Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Red Heat Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 4, 2010

Walter Hill's "Red Heat" (1988) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the featurettes "Arnold Schwarzenegger - The Man Who Raised Hollywood" and "The Politic Context of Red Heat", as well as the film's original theatrical trailer. In English, with imposed English subtitles only for the Russian dialog spoken throughout the film. Region-Free.

Spiky hair and muscles

Soviet cop Ivan Danko (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Conan the Barbarian) is sent to Chicago to extradite a notorious Georgia-born drug dealer, Viktor 'Rosta' Rostavili (Ed O'Ross, The Harsh Life of Veronica Lambert), who has been arrested by the local authorities. After landing in Chicago, Danko is teamed up with Ridzik (James Belushi, Retroactive), a local detective, who would assist him with the extradition process.

Rostavili manages to escape his captors, and Danko and Ridzik immediately go after him. While looking for the drug dealer, the two cops manage to seriously upset a group of local gangsters, and wreck havoc in Chicago. Eventually, however, they also warm up to each other.

Danko’s bosses appear and warn him that when he returns to the U.S.S.R. he will have a lot of explaining to do because Rostavili’s extradition should have been a piece of cake. Upset that the case is generating more attention than it should, Danko’s bosses urge him to take care of business and get the first plane back to the U.S.S.R.

Danko and Ridzik meet Rostavili’s American wife, Catherine 'Cat' Manzetti (Gina Gershon, Bound), who offers to tell them how to get to her husband if they promise to let her go. Danko agrees and tracks down Rostavili, but Manzetti is punished for her cooperation. Danko and Ridzik meet Rostavili one more time, at a bus station in downtown Chicago, and this time around manage to take care of him.

Walter Hill’s Red Heat is a fine, mostly entertaining buddy-cop film with a few interesting but now feeling notably dated political overtones. Its narrative is fairly straightforward and riddled with clichés about dysfunctional cops and gangsters who were quite popular amongst film producers during the 80s.

Like the rest of the films Hill shot during the 80s, Red Heat effectively blends violence with humor. Many of Belushi’s colorful one-liners, for instance, still feel quite fresh. Schwarzenegger’s strong accent and surprisingly smart jabs at capitalism are rather entertaining as well, though it has to be said that he most definitely does not look or sound Russian.

There are a couple of very good cameos in Red Heat. Even though her time in front of the camera is limited, Gershon is excellent as Rostavili’s scared to death wife. Most male viewers will probably agree that she also looks incredibly sexy.

Laurence Fishburne (Hoodlum) also has a small role in Red Heat. He plays a somewhat cocky Chicago detective who isn’t terribly impressed with Schwarzenegger’s character. Throughout the film, he wears a pair of not so fashionable glasses and has a couple of great one-liners. Like Gershon, however, his time in front of the camera is limited.

Technically, Red Head does not break any new boundaries, but it does not disappoint either. Cinematographer Matthew F. Leonetti’s (Johnny Handsome, Strange Days) lensing is competent, serving the film’s style and pacing rather well. Hill’s tech crew, however, should have been a lot more careful with the locations for some of the key scenes in the film as palm trees are typically very difficult to spot in Chicago.

Red Heat Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Walter Hill's Red Heat arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Optimum Home Entertainment.

This high-definition transfer has been struck from a dated source - there is plenty of machine noise on it that affects clarity and fine object detail, and mild to moderate edge-enhancement is often easy to spot. I also noticed a couple of instances of mild color-bleeding; during a few scenes very early into the film, greens and reds are rather problematic. The good news is that when the machine noise is not too prominent fine film grain is actually quite easy to spot, and some of the darker close-ups, for instance, look surprisingly good. Finally, I noticed a few tiny flecks popping up here and there but did not see any large cuts, stains, or marks to report in this review.

Compared to the Region-A Blu-ray release of Red Heat, courtesy of Lionsgate Films, Optimum Home Entertainment's Blu-ray release looks notably stronger - it is not as heavily filtered, detail - even with the machine noise - is much better, and contrast levels far more consistent. In motion, Optimum Home Entertainment's high-definition transfer also conveys much better depth. To sum it all up, if you wish to have the best presentation of Red Heat currently available on the market, I encourage you to consider purchasing Optimum Home Entertainment's Blu-ray release.

Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu.

Red Heat Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Optimum Home Entertainment have provided English subtitles only for the Russian dialog heard throughout the film. Additionally, they are player-generated and cannot be turned off. Optional English subtitles for the English dialog are not provided.

The English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is pleasing. The bass is potent, the rear channels not overly active but surprisingly effective, and the high-frequencies not overdone. Many of the shootouts, for instance, are quite loud, and the massive crashes at the end of the film really crisp. The dialog is clean, stable and easy to follow. There are no balance issues with James Horner's music score either. Finally, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, or hissings to report in this review.

Red Heat Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: Some of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc are encoded in PAL. Therefore, if you reside in North America, or another region where PAL is not supported, you must have a Region-Free player capable of converting PAL to NTSC, or a TV set capable of receiving native PAL data, in order to view them.

The Politic Context of Red Heat - Dave Saunders, author of "Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Movies", discusses Red Heat and its production history. In English, not subtitled. (10 min, 1080i).

Arnold Schwarzenegger - The Man Who Raised Hollywood - a long and very informative documentary feature focusing on the current Governor of California and his transformation from a famous bodybuilder into a famous movie star. A number of different directors share their thoughts about Schwarzenegger and the type of films he did during the years. In English and French, with optional English subtitles for the French portions. (16 min, 1080i).

Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for the film. (3 min, PAL).

Red Heat Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you are planning to add Walter Hill's Red Heat to your library, I strongly suggest that you avoid Liongsgate Films' Region-A Blu-ray release and instead opt for Optimum Home Entertainment's Blu-ray release. While the high-definition transfer used by the British distributors has a fair share of minor technical issues, it is leaps and bounds better than the one used by Lionsgate Films. RECOMMENDED.