5.8 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.4 |
A writer of gothic mysteries moves into a secluded mansion to write novels. Her plans are changed when she discovers the house is haunted.
Starring: Robin Groves, Christopher Loomis, Michael David Lally, John Carradine, Gloria GrahameHorror | 100% |
Supernatural | 12% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 EX
English: Dolby Digital Mono (Original)
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 2.5 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Am I going completely crazy now?
Horror may be the most fickle and unstable of all film genres, the one that's most likely to churn out any number of movies at any quality interval
imaginable, from the seminal all-time classics like Halloween to the latest watered- and dumbed-down PG-13 atrocities that are neither scary nor original. It's a scattershot (or
scatterbrained, as the case may be) crapshoot process in sifting through the pile in search of that gem or even that watch-and-forget Saturday night
time killer. For every under-the-radar surprise, there are a dozen movies like The Nesting that are almost
inexplicably
bad in every major category, whether strength of story, quality of acting, directorial craftsmanship, pacing, and on and on. The Nesting is
one
of the most tedious and tiresome films of the entire 1980s Horror landscape. Granted it faces some steep competition as a member of a decade that
was arguably defined by its excess of Horror pictures good, bad, and everything else that filled in and overflowed every last square inch of middle
ground in between, but even the
worst of the Jason, Freddy, Pinhead, Michael, and Chucky franchise movies, not to mention even standalone fare like Shocker, prove vastly
superior to this. Sure The Nesting is low-rent sort of fare, but a decent story doesn't cost anymore than one's time behind a keyboard and a
little imagination.
"And...and...and I have flashbacks of all those movie villains who fall to their deaths!"
The Nesting sets up shop on Blu-ray with a middling, uneven 1080p transfer. Though the image retains a fair bit of grain, it's also flat and lifeless. Facial details are nearly nonexistent, appearing overly smooth and soft. Fortunately, fine detailing elsewhere fares well enough as evidenced by the way the transfer picks up the textures of a woven quilt in one scene or the scratchy, dusty wooden floor of the house later on in one low-level shot. Unfortunately, softness is a constant problem, both center-frame and around the edges. Colors fail to impress but aren't too terribly dull or washed out. Color gradations are poor, with many scenes showcasing skin tones that harshly jump from shade to shade rather than transition naturally with the light. Black crush also plagues darker scenes, of which there are several. This isn't a complete disaster of a transfer by any means, but it doesn't meet the same standards of excellence that fans have come to expect from Blue Underground.
The Nesting features a full-fledged DTS-HD MA 7.1 lossless soundtrack, but the vast majority of information remains firmly entrenched in the front speakers. Dialogue is fairly shallow and not particularly loud, lacking the sort of natural clarity found in most lossless tracks. Music is dull and lifeless, absent much vigor until some greater energy and spacing becomes evident during a few of the more intensive musical cues, such as one action scene in chapter twelve. Still, the track is somewhat sloppy, with highs playing as screechy and scratchy with regularity. Natural ambience -- chirping birds, for instance -- doesn't really escape the front speakers. There is a smattering of surround usage near the end of the film, but the vast majority is front-heavy to be sure. This is a suitable listen and a fair companion to a well-below-average film.
The Nesting arrives on Blu-ray with only a scant amount of supplemental content.
The Nesting is probably the worst movie Blue Underground's released so far on Blu-ray. It's about as ineffective as a Horror movie can be. There's no atmosphere, the direction ranges from stale to desperate, the plot is weak, and the acting is subpar. Unfortunately, the Blu-ray disc more or less matches the film. The technical presentation is below par and the extras are weak. Kudos to the studio for getting this movie out there -- the more the merrier -- but even die hard Blue Underground completists might want to think twice about adding this one to the collection. Skip it.
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