Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 9, 2014

The disaster film has most often been a fairly bloated, all-star affair in the annals of American film, going back to such early efforts as The High and the Mighty and moving onto to the classic era of disaster movies as exemplified by such entries as Airport and Earthquake. In many of these films, star power served as shorthand for actual characterization, leaving the bulk of any given outing to work out typically predictable plot dynamics of various people in distress and an overall arc of trying to head off calamity (or at least more calamity). There have been attempts through the years to refashion some hoary disaster film tropes within the confines of more character driven drama, a trend noticeable in such more relatively contemporary films as Runaway Train. That film might itself seem rather bloated when compared to the lean and lithe Last Passenger, an outing which whips up a traditional disaster film cliché—a high speed train out of control with no brakes hurtling toward an unhappy end at a concrete lined station—and then largely jettisons tradition in favor of taught character analysis, as a handful of harried passengers attempt to figure out what’s going on and how they can get themselves out of their predicament.

My colleagues Brian Orndorf and Dr. Svet Atanasov have already reviewed the theatrical and British Blu-ray releases of Last Passenger here and here, so I won’t belabor things by repeating elements of the already fairly miniscule plot. I’d simply mention that the set up here is really a mere “McGuffin”, a device to allow for an exploration of human behavior under extreme circumstances. It’s a different perspective for a supposed disaster film, and while Last Passenger can’t completely escape some genre conventions here, for the most part this harrowing train journey is a compelling viewing experience.

Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Last Passenger is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Cohen Media Group with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. My thoughts about this digitally shot feature largely echo those of Svet in his review of the British release (linke above), though I personally felt contrast was a bit more inconsistent, especially in some of the shrouded nighttime environments. That said, the image boasts superior detail, especially in close-ups, and colors, while not overly vivid, appear accurate and are nicely saturated. A couple of the effects sequences suffer from relative softness, at least when compared to the bulk of the film.

Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Last Passenger's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 provides some good immersion with effects like a roaring pan as the train trundles by, while also providing a jolt or two of LFE courtesy of a well timed explosion (or two). Dialogue is always cleanly presented and well prioritized above the foley effects and moody score.

Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (1080p; 1:49)


• B Roll (1080p; 5:57)


• Featurette (1080p; 3:20)


• Set Design (1080p; 4:12)


• Sound Design (1080p; 2:21)


• Visual Effects (1080p; 3:07)


• Sound Bites (1080p; 32:09)

Last Passenger Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Last Passenger attempts to subtly redefine the disaster film, and if it isn't completely successful, it still provides the requisite anxiety and insight into desperate characters trying to fight their way out of a seemingly no win situation. Technical merits here are very strong, and Last Passenger comes Recommended.