5.8 | / 10 |
Users | 2.9 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
An idealistic professor (Redford) in California attempts to inspire a student to do more with his life, while a charismatic Senator (Cruise) in Washington, D.C. pitches a new Middle East war strategy to a probing TV journalist (Streep). And halfway across the world, two of the professor's former students are trapped behind enemy lines in Afghanistan, fighting for freedom - and their very lives. As the tension mounts and the bullets fly, these Americans will change each other's live and the world in ways they never could have imagined.
Starring: Robert Redford, Meryl Streep, Tom Cruise, Michael Peña, Andrew GarfieldDrama | 100% |
War | 91% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, Spanish, Korean, Mandarin (Simplified), Mandarin (Traditional)
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Creating a film that attacks the policies of a domestic government can be a dangerous business when trying to attract a movie-going audience. For most of us, films are a way to escape the harsh truths of reality and escape into a world or setting that our brain can’t readily identify with. I’m not saying all politically-charged films lack entertainment value, but they certainly won’t appeal to as wide of an audience as a blockbuster action film.
Lions for Lambs suffered a dismal box office fate, but it wasn't due to shortcomings in the film itself. Released in 2007, we’d already seen an opinion shift with the American public on the Iraq war and I’d imagine most theaters remained empty due to a perceived overdose on government policies in the management of the “war on terror”. Unfortunately, the modern setting of the film, coupled with a marketing campaign painting it as liberal-minded propaganda, prevented Lions for Lambs from attaining the respect it deserves. There are certainly preachy moments distributed throughout the film, but having seen the film on two occasions now, I can’t understand the overwhelmingly negative reviews at the time of its original release. Boasting a star-studded cast and a well respected director (Robert Redford), Lions for Lambs is much more than a political outcry against the policies of the American government; It’s a call to action for an American public that teeters on the edge of indifference and a poignant look at the resulting consequences of our decisions.
Ernest (Michael Pena) and Arian (Derek Luke) as their briefed on their upcoming mission.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate of 33Mbps), Lions for Lambs has a reasonably proficient transfer of occasionally difficult source material. Fine object detail rarely approaches the precision of the best Blu-ray has to offer, but considering this was filmed with a Panavision 35 mm camera, I'd imagine it was cinematographer Philipe Rousselot's intention to give the interior, dialogue-driven sequences a smooth film-like appearance. Color holds up well in the daytime sequences, though they tend to exhibit a mild degree of sun-drenched bleaching from the open blinds of the windows. Another likely by-product of the bright sunlight, is the appearance of an annoying blue band across the lower section of the screen when the Senator is sitting behind his desk. This is a shame, since the appearance draws your attention away from the groundwork dialogue between Streep and Cruise. Moving on, nighttime shots are the primary problematic aspect of the transfer. From the instant Arian and Ernest end up on the snowy plateau in Afghanistan, we're exposed to blizzard conditions and a complete lack of light. During these sequences, the foreground shows a wonderful level of detail and above average contrast. However, the background of these scenes tends to become muddled with splotches of undifferentiated blues and blacks. It was a problem that became distracting at times (especially when your looking for the approaching terrorists to arrive at any moment from behind the surrounding boulders) and places a slight stain on what is otherwise a decent presentation.
The primary audio offering on the disc is a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track in the native language of English. For some reason, I don't recall the audio standing out this much on my initial viewing of the film back when it was released on DVD. I recall the dialogue-heavy aspects of the production, but the action sequences certainly didn't leave me with the same impression I had after listening to this on Blu-ray. From the crisp pop of gunfire, to the twirling blades of a helicopter passing overhead, I was sufficiently impressed with the level of spatial separation among the surround channels and the aggressive use of the LFE channel from time to time. This still won't rival the best action films, but gives the scenes in Afghanistan an element of peril that would otherwise be absent without such a robust mix. Additionally, dialogue and background music are afforded an appropriate volume balance next to the action sequences, so you won't find yourself grasping for the remote during scene transitions. Overall, fans should be extremely happy with the audio track on this release.
The Making of Lions for Lambs (1080i, Dolby Digital 2.0, 20:53 min): Delving behind the scenes, this intriguing featurette focuses more on the themes from the film, rather than the production itself. Even when Redford discusses the casting choices, he still references the attributes in each character that play heavily into the emotional impact of the film (thereby bringing the discussion back to a focus on the overall themes).
Script to Screen (1080i, Dolby Digital 2.0, 8:28 min): Continuing the trend of the prior supplement, this featurette discusses the story/script written by Matthew Michael Carnahan, and what drew Redford, Cruise and Streep to the production. Carnahan jumps in from time to time and provides some background on what influenced him in writing the story, and his experience working side by side with such an impressive cast and crew.
UA Legacy (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 6:55 min): This supplement contains clips from numerous films released by the United Artist studio since the 1930's. I found myself wishing I could set aside an entire day to watch several of the films shown.
Rounding out the extras, we have two high-definition trailers for the film, and a director's commentary with Robert Redford (focusing more on the story that unfolds rather than the technical aspects of his work as the director).
Lions for Lambs is a striking analysis of human apathy during a time of political crisis. I wish there'd been less preaching from time to time (the film tends to hit you over the head with some of the prevailing themes), but Redford demonstrates a steady hand in reigning in his political beliefs and asking the viewer to take responsibility for their actions. Unfortunately, the film is also a product of bad timing, arriving at a time when the American public preferred not to think about what is taking place in the Middle East. It's almost ironic that the exact principle addressed in the film may also have been the primary component that led to its box office failure. We simply prefer not to think about those things that draw us out of our comfort zone, and that's precisely what this film sets out to do.
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