Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 22, 2021

Note: 'Mr. Mercedes: Season 3' is not available in the United States on Blu-ray, but this Australian Blu-ray release is region free and will play in any U.S. Blu-ray player.

The television adaptation of Author Stephen King's "Bill Hodges" trilogy comes to a close with this third season, which in the book series chronology comes in between TV seasons one and two. The show's writers keep the flow going with some logical connections (and a full time present time narrative) to a story that was otherwise only tangentially related to the story introduced in first novel (and the show's first season), focused on mass murderer Brady Hartsfield and his efforts to commit another atrocity while toying with the recently retired Detective Bill Hodges (Brendan Gleeson). This story, which was this reviewer's favorite of the three novels, keeps Hartsfield's spirit somewhat center while forging ahead with a new story centered on a murdered novelist, an obsessive literature fan, and an unfortunate young man who finds a stash of cash and a pile of unpublished manuscripts worth millions.

Official synopsis: When beloved local author John Rothstein is found murdered, Hodges, Holly, and Jerome, along with local police, must track down his killer, but this case is more complex than the cold-blooded killing of an American icon. Unpublished novels of Rothstein's were stolen from his home, and they are worth millions. As the case unfolds, the trio learns that although Brady may be gone, his depravity lives on in the lives of his victims.

Some of the TV show’s fundamental changes are in evidence right from the beginning; the Rothstein murder takes place in modern times, not decades in the past. Some of the specifics have been reworked as well -- how Pete finds the money and the manuscripts, for example – but the core story remains familiar in how it plays out, with the increasingly obsessed and depraved Morris chasing down his money, putting Pete Saubers in quite the pickle. Essentially, the TV show picks up the pace and pushes the plot forward without some of the lengthy timeframe differences and slowly developing plot details in the novel. The book is the far richer experience, but this TV adaptation will nevertheless prove rewarding for its adherence as it holds to most of the core details and to the essential story beats which made the book the best in the series.

Many of season three’s changes ultimately point to the show’s desire to keep everything in the here-and-now. In the book, Hodges and company don’t appear for the first half or so of the novel. The “Det-Ret” makes his first appearance in season three within 15 minutes. The changes work to keep the story as free flowing as possible and seamlessly connected to season two. Season three folds in the Lou Linklatter story as a critical sidebar throughout the ten episode run, and it’s a juicy bit of creative spinning both in the nuts-and-bolts follow-up to season two’s dynamic, if not fully re-imagined, ending and also exploring some interesting moral and ethical perspectives in how the characters, and the world, respond to her actions. But more than any connective tissues with the previous two seasons (beyond the essential connections that a couple of key characters were involved in the City Centre Massacre) the season thrives on its unique story beats and the two new main characters – Morris and Pete – that propel it forward from its violent origins to its red-hot conclusion.

The story explores two very different, yet in some ways not at all dissimilar, people in Pete and Morris. In the beginning, Pete is living everyone’s dream: stumbling across a satchel full of cash and, more, items that are worth far more than the money accompanying them. In some ways the story is reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s No Country for Old Men in the essential story of found money and the violent pursuit to recover it. While King’s take is less dynamic, it’s nevertheless effective in deconstructing its characters and exploring the impact the money, and the writings, have on both of them. The real “hero” in the story is Morris, obviously not for his despicable actions from beginning to end but rather for serving as a fascinating model and a compellingly vivid portrait of unhealthy obsession, mental deterioration, and a full loss of identity and sense as he finds himself falling into a pattern of depravity from which he cannot escape. He’s in shock when he kills Rothstein in the opening minutes, he doesn’t take it all that well when he murders a man he believes stole the cash soon thereafter, and from there forward it’s easy to see the mind crumbling, the heart growing cold, and the soul withering away. Gabriel Ebert is terrific as the character, plummeting into his own personal hell through the season.

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mr. Mercedes' third season Blu-ray release is not particularly dissimilar from the first and second season 1080p outings. The digitally sourced image reveals rock-solid detailing, where close-ups never struggle to showcase foundational definition and, beyond, intimate elements in faces (pores, beards) and clothing. The picture's clarity extends through the full gamut, from various interiors to rich woodland exteriors which are so vital, particularly in the early goings. The picture is well capable of revealing crisp, accurate textures throughout, nothing that stands apart in the larger Blu-ray landscape but that well satisfies requirements for a high quality 1080p image. Color output is excellent, too, certainly not exceptional or noteworthy in the big format picture but offering capable colors grounded in neutral contrast. Natural greens delight, so too does red blood, and the full gamut from white to black, flesh tones, and everything else fully pleases. As with the other seasons, light banding and moderate noise in low light are in evidence but these are hardly serious problems. Overall, this is a high quality release.

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Like the video counterpart, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is well similar to the previous season audio efforts. The track is not particularly robust. While it's well versed in atmosphere creation and integration -- various exteriors come alive with impressively defined and positioned sound effects -- heavy stuff is relatively boring. Gunfire, for example, does not hit hard at all, and a raging fire offers only modest sonic might (though engagement is fine). Music is clear and wide with some surround integration. The show is dominated by its dialogue, however, and the spoken word is consistently clear and well prioritized as it flows from a natural front center channel position.

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

No supplemental content is included on either of the Blu-ray discs.

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mr. Mercedes' third and final season hits the story found in King's second book in the series. It does so with some serious alterations up front, both within this story's own context and as part of the reworked connective tissue with season two. But this is, by-and-large, a fine adaptation of the best book in the series that is marked by a terrific performance from Gabriel Ebert as the season's unhinged villain. This featureless two-disc set delivers solid video and audio presentations. Highly recommended.