Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie Review

"My friend, some stories are too true to tell..."

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown January 29, 2015

Kill the Messenger is a riveting thriller and a well-crafted biopic. It only suffers in terms of bending the truth, which is unfortunate considering Gary Webb's search for truth is the heart of the film. It's a necessary genre evil, of course; combining characters, trimming details, and condensing a complex true story into a neatly packaged two hours. But it also covers so much ground those two hours seem terribly inadequate. It helps that director Michael Cuesta and screenwriter Peter Landesman don't drift too far off the beaten Webb path, making judicious decisions about what to change and how far to push creative license, but the more digging you do after the credits roll, the less impressed you'll be with how smoothly it all comes together. Thankfully, a deeply believable Jeremy Renner, a wonderfully effective Rosemarie DeWitt and a smartly cast ensemble of familiar A-listers and character actors offer such compelling and convincing performances that Messenger's flaws are easily swept under the rug.

Based on the remarkable true story of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gary Webb (Renner), 'Kill the Messenger' details revelations of the shady origins of the United States crack epidemic. Webb discovers that the CIA was aware of major dealers smuggling cocaine into the U.S., using the profits to arm rebels fighting in Nicaragua. Despite warnings from drug kingpins and CIA operatives to stop his investigation, the tenacious journalist continues to uncover a conspiracy with explosive implications. His journey takes him from the prisons of California to the villages of Nicaragua to the highest corridors of power in Washington, and draws the kind of attention that threatens not just his career, but his family and his life.

In his October 2014 theatrical review, Blu-ray.com reviewer Brian Orndorf writes: "Working with a longstanding tradition of nail-biting sophistication, Cuestra and Landesman attempt to transform Webb into a defiant figure who slides easily into the investigative journalism subgenre, turning the working-class father of three into a hero of sorts, though one with plenty of domestic and personal issues. It’s a bit of a stretch, as Kill the Messenger is best served as a horror film, itemizing all the people and outlets that labored to build Webb into a celebrity, only to tear him down when the heat became too much to bear. The material that’s intended to be frightening is, but Kill the Messenger is only intermittently concerned with those details, striving to provide definition for Webb as a man and a writer with something to prove between scenes of external pressure to submit.

It’s not hard to feel outraged by Webb’s treatment, watching the man championed for his depth of reporting as he gathers sources, even flying down to Central America to meet with Meneses (Andy Garcia), the partner of a key informant in the saga, inching closer to a staggering truth where America was destroyed to protect the country’s interests elsewhere. Once the story hits, the media is all over the writer, yet when the tide turns due to government influence, everyone abandons Webb, while his prior marital mistakes return to haunt him during a brief moment of glory. Cuestra successfully mines the pain and discomfort that spreads around, isolating the changing tide of opinion as Webb is pulled into the undertow, still clinging to his story despite growing hostility as his sources are both authentically and fraudulently challenged, lawyers are called in, and rival papers set out to destroy him. It certainly isn’t subtle work from Renner, but the lead performance unearths a few genuine moments of disturbance, helping to create the proper tone of defeat Kill the Messenger needs to power its second half.

Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Blu-ray release of Kill the Messenger features an excellent 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer. Crisp and full of detail despite its at-times shaky, fly-on-the-wall docudrama photography, the film boasts a striking sun-bleached palette, lifelike skintones, stark but consistent contrast, and satisfying black levels. Detail delivers without fail too. Edges are clean and naturally defined, without anything in the way of significant ringing or halos, and fine textures are nicely resolved, with rewarding close-ups and refined midrange shots. There also isn't anything in the way of artifacting, banding or aliasing to muck up the proceedings. Any noise that appears is inherent to the original photography; grain is intact and prone to spiking in darker scenes. All told, the image is faithful and filmic, and sure to be please cinephiles and videophiles alike.

Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track effectively captures the intensity and suspense of the film, as realized by its terrific sound design. Dialogue is clear and intelligible, despite favoring docudrama realism, and prioritization is spot on, with every element dropping neatly in place. LFE output pulses and pounds exactly as it should, driving the story forward as aggressively as the narrative thanks to an engaging score. The rear speakers create one immersive environment after another as well, capturing the nuances of news rooms, prison yards, holding cells, courtrooms, cramped hotels and vast Nicaraguan jungles. Ambience is enveloping, directional effects are precise and pans are smooth, without exception. kill the Messenger sounds as good as it looks.

Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary: Director Michael Cuesta is quick to point out differences between Kill the Messenger's story and the events of Gary Webb's rise and fall, offering an explanation for each change that was made. He's also quite thorough in his overview of the development and production of the film, taking extra time to discuss the performances, casting and cinematography.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 9 minutes): Six scenes -- "The Garage," "Building the Bike," "Pitch to the Newsroom," "Champagne Toast," "Cleveland" and "Where is Norwin?"-- each with optional director's commentary.
• The All-Star Cast (HD, 3 minutes): A brief, very brief, look at the key actors and characters courtesy of Cuesta, executive producers Don Handfield and Michael Bederman, and members of the cast.
• Crack in America (HD, 3 minutes): A quick-hit overview of the story behind Webb's story.
• Filming in Georgia (HD, 2 minutes): On location in Georgia with another short EPK.

Kill the Messenger Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Kill the Messenger tackles a sprawling story with focus and succinct plotting, carefully balancing need-to-know exposition with more subtle character details. Renner and the cast's performances are uniformly outstanding, and by far the film's greatest asset. If only Cuesta's desire to make a gripping thriller was as restrained and considered; perhaps the final film would have been a more measured and complete examination of all that Webb uncovered and all the trials he faced along the way. Thankfully, Universal's Blu-ray release is a strong one. With a terrific AV presentation and a solid assortment of extras, it's certainly worth considering.