7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.1 |
Molly Bloom, a young skier and former Olympic hopeful, becomes a successful entrepreneur (and a target of an FBI investigation) when she establishes a high-stakes, international poker game.
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Jeremy StrongBiography | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: DTS 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Molly's Game is one big metaphor. When the title character took a fall at an olympic tryout, her dreams seemed dashed, her hopes dropped, and her life took a completely unexpected turn, upward, it would seem, until the inevitable hard crash brought her back to earth and then some and, she can only hope, eventually back to herself. The film, based on the autobiographical book of the same name, was written for the screen and directed by Aaron Sorkin in his debut behind the camera. The longtime writer/producer's notable works include the stage production of A Few Good Men as well as numerous television ventures such as The West Wing and several distinguished screenplay adaptations including Moneyball, Steve Jobs, and The Social Network. Molly's Game is another insightful, purposeful, and engaging Sorkin film. He's fluid behind the camera, unsurprising for someone who, despite a lack of directorial experience, certainly knows his way around a movie. This is a top-end character study that makes an obvious point but does so with agreeable dramatic and character harmony that binds the story together very well by film's end.
Molly's Game sees some low light banding and pale blacks to open (and they tighten up nicely thereafter, such as during a nighttime exterior scene in chapter 17), and some low light noise spikes throughout, but the image largely reveals a detailed, crisp, and firm digitally sourced picture from thereon. It can appear a little sharp -- the sequence when the audience is first introduced to Idris Elba's character in chapter four is a notable example -- but firm skin textures, refined clothing lines, and sharp office details are the norm. Close-ups of felt-covered tables, playing cards, and chips are also enjoyably sharp and detailed. Colors present with good neutrality, sufficient vibrance, and positive saturation and nuance, whether some of those same poker-specific objects, clothes, or hair and lips, including some electric pink wigs seen earlier in the film. Skin tones appear accurate. This is, by-and-large, a very good, pleasing, and proficient presentation from Universal.
Molly's Game opens with blustery cold winds and the sounds of skis sliding over packed snow, the first of several opportunities for organic, detailed, and immersive ambient effects. Music is likewise well spaced, which is always fluid and enriching, with top-end fidelity, but without much of prominent surround activity, even with the 7.1 configuration at the track's disposal. A few action scenes -- a character is badly beaten at one point later in the movie -- deliver prominent and weighty hits and smacks. The subwoofer engages enough to give modest weight to those aforementioned action bits as well as the film's front-heavy music. Dialogue propels the movie more so than any other component, and its delivery is expectedly fine in all areas of concern.
Molly's Game contains one extra. Building an Empire (1080p, 3:03) is a quick discussion of the story and the lead character. A DVD copy of the film and an iTunes digital copy code are included with purchase.
Molly's Game tells an engaging story and performances are fairly strong. It's not just the tale of an illegal poker game but a deeper character exploration that hits notes of loyalty, parent-child relationships, and wayward life drifts, all with scene-commanding construction and a hopeful outlook on life, on recovering from the fall, in more ways than one. Universal's Blu-ray is fine, visually and aurally. Sadly only one brief supplement is included. Recommended.
2017
2018
2016
1991
2018
35th Anniversary Edition
1980
2017
2014
2018
2019
2019
2013
2021
2018
1996
2010
2018
2016
2020
2018