Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

No Good Deed Blu-ray Movie Review

Idris Elbas saves an otherwise trite film.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 18, 2014

No Good Deed gives almost no good reason(s) to watch. Sure it does a couple of things well, and it's an expectedly slick and expertly assembled film, yet it's a rather hollow vessel, a movie that doesn't explore new territory or even tinker with established formula. It's a classic paint-by-numbers Thriller, watered down to PG-13, and it frequently fails to capture even a hint of tension or, really, anything that could be remotely construed as "remarkable," outside, perhaps, of Idris Elba's performance. There's nothing at all novel about the film, either, not even in the twisty-turn reveal late in the movie. It's one of those movies that's just good enough to hold one's attention but not capture one's imagination, a movie that's of a high enough quality to warrant a first look but not a second. It's another in a very long line of "watch and forget" movies that serve to distract and entertain for 90 minutes and be forgotten almost immediately thereafter.

I just need your phone...

Colin Evans (Idris Elba), five years imprisoned on manslaughter charges and suspected to be involved in the disappearance of five women, is denied parole despite his best efforts to convince the board that he's ready for life outside prison walls. While being transported back to the joint, he manages to seize control of a weapon and escape. He murders his unfaithful girlfriend, crashes his car in a storm, and wanders up to an ideal suburban house where Terry (Taraji P. Henson) and her two children are home alone. Collin asks for her help, and she takes pity on the wet and wounded stranger and invites him into her home. Little does she know that her good deal with certainly go punished during a night she will never forget.

Every last little bit of tension in No Good Deed comes sourced from manufactured dramatic devices that work in the greater context the film weaves together but that at the same time leave audiences wondering where they've seen this movie before and why they're watching it again. Everything from the cliché (a raging thunderstorm) to the convenient (a car alarm that goes off on its own from time to time) propel the story forward through a predictable routine of hidden identities and slow reveals of true intentions. As the movie builds towards its revealing climax that, to this twist's credit, does help to better define several of the "hows" and "whys" that lead up to it -- while also opening up a few more questions -- the picture simply pushes through genre type, relying on the audience to believe that a mother and highly educated woman (a former prosecutor, in fact, who specialized in cases centered on violence committed against women) would be dumb enough to open her house, with her children home, even, to a mysterious stranger or that her best friend (played by Leslie Bibb) would all but strip naked for a chance to bed a man she met literally seconds before. The rampant cliché and predictability, however, only occasionally hinder what are otherwise a few good moments of psychological back-and-forth maneuvering that do help make the movie feel a little more robust than reality dictates it to be, thanks in large part to an excellent lead performance.

Idris Elba is reason number one -- one of precious few -- to give No Good Deed a serious watch. For as technically sound as the movie may be in terms of its visual prowess, editing, flow, and so on and so forth -- none of which are in any way bad -- it's Elba who elevates the movie from the scrap heap of forgotten films and transforms it into something that's at least watchable. Elba's performance is exemplary, evident from the movie's first -- and best -- scene in which he pleads his case before a parole board. He brilliantly captures the dichotomy that is, on one side, a clearly intelligent man who seems bent on earning forgiveness for his actions and who holds regret in his soul, staring down the men and women who hold his fate in their hands with almost puppy dog eyes that say "free me, I'm not a danger to anyone." On the other side is the more menacing, spiteful, easily angered killer that appears in spurts and of course dominates the film's final act. Elba's ability to effortlessly maneuver between the two extremes, whether on a dime or in something of a more gradual build-up, is remarkable. The character ins't necessarily complex -- his Collin Evans is merely two unique sides of the same coin -- but Elba masters both, and the more "human" of the two in particular, very well. Taraji P. Henson, a fine actor in her own right, isn't so fortunate, not because she's not good in the role but because the role gives her nothing with which to work. She essentially does nothing with a part for which nothing can be done to expand the character who is more defined by poor choices and awkward situations than she is the more dynamic "unwilling victim and necessary hero" she should be. Certainly, there wouldn't be a movie -- not this movie, anyway -- if she were a more practically minded character, but it's a shame a performer of Henson's caliber is so dwarfed by Elba because she's not given a part that's anywhere near as interesting as his.

No Good Deed Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mastered in 4K and presented in 1080p, No Good Deed looks expectedly magnificent on Blu-ray. The digital image is sharp and precise with nary a soft edge or undefined detail to be seen. Whether intricate facial features and clothing lines or kitchen appliances and other household items appearing throughout a number of interior backgrounds, every inch of each frame reveals with striking, lifelike precision all they have to show. Even darker scenes -- nighttime exteriors marked by pouring rain -- come through as nicely defined and accurate. Black levels in these darker exteriors are excellent, appearing naturally deep and never hinting at crush. Flesh tones, likewise, appear natural. The general color palette is consistent and bold with a nice bit of variety throughout the house. Nothing stands apart as a dominant hue and there's no manipulated color scheme in the film, just a handsome, lifelike reproduction. The image suffers from no discernible examples of noise, blockiness, aliasing, banding, or other visual distractions. In short, this is a gorgeous, reference-worthy image from Sony.

No Good Deed Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

No Good Deed features a fine-tuned DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is precise and engaging, replicating every element with commendable ease and accuracy. It creates a wide stage in which both music and elemental effects play with excellent clarity and presence. The stage is open, with a balanced surround support structure utilized to enhance both music and atmospherics. Whether the light rumbles and whooshes heard from inside the prison transport van in a couple of early scenes or the pouring rain and cracking, rolling thunder that's such a constant throughout, the track excels in bringing its environments life. Music is rich and full as the stringy and heavy Horror-lite Thriller notes fill the stage with lifelike realism. A few gunshots and other heavier effects are suitably potent but not quite as lifelike as they maybe should be. Dialogue delivery is firm and even with consistent center placement.

No Good Deed Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

No Good Deed contains a trio of brief featurettes. A UV digital copy voucher is included in the case.

• Making a Thriller (1080p, 12:20): This piece examines story basics, character qualities and interpersonal dynamics, the script's quality and surprises, casting and the actors' ability to precisely shape the characters, shooting on location, Director Sam Miller's work, the film's ending, and more.
• The Thrill of a Good Fight (1080p, 6:10): A closer look at the inner workings of making the movie's fighting sequences, both the physicality and the deeper actor requirements necessary to create authentic fights.
• Good Samaritan (1080p, 4:28): A look at the filmmakers' methods for crafting authentic characters, character traits, and the need for the audience to relate to the situation based on the human instinct to help others in need.
• Previews: Additional Sony titles.

No Good Deed Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

No harm, no foul. No Good Deed won't come within a country mile of Oscar consideration, and most audiences will find it a flat and unimaginative Thriller built on strict structure rather than creative risk. It's not dull, just unremarkable, a movie that does what it does with commendable craftsmanship but nothing in the film ever gets under the skin, unsettles the mind, or lingers in the soul. It's worth a watch for Elba's crafty turn as the villain, but it's otherwise hardly worth remembering, which probably makes it the ideal candidate for someone in the mood for a movie that's purely watched for classic "escapism." Sony's Blu-ray release of No Good Deed does deliver excellent video and audio. A few supplements are included for those who wish to learn a little more about the movie. Give it a rent when a night lounging on the couch to mindless entertainment sounds like fun.