8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
When a dizzying robbery takes place in the Orthodox Jewish diamond district, a flawless 86-carat gem, the size of an infant's fist, is lifted in the snatch. Taking it to London, the diamond's thief and courier, Franky Four Fingers arrives in the city as a stopover en route to New York to deliver the huge diamond to his bigwig crime boss, Avi. But because Franky can't resist temptation and London is a town with its share of illegal trade, a small crowd of miscreants and malefactors eventually ends up chasing each other and the whereabouts of the diamond. These include: Doug the Head, a jeweler who pretends he's Jewish because it's good for business; Boris the Blade, a Russian gangster with a deserved reputation for being impossible to kill; Bullet Tooth Tony, a legendary hard guy and Brick Top, perhaps the scariest of the lot.
Starring: Benicio del Toro, Dennis Farina, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade SerbedzijaCrime | 100% |
Thriller | 66% |
Dark humor | 61% |
Heist | 33% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Portuguese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Portuguese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
BD-Live
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
It's just that. Just a story.
Snatch is shorthand for "convoluted plot, unintelligible dialects, quirky styling,
superficially gratifying, and wildly entertaining filmmaking." Indeed, Guy Ritchie's 2000 follow-up to
the fan-favorite Lock, Stock and Two Smoking
Barrels follows a familiar formula, delivering a picture that's not exactly coherent but not
particularly difficult to follow on a base level. Fortunately, there's little to Snatch beyond
the surface, making it easy to digest despite the many obstacles that keep it from being more
readily accessible in a traditional narrative style. Snatch interconnects two major plot lines,
neither of which are of any moral, spiritual, emotional, or otherwise philosophically important
structure or value; instead, the film cares only about the visceral aspects of the violent, corrupt, and
complex world it weaves, a world where anything goes, a tone that's reflected in Ritchie's haphazard
and highly kinetic but wonderfully effective visual approach to the material.
Definitely not a replica.
This Blu-ray release of Snatch delivers a technically proficient 1080p, 1.85:1-framed transfer that's not particularly appealing from a visual perspective but does seem to remain true to the film's intended appearance. The most prevailing aspect of the image is the muted color palette, the film seemingly taking on strong hints of greens, grays, and browns with brighter hues somewhat diminished in presence. As a result, Snatch is a particularly bland, dim, dreary picture that won't become the latest showroom floor demonstration disc, but it does seem to retain the filmmakers' original intent, which proves vastly more important than pure visual eye candy. As a result of the dulled color palette and generally overcast, gloomy tone, fine detail never immediately comes to the forefront, but the transfer reveals a good deal of visual niceties in context. Wrinkles and seams in clothing; facial characteristics; textures as seen on exterior building façades and streets; and general grime, wear, and tear on some of the more run-down objects and locales scattered about the movie are nicely presented and fit in well with the film's overreaching visual tone. Black levels are sufficiently reproduced and flesh tones are reflective of the picture's naturally dour appearance. Rounded out by a pleasantly subtle layer of film grain, Sony's Blu-ray transfer of Snatch leaves little to be desired within the confines of Guy Ritchie's intended look for the film.
Snatch arrives on Blu-ray with a sound DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This presentation is highlighted by a loud yet concise and enthralling musical presentation; clear and precise throughout the entire range, the film's soundtrack blares from the speakers during many high-energy scenes but does so with strong precision that accentuates the film and excites the aural senses. In addition, the track delivers a rather hefty low-end extension as part of the musical accompaniment, and several sound effects -- booming shots from Bullet Tooth Tony's .50-caliber Desert Eagle handgun for example -- enjoy a good supportive rumble. The track also features solid ambience and a few decent directional effects; the interior of a getaway van after the opening diamond heist is accompanied by various sounds of rattling and rolling as the vehicle lumbers down the road, and the climactic boxing sequence delivers something of a surreal experience as the fight -- and accompanying sound effects -- moves about the listening area in seamless conjunction with the on-screen imagery. Snatch isn't a particularly booming or full-on sonic assault picture, but the track helps energize the movie and this DTS offering does all that's asked of it. Rounded out by strong dialogue reproduction that captures every deliberately hard-to-decipher syllable with ease, Snatch makes for another solid soundtrack effort from Sony.
Snatch debuts on Blu-ray with several bonus features. First up is a commentary track with Writer/Director Guy Ritchie and Producer Matthew Vaughn. A surprisingly dry affair, the track plays out in stark contrast to the high energy of Snatch. It's a procedural track that covers a spectrum of technical aspects with some good insights into the acting, story, editing, and other surrounding pieces of the Snatch experience. The 'Snatch' Cutting Room is an interactive feature that allows users to cobble together their own series of scenes from the film; users can edit scenes, add music, title their creation, and share it with the world via the disc's BD-Live page. Revolving around a game of chess between Jason Statham and Guy Ritchie, Making 'Snatch' (480p, 24:42) is a decent piece that features plenty of behind-the-scenes snippets and interview clips with the cast as they discuss numerous aspects of the film. The set also features six deleted scenes (480p) with optional Ritchie/Vaughn commentary; storyboard comparisons (480p) for three scenes: Introduction of Characters, Avi Goes to London, and The Big Fight; a Video Photo Gallery (480p, 5:16); three TV spots (480p, 0:32 each); and the film's teaser (480p, 0:53) and theatrical (1080p, 2:02) trailers. Also included is BD-Live and MovieIQ functionality.
With every cockeyed element coming together for a somewhat indecipherable but altogether entertaining film with plenty of replay value, Snatch is not only a creature of its own definition but a film unique in most every regard, a wonderful change of pace in a sea of mediocrity and copycat pictures. Director Guy Ritchie lends to the film just the right pace and tone to allow it to overcome a plethora of otherwise damaging elements, and the ensemble cast to a man delivers a collection of extraordinary performances. Sony's Blu-ray release of this modern classic does the film justice. Boasting a strong video transfer within the confines of the film's intentionally muted tone, a solid lossless soundtrack, and a few good extras, Snatch comes strongly recommended.
1998
2012
2008
30th Anniversary Edition
1992
2-Disc Special Edition
2008
2005
1997
1994
2006
2015
2004
2008
Whole Lotta Sole
2011
2012
St George's Day
2012
Uncut Version
2000
2010
2012
1991
2006