Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

The Midnight Meat Train Blu-ray Movie Review

All aboard for this grisly Horror experience.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 12, 2009

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...

Struggling photographer Leon (Bradley Cooper, The Rocker) is looking for his big break. It comes when his girlfriend Maya (Leslie Bibb, Sex and Death 101) arranges an appointment for him with art gallery curator Susan Hoff (Brooke Shields), who sees potential in Leon's work but urges him to photograph bolder, grittier material. On the hunt for the perfect shot, Leon encounters a group of thugs harassing a model in a city subway station. He manages to photograph the attack and the assailants while simultaneously scaring them off. Hoff is impressed with his work and asks of him two additional shoots that capture a similar mood and promises him inclusion in her next show. Leon then photographs a mysterious, well-dressed man (Vinnie Jones, Hell Ride), briefly confronts him, and soon thereafter recognizes his unique ring as an object in one of the shots taken as the model he rescued entered a subway car. When he learns the model has disappeared, Leon begins an obsessive hunt to discover the identity of the well-dressed man and, perhaps, find the missing link in a string of unsolved disappearances that have plagued the city for years.

All hail Vinne Jones. The actor delivers a stalwart performance in The Midnight Meat Train, one that, if there is any justice, will be remembered as one of the finer portrayals of a villain in Horror movie lore. Jones's previous work in movies like The Condemned and the made-for-television Mysterious Island (both films featuring the actor as a villain, no less) have been fine, but he demonstrates another level here. He and the character he portrays is in every frame focused, imposing, frightening, stoic, and relentless. He's the perfect representation of a killer, and as his back story is revealed throughout the movie and in the final minutes in particular, the performance takes on another level of excellence as he has clearly embodied the actions of a man in the situation he finds himself in. On the other hand, the remainder of the cast fails to match Jones's Herculean performance. Bradley Cooper turns in something of a routine performance, easily besting Joshua Jackson's effort in another recent photography-centric horror offering (Shutter), but not really distinguishing himself or his character. Perhaps his performance is lost under Jones's gargantuan effort, but whatever the case, it's solid at best, forgettable at worst, but either way, clearly standing aside and allowing Jones to steal the spotlight. Leslie Bibb and Brooke Shields are also solid in their performances. Bibb's character is fairly transparent, and her role in the film seems clear from the get-go. Bibb and Cooper share fairly good on-screen chemistry and enjoy a nicely developed and honest relationship.

Perhaps the true co-star of the film is the slaughter wrought by Jones's character. The Midnight Meat Train features scene after scene of incredibly violent and unforgiving gore. The film sports plenty of on-set special effects, including buckets of blood and several bodies, all of which appears convincing, deliciously gruesome, and appropriately disgusting. Unfortunately, several crucial scenes feature easily-identifiable computer-generated effects that don't mesh with the prosthetics and other on-set props. One scene in particular, featuring a victim's eyes shooting from their sockets towards the camera in slow-motion after a smack to the back of the head, comes off as slightly less impressive than would a more practical effect, though the scene does manage to grab audience attention and stand out as remarkably disgusting and novel in its presentation. Thankfully, the computer effects don't hinder the movie all that much, but they don't offer the same visceral impact of the prosthetics. The Midnight Meat Train also features the occasional moment of high-tension and revels in a few nicely done twists and turns. The movie unravels at just the right pace, offering a snippet of information here and a hint of what may be to come there. It doesn't take much to figure out how the movie will end, but what leads up to that ending is shocking, and the journey overshadows the rather predictable ending. The Midnight Meat Train is not for the timid; this is a hardcore Horror extravaganza through and through. Proceed with caution, but please, proceed. It's well worth it!

The Midnight Meat Train Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.