Rating summary

Movie		1.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

November Criminals Blu-ray Movie Review

Why is it even called 'November Criminals?'

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 11, 2018

This review contains no explicit spoilers for the movie, but some of the comments could be construed as heavily hinting at spoilers. Then again, the big reveal was explicitly shown in the trailer, anyway.

November Criminals never offers a compelling reason to exist. Its story is one of slow-developing revelations about a character the audience barely knows, a character the protagonist apparently barely knows, too. Its side story involves a stale romance between he and a young lady, a dynamic that ultimately adds little, if anything, to the narrative. The film, from Director Sacha Gervasi (Hitchcock) and based on the novel The November Criminals by Sam Munson, simply never takes off, serving up a decent sense of mystery in its opening act but failing to capitalize with any intriguing twists, dramatic turns, or much of a reason to become absorbed in the story.

Addison Schacht (Ansel Elgort) is an aspiring college student documenting his application process to the University of Chicago and his relationship with Phoebe (Chloë Grace Moretz). The joy of their intimacy is broken when word comes down that Addison's close friend has been murdered. The police quickly call it gang-related, which means the likelihood of ever bringing the shooter to justice is close to zero. But Addison isn't buying that story. He knows his friend -- he's a good kid, loves to read, and is always smiling -- and knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would never mix himself up with any individuals of ill repute. As his request for authorities to look more deeply into the case fall on deaf ears, Addison takes it upon himself to conduct his own investigation in hopes of tracking down the killer but, just as important, proving that his friend wasn't mixed up with bad people.

That first paragraph really sums up the entire review. November Criminals is a bland, slow, purposeless film that sputters through a tiresomely lethargic developmental stage. It takes forever to beat into the audience, and beat Addison down, for that matter, with the idea that nobody is going to listen to what he has to say. It seems about half the film or more is comprised of scene after scene in which Addison's thirst for justice is shot down by those in "authority" over him -- the police, his principal and teachers, his father, even his girlfriend, at times -- brushing his concerns aside because, well, he's a kid, they're adults, and they all know better. The mid-movie stagnation all but kills it, but then there's single clue and a disappointing crucial development that essentially throws out the entire reason for the story to exist. A bit of dark but bland characters and happenings introcuded in the third act cement the movie's legacy as a lame, directionless, none-of-it-really-mattered story that serves only to say that, just maybe, nobody really knows even those to whom they are closest.

Performances are as dry as the rest of the movie. Ansel Elgort, who dazzled in the wonderful Baby Driver, delivers a sputtering, tired portrayal. He mutters and stumbles, even when he works up the courage to to speak up and out at a school assembly. He shows desire, but he shows no spirit. He reluctantly goes through with his quest rather than forcefully work to uncover the truth. The performance reflects the character's malaise, and the clash between his spirited quest for truth and justice and that he can barely look anyone in the eye, especially at the end, just kills the limited momentum and leaves the audience wondering why they invested even a smidgen of time rooting for his pursuit. His romance with Chloë Grace Moretz, who serves little purpose in the movie, is clumsy and awkwardly developed. She announces her desire to sleep with him at the beginning of the movie, wanting to lose her virginity before scooting off to college. The scene allows Gervasi to shoot them from under the covers but serves no discernible purpose to the narrative. Of note, because there's so little to say about the movie, is that this is the second straight Elgort movie (following Baby Driver) in which he plays a teenager who has lost his parents. There seemed to be a mild effort put into the poster, at least, to make the movie look a little bit like Baby Driver, but Elgort, his character dealing with the loss of a parent, and the Sony studio logo are really the only connective tissues.

November Criminals Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

November Criminals was digitally photographed, and Sony's 1080p presentation handles the material fairly well. Colors appear the slightest bit washed out, a touch less than fully saturated and naturally vibrant, but there's enough stability of presentation and richness to what's there to satisfy. Noise creeps into lower light shots, as expected, but black levels largely hold deep. Skin tones appear a touch pale. Details are generally strong, often bordering on excellent. Like was the case with Flatliners, there's simply not a lot of skin imperfections to be found on the lead actors, but all the little visible pores, moles, and general textural qualities are presented with fairly good definition and attention to detail. Clothes and environments likewise find enough complexity to satisfy. This is a good presentation, certainly just another fish in the Blu ocean at this point in the game, but viewers will find little worthy of serious complaint.

November Criminals Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

November Criminals features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Much like the video, everything is in good working order, but the track never makes a statement, never offers any reason to remember it or, on the flip side, to dismiss it. Music is pleasantly rich and wide, whether score or pop songs, finding width, depth, and a solid low end accompaniment. The track releases ever more intensive bass as Addison (I actually had to scroll up to the movie review to see what his name was again...that's how forgettable this movie was) approaches the crime scene. Positive environmental effects help give shape to a couple of scenes, notably one near film's end when croaking frogs, gently falling rain, and distant rolling thunder create an ominous nighttime setting. Dialogue drives most of the movie, and it's clear and well defined with consistent front-center positioning and prioritization.

November Criminals Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

November Criminals contains one extra. Taking Care - Making 'November Criminals' (1080p, 6:53) is a basic EPK that explores story, characters, performances, locations, etc. The disc also includes an assortment of previews for other Sony titles. No DVD or digital versions are included.

November Criminals Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

November Criminals hopefully made for a better book because it made a lousy movie. It's adequately crafted and David Strathairn and Catherine Keener give it a little gravitas, but the story fizzles under the pressure of a largely directionless, far too diluted, slowly developed narrative centered on the death of a character the audience barely knows (he works at a coffee shop, loves to read, is friends with Addison, and seems nice enough...end of story) and follows a character who apparently didn't really know his friend, either. The film offers no significant action, its hero is determined but never shows any spark, and the romance is stilted and pointless. Sony's Blu-ray offers good video and audio. Extras are unsurprisingly slim for a movie as weak as this one. Skip it.