - another short film by director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire about two boys carrying a large inflatable devil on the streets of an unknown Mexican city. With imposed French subtitles. (11 min, mpeg-2).

Johnny Mad Dog Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In August of 2003, the U.S. Marines landed in Liberia. Johnny Mad Dog shows why -- the African nation was on the verge of Rwanda-style genocide. French distributors TF1 have put together a fantastic Blu-ray package for this film that is now easily the best import to reach my desk this year. The video and audio treatments are superb. On top of everything else, the Blu-ray disc is also English-friendly and Region-Free. We give Johnny Mad Dog our HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION.