6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
When a Hong Kong celebrity is found brutally murdered, his body floating in the middle of the ocean, hardheaded detective Lam is called in to take charge of the investigation. As Lam zeroes in on a killer from the past, the murder appears to be a straight forward case of revenge. But the more that Lam pursues his suspect, the deeper he falls into a web of lies. To find the truth, Lam must dig into a 20 year-old case for answers, the one link tying the suspect to the celebrity. But in doing so, Lam will uncover a dark secret so shocking, it will turn the investigation upside down. Who is the victim and who is the killer? Just as Lam believes he has everything figured out, he will discover that there’s a fine line between love and hate.
Starring: Simon Yam, Nick Cheung, Mike Leeder, Michael Wong (I), Chia-Hui LiuForeign | 100% |
Action | 10% |
Crime | 6% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Cantonese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Cantonese: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Nightfall is a film that starts out with a viscerally intense sequence that would seem to set the stage for a high octane action thriller, but which instead is a weirdly anachronistic prelude for what turns out to be a kind of (ironic) Hong Kong reimagining of certain aspects from Roman Polanski’s Chinatown. For those of you who love the Polanski film and have never been able to quite erase Faye Dunaway’s horrifying yet strangely comic “confession” toward the end of the film, this might seem like an unfair spoiler regarding one of Nightfall’s major plot points, but the fact is Nightfall so relentlessly telegraphs its supposed secrets that any armchair sleuth worth their salt is going to see just about every twist and turn Nightfall has to offer coming from a mile (or maybe more) off. The film is still fitfully engaging, more from a visual standpoint than perhaps its too familiar plot machinations, but its attempt to weave together two simultaneously unfolding stories, one of a long imprisoned ex-con and another featuring a cop who thinks the ex-con might be responsible for a high profile murder and mutilation, trundles down a completely rote path that never does much of anything unexpected. There’s a perhaps more maudlin aspect to Nightfall than the caustically cynical ambience that runs rampant in the Polanski film, an element that is brought to bear with regard both to the ex-con, who is more or less mute due to having attempted to commit suicide while incarcerated, and to the cop, who is reeling from the death of his wife, one which has been officially determined to be suicide, but which the cop is certain was a murder.
Nightfall is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. This Red shot feature offers crisp and appealing fine object detail, though as is so often the case with contemporary films, Nightfall has been really aggressively color graded virtually nonstop through its running time, with some decisions that at least slightly deprive the image of that fine detail. The opening sequence is a case in point, with a deliberately yellow skewed palette that casts skin tones perilously toward jaundice territory. Even some of the relatively "normal" looking scenes have been rather strangely color timed, leaving skies with a sickly yellow tint. Other sequences are bathed in deep blue, a choice which is actually the most detrimental to both fine detail and shadow detail. Other than these niggling qualms, however, the image here boasts excellent contrast and stability.
Unlike the Hong Kong release of Nightfall on Blu-ray which included a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track, Well Go USA's release features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track (as well as a standard Dolby Digital 2.0 option). The 5.1 mix is extremely aggressive and often incredibly lush in its surround activity. The opening sequence for example is rife with fantastic foley effects swirling through the side and rear channels that include both the bone crunching noises of the fight as well as the strangely soothing sounds of the shower water hitting various surfaces. Some of the urban soundscapes are very effective, with nicely immersive placement of traffic and ambient environmental noise. But even the rural scenes offer excellent immersion, with the roaring sounds of surf of the gentle flutter of leaves in the breeze. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range is quite wide.
Nightfall is never dull despite its overly predictable plot, but it's too full of coincidences and logical gaps for its own good. Had the film been a bit more artfully structured it might have had a more visceral impact, one meeting the expectations set by the blistering opening scene. As it stands, Nightfall remains a passably entertaining quasi- mystery that is probably most alluring for its rather unique visual sensibility. This Blu-ray offers excellent video and audio, and with caveats noted, comes Recommended.
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