6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.1 |
When Leon Kaufman's latest body of work--a collection of provocative, nighttime studies of the city and its inhabitants--earns the struggling photographer interest from prominent art gallerist Susan Hoff, she propels him to get grittier and show the darker side of humanity for his upcoming debut at her downtown art space. Believing he's finally on track for success, Leon's obsessive pursuit of dark subject matter leads him into the path of a serial killer, Mahogany, the subway murderer who stalks late-night commuters--ultimately butchering them in the most gruesome ways imaginable. With his concerned girlfriend Maya fearing for his life, Leon's relentless fascination with Mahogany lures him further and further into the bowels of the subways and ultimately into an abyss of pure evil--inadvertently pulling Maya right along with him.
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Leslie Bibb, Brooke Shields, Vinnie Jones, Roger BartHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 68% |
Mystery | 17% |
Crime | 9% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English, English SDH, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Now serve, as we all do, without question.
It's seems to be a rarity these days, but The Midnight Meat Train is a good old-fashioned
throwback Horror movie that looks and feels as gritty, grimy, dreadful, imposing, depressing, and
hopeless as the best of the genre's most hardcore offerings of yore. Penned by Clive Barker (Hellraiser), the story is
not short of excessive violence and is punctuated by plenty of grisly images and smart storytelling.
Directed by Ryûhei Kitamura (Versus), the film is atmospheric, foreboding, stylish, and
tense. The
combination
makes for both deliciously entertaining and disturbingly graphic and terrifying cinema. The
Midnight Meat Train is a basic, no-frills movie that piles on the gore; develops its characters,
particularly its villain, through their actions and deeds rather than words (literally, in one case); and
features only a
minimal amount of superfluous filler material.
Red Jell-O...yum...
Lionsgate presents The Midnight Meat Train on Blu-ray with a highly impressive 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. The film's primary set, the interior of the train, is given a cold, steely look, with grays and blacks and blues the predominant hues inside, with, of course, plenty of red blood splattered all over the place that adds the most color to the scenes. The film sees other locales, too, presented with a warmer palette, but many of them still feature gray walls and dark corners, punctuated by streams of bright light flowing into the shot through hazy windows. Film grain dominates most every scene, spiking over the darker shots but maintaining a heavy presence that may not please viewers looking for clean, sparkling high definition imagery. However, the grain lends to the film a gritty, depressing look that adds to the wonderful atmosphere while also providing it with a nicely done cinematic look and feel. Detail is rather high throughout the film. Human faces enjoy fine amounts of texture -- lines and facial hair stand out nicely. Likewise, fine detail at street level is amazing; a scene in chapter five featuring Leon following the killer down a littered alley looks excellent, with every object standing out nicely and well defined. There isn't much to be seen on the intentionally bland-looking train interior, save for the grisly details of the torn flesh and blood that covers the floor, windows, sides, and seats of the train. Flesh tones are generally accurate in appearance. Black levels are rock solid, whether those that make up the nighttime sky or the dark and cavernous insides of the subway tunnel. This is another fantastic effort from Lionsgate.
The Midnight Meat Train carves up Blu-ray with an active DTS-HD MA 7.1 lossless soundtrack. This is a dynamic soundtrack with effects that swoop across the soundstage, particularly during the scenes featuring the train roaring down the tracks. The sound emanates from every speaker, filling the soundstage with the loud, rattling, clunky sounds of the subway. Outside the train, the soundtrack enjoys strong dialogue reproduction and plenty of subtle sound effects to compliment most every scene. Chapter three, for example, features a scene in a police station. Here, listeners will hear plenty of ambience coming from every speaker and firmly placing the listener in the scene. The track succeeds because it neither overemphasizes nor underutilizes any one sound; it's a harmonious reproduction that finds nice balance to immerse the listener in every scene but not take them out of the experience with an overstated or otherwise phony sounding mix. Of course, the track is completed by plenty of grisly sound effects that are well placed and prioritized in the mix. The Midnight Meat Train is another in a growing list of fine soundtracks from Lionsgate.
The Midnight Meat Train boards Blu-ray with only a few supplemental features.
Headlining this package is an audio commentary with Author Clive Barker and Director Ryûhei
Kitamura. The track is honest and informative, shying away from describing the action on-screen
and instead focusing on the behind-the-scenes information fans crave. The pair discuss the
history of the project, with Barker sharing how his own fears played into the writing of the
story and the difficulty of translating the finer points of the plot to a workable script. They go on
to discuss the differences between this edition and the (limited) theatrical release, bemoaning the
fact that it was cut, as well as working towards a candid discussion of how the studio handled the
film's theatrical release. Kudos to the pair for their honesty, and kudos to Lionsgate for including
this all-too-candid track and doing justice by its Blu-ray release. For its amazing insight and
honesty, this is an absolute must-listen commentary.
Clive Barker: The Man Behind the Myth (480p, 14:54) is a nice piece that features the
famed Horror author discussing the original work in the first volume of his Books of Blood
and goes on to speak about the journey of bringing a faithful adaptation of the story to the big
screen. The piece also delves deep into Barker's passion for painting. Next is Mahogany's
Tale (480p, 5:12), a piece focusing on the creation of "a new horror icon." Several cast and
crew, including Vinnie Jones, share their thoughts on what makes the character, and
the film,
effective. There is also a glance at his "tools of the trade." Anatomy of a Murder Scene
(480p, 9:17) looks at the making of one of the film's most gruesome scenes. Finally, 1080p
trailers for
The Midnight Meat Train (2:03), My Bloody Valentine 3D, The
Haunting in Connecticut, Saw V, Cabin Fever, and The Descent are
available.
The Midnight Meat Train is a welcome diversion from the plethora of tame and boring horror movies of the past several years. It may be one of the better horror movies of the decade, and it features Vinnie Jones in perhaps his best performance as arguably one of the top Horror villains in some time (and if this performance is any indication, he'd make an excellent Terminator). As the title implies, it's all about blood and guts on a speeding subway; it immediately engenders a sense of barbarity and gore aplenty, and the film doesn't disappoint. Hardcore genre fans will love the film's throwback style and attention to detail and story. The heroes play second fiddle to the villain and gore, though not to the detriment of the film. Lionsgate has done it again, producing a disc with top-notch video and audio presentations. The disc is a bit light in extras from a quantity standpoint, but certainly not in quality; however, the movie and the technical specs are enough to put the disc over the top. The Midnight Meat Train comes enthusiastically recommended to hardcore Horror fans.
Director's Cut
2005
2013
Unrated
2005
2010
Director's Cut
2007
2006
Uncut
2013
Limited Edition
1980
1981
2012
2011
2004
Unrated Director's Cut
2006
20th Anniversary Edition
2003
2009
Unrated Collector's Edition
2007
Unrated Edition
2008
2012
Uncut Edition
2009
Unrated Director's Cut
2008