6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
A female WWII pilot traveling with top secret documents on a B-17 Flying Fortress encounters an evil presence on board the flight.
Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Nick Robinson, Callan Mulvey, Taylor John Smith, Beulah KoaleHorror | 100% |
War | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Intervening events and a general sense of ADHD on the part of news and/or gossip consuming readers may have wiped it off the veritable front page, but in mid 2019 Max Landis found himself on the receiving end of several claims from quite a few women that he had been abusive in various relationships. As gonzo as it often is, Shadow in the Cloud may be Landis’ apology of sorts, since the film, which was co-written by Landis and director Roseanne Liang, features a plucky female World War II aviator named Maude Garrett (Chloë Grace Moretz) who is treated rather shabbily by a bunch of male flyers when she boards a plane bound for Samoa at the last minute with claims of being on a secret mission. Shadow in the Cloud actually begins with a supposed vintage cartoon documenting a harried air mechanic who is being harassed by a “gremlin”, which a stentorian narrator informs the character is simply a figment of his own mind, and a symbol of his own potential carelessness when attending to the maintenance of a combat bound airplane. That turns out to be a clue that Shadow in the Cloud is going to be a rather bizarre mash up of various ideas, and if the melding is not always completely successful, Shadow in the Cloud is weirdly fascinating in its own unusual way, and it certainly gives Moretz one of the strongest showcases she’s had, since she’s on screen virtually by herself for the vast running time of the feature.
Shadow in the Cloud is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Vertical Entertainment and Redbox with an AVC encoded 1080p (mostly) in 2.39:1 (as seen in screenshot 5, a brief introductory cartoon is closer to Academy ratio). I haven't been able to find any authoritative information on what cameras were utilized or what resolution the DI was. The "practical" part of this presentation is often quite inviting, though much of the film is swathed in interesting if slightly sickly looking greens and yellows, interspersed at times with more radiant reds and purples, as Maude has to endure being shut away in the increasingly precarious Sperry ball turret. Detail on things like Moretz's hair or even the smudged metallic interior of the turret can be quite precise looking. The overarching dim lighting of so much of the film doesn't always support consistent excellence in fine detail levels. Unfortunately, the biggest drawback presentationally may be some almost laughable looking CGI. While it seems like Weta did a relatively commendable job with the gremlin, I kind of jokingly wonder if they blew their entire budget on that effect, since so much else, including shots of the "outside" that Maude spies through her little turret window are beyond soft and almost as cartoonish as the opening sequence. Some of what I'm assuming is greenscreen material, notably the long sequence with Maude outside of the plane, also shows its seams pretty readily.
Shadow in the Cloud features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that has a lot of pluses, as well as one potential minus. Despite so much of the film taking place in the Sperry ball turret, there's good attention paid to both the claustrophobic confines of that space, but also things like the comm channel Maude listens to the guys on and "external" noises like the sudden scary first attack by the gremlin. Later, both the advent of Japanese fighters and Maude's own "adventures" outside of the plane offer some good placement of ambient environmental effects as well as bursts of LFE. The one potential minus is the arguably off putting score, which is filled with technobeat type material that just seems at odds with the film on any number of levels. Optional English subtitles are available.
There are no supplementary features of any kind included on this Blu-ray disc.
Is Shadow in the Cloud completely, absolutely preposterous? No doubt. But I for one kind of actually (grudgingly?) admired it for that very reason, though its increasing preponderance of absurd plot developments may actually ultimately work against its innovative qualities. Technical merits are generally solid for those considering a purchase.
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