Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf February 21, 2022

People love “The Walking Dead.” The comic book series and the long-running television series has done its part in bringing back a love of horror that involves a plague of zombies. The undead are big business, and the subgenre has inspired co-writers Manuel Urbaneck and Jan Bohlenschmidt to conjure their own backyard battlefield with slumping, growling enemies. It’s the end of the world (yet again) in “Live or Let Die,” which attempts to deliver gory, ugly violence while dealing with the same old business involving decaying enemies. Urbaneck and Bohlenschmidt have their fandom, and that’s about it in this production, which doesn’t bring anything new to the table, and often plays like a student production.

John (Urbaneck, who also directs) is a man on his own, left to deal with waves of the undead looking to take his life. Nick (Bohlenschmidt) is in the same position. When the men meet, they form an uneasy partnership, looking to find the lost “Safe Zone.” In the way are bloodthirsty zombies and the Boss (Steven Mooers), the vicious leader of a gang also on the prowl for refuge from dangerous apocalyptic times.

“Live or Let Die” has violence, which its main selling point. The production tries to include many graphic encounters with zombies and enemies, and it attempts to provide an antagonist in the Boss, who’s in charge of complete knuckleheads. Gore is welcome, villainy is acceptable, but there’s nothing else to the viewing experience, which primarily involves watching John and Nick walk along the countryside, occasionally arguing about their situation.

Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (2.40:1 aspect ratio) presentation deals with a darker, colder looking picture that's largely drained of brighter primaries. The washed-out appearance secures a more menacing mood, dealing with blues and grays. Greenery is acceptable, and skintones are natural. Detail is satisfactory, examining the mangled faces of the undead, and the wearying of the survivors. Distances are preserved. Delineation has moments of solidification. Artifacting is present at times.

Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Interestingly, "Live or Let Die" is a German production, but the only options available on the Blu-ray release are two English-dubbed tracks, with the default a 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix. The dubbing resembles more of a "Pokemon" episode than a hard-charging horror movie, helping to make a low-budget endeavor seem even cheaper, or at least sillier. Dialogue exchanges are acceptable, detailing the cartoonish nature of the performances. Scoring offers reasonable support, working with synth offerings, and soundtrack selections are nicely defined, offering some low-end beat. Surrounds are active with atmospherics and violent encounters, which trigger a few separation effects.

Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Trailer (2:10, HD) is included.

Live or Let Die Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Live or Let Die" is cheaply produced and roughly acted, and "The Walking Dead" influences border on theft. Die-hard fans of rough stuff might be able to mentally hurdle severe production limitations, but there's not much here to hold attention.