5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.1 |
A maverick skydiver and a former KGB agent team up to stop the Russian mafia from stealing gold.
Starring: Charlie Sheen, Nastassja Kinski, James Gandolfini, Christopher McDonald, Melvin Van PeeblesThriller | 100% |
Romance | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Mystery | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
It's a rush.
Consider the top names in 1990s Action and titles like Speed and Face/Off probably spring immediately to mind, maybe even Under Siege, but certainly not Terminal Velocity. No, chances
are
that audiences -- if they even remember the movie -- might instead instinctually lump it in with throwaway junk like Speed 2: Cruise
Control and Drop Zone. The truth is that Terminal Velocity cruises to an
acceptable middle ground, the film a surprisingly robust, fast-paced, visually exciting, and nicely directed little flick that's held back only by a fairly
bland
story and indifferent acting. Written by the underrated and venerable David Twohy (writer, Pitch Black, The Arrival, The Fugitive) and starring Charlie Sheen, Terminal Velocity
delivers action scenes
that get the adrenaline pushed up off the charts and the blood flowing freely, all the while the picture competently maneuvers through the filler in
those moments meant to slow the heart
rate back to normalcy, but only long enough until the next spectacular high-flying sequence may jump it back up.
It's a bird...it's a plane...wait...it IS a plane! Or is it?
Terminal Velocity's 1080p Blu-ray transfer doesn't define catalogue greatness, but Mill Creek's presentation provides an adequate image of a title nearing twenty years of age. Grain is extremely light at times, hard to spot at others, but the film never looks too worked over or smoothed out. Details remain good, though certainly the best the transfer has to offer in terms of facial and clothing intricacies pale next to the finest 1080p images. In fact, clarity isn't quite consistent, and the image goes noticeably soft at times. Colors are even and generally pleasant. Black levels, however, range from displaying evident crush to nicely balanced, though they're often accompanied by a distracting field of noise. The image surprisingly handles the early nighttime fog very well, but troublesome banding does creep in from time to time thereafter. The print yields only minimal wear and tear. This is an upper-end transfer amongst the very low-priced Mill Creek catalogue releases.
Mill Creek's DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack in support of Terminal Velocity delivers a consistently big, involved, cinematic sort of audio presentation. In the film's earliest shots, wind noise gusts about with sufficient immersion, and a plane booms overhead from back to front and low to the ground, the sensation nearly enough to really rattle the listener. Heavy ambient effects impress all the way through. For instance, the rattle and buzz inside the prop plane as heard before Chris leaps to her death(?) impressively places the listener on board. Music is adequately smooth and nicely spaced; a high-octane Rock tune brings quite a bit of raw energy to the soundstage, but not at the expense of clarity. Within chapter six is the most sonically-intense sequence in the film. Gunfire realistically pops from every corner, impacts in the others, and a large explosion rocks the listening area with good bass. Dialogue is smooth and center-focused; no problems there. This track isn't the clearest or the most natural, but it's a fairly exciting, high-yield sonic presentation that does well in pulling the listening audience into the movie.
The only supplement to be found on this Blu-ray release of Terminal Velocity is the film's original theatrical trailer (480p, 2:34).
Terminal Velocity delivers some thrilling aerial stunt work but otherwise slogs through a fairly routine script. But the movie's hallmark Action scenes are reason enough to watch. The rest of the picture flows nicely enough, even if it's little more than filler and time killer until the movie can get back up into the air. At its core, Terminal Velocity is an amusement park ride come to life, but the long lines are replaced by relatively flat characters and stretches of routine exposition. Still, this is a ride worth taking at least once. Mill Creek's Blu-ray release of Terminal Velocity features adequate video and audio. This bargain-priced disc contains no noteworthy extras. Recommended considering the impulse-buy price point.
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