6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Four Newton brothers are a poor farmer family in the 1920s. The oldest of them, Willis, one day realizes that there's no future in the fields and offers his brothers to become a bank robbers. Soon the family agrees. They become very famous robbers, and five years later execute the greatest train robbery in American history.
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Skeet Ulrich, Ethan Hawke, Gail Cronauer, Vincent D'OnofrioPeriod | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Biography | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
We're fixing to make history.
Be sure to hang around when the lights come up and the credits begin to roll. No, The Newton Boys doesn't have a trendy post-credit scene
but instead offers interview clips with the real Newtons, now (then) aged seniors but still spry and all-too-happy to relive their glory days of
blowing up bank
vaults, running from the law, and robbing trains. And they do a much better job of telling their story in a handful of condensed retrospective sound
bytes than does the film that depicts them in their prime. Director Richard Linklater's (Bernie, School of Rock) The Newton Boys isn't an awful movie, but
neither is it a particularly good movie. It handles the basics well enough, but it's a superficial sort of experience with little deep character study or
intimate
detail to be found. It's a low energy telling of the story of high energy history, of would-be interesting people who appear in a story that's all too
straightforward and cinematically uninspired. Best to wait for the real Newtons, for sure.
The boys.
The Newton Boys features an acceptable high definition presentation. Like most Fox catalogues released under the Anchor Bay label, the image proves serviceable if not bland, clearly not a labor of restorative love but a watchable HD picture nonetheless. There's an assortment of light white pops and black speckles over the image. The picture looks a bit artificially sharp, displaying a spiky grain structure throughout. Details are merely adequate. The image fares best with close-ups of period clothing, while wooden boards, natural greens, and skin textures usually come up lacking in complexity. The color palette is unremarkable, but generally effective. There's not much, if any, brilliance -- in fact, one might even call the image slightly dull -- but the palette at least retains a welcome balance and general accuracy. Black levels are usually acceptable, not straying too far either way, while flesh tones, too, are mostly fine if not slightly rosy in some spots. This is no looker, but there's certainly been much, much worse released to Blu-ray.
The Newton Boys' Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack parallels the video quality in that it's not particularly bad, not particularly good. It delivers the basics with acceptable quality but never once finds that next gear into audio goodness. Overall, the track delivers a decent stage presence in all categories. Clarity, too, is acceptable, but certainly not approaching the upper end of the better catalogue releases on the format. Music plays with a serviceable presentation, enjoying decently wide front placement and light surround support. Minor atmospherics -- nighttime insects, general city street din -- is presented fairly but not with much sonic flash. Gunshots, even shotgun blasts, lack much in the way of potency. There's a little more pop and energy in explosions, but not a significant amount. Dialogue does come through clearly enough. Fans won't walk away thinking about the track, for better or for worse. It gets listeners through the film, little more and nothing less.
The Newton Boys contains no extras, and no menu is included. The film begins playback immediately after disc insertion. Optional English SDH subtitles must be switched on or off in-film with the remote control.
The Newton Boys is a serviceably entertaining picture, but it's a fully superficial experience that's made to feel even more shallow when it's upstaged by the real Newton interview clips that roll with the end credits. There's a lifelessness to the movie, despite a quality technical presentation and total era immersion. The cast lacks spunk, the film often finds itself without rhythm, and the experience will leave audiences wanting something a little more satisfying. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of The Newton Boys contains decent video and audio. No extras are available. Rent it.
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Retro VHS Collection
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Target Exclusive 30 mins of Bonus Content
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Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
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