Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

The Signal Blu-ray Movie Review

"You might want to ask yourself: did I find what I was looking for?"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown December 21, 2014

As heady sci-fi with a killer twist goes, you could certainly do a whole lot worse than The Signal, a snazzy little slice of big-idea science fiction with blockbuster ambitions, indie sensibilities and FX know-how. But second-time feature film director William Eubank and his co-writers, Carlyle Eubank and David Frigerio, may have been often a bit more than they can chew. There are times The Signal feels like three distinct productions, and the transitions from project to project aren't as smooth as they could be. Even so, there's an eerie, at-times thrilling sense of mystery and discovery to the film's layered loftiness and a terrific payoff waiting for those willing to ignore its flaws and stick around to see what all the fuss is about.

Three MIT college students -- Nic Eastmen (Brenton Thwaites), girlfriend Haley Peterson (Olivia Cooke) and best friend Jonah Breck (Beau Knapp) -- on a road trip across the Southwest take a detour while tracking a computer genius who's already hacked into MIT and exposed security faults. The trio find themselves drawn to an isolated area. Suddenly everything goes dark. Then, just as suddenly, Nic regains consciousness to find himself quarantined in a government research facility with little to no answers as to what happened or where Haley and Jonah might be. His only connection to the outside world is Dr. Wallace Damon (Lawrence Fishburne), though Nic soon begins to doubt Damon's intentions.

The Signal delivers a bigger, slicker, more engrossing film than its $3 million budget might suggest. Thwaites, Cooke and Knapp aren't exactly unknowns, but their faces are fresh enough to render their performances a pleasant surprise. Fishburne lends clout and experience to the project, David Lanzenberg's cinematography and Nima Fakhrara's score infuse the film with a sophistication small genre pics rarely boast, and the script has plenty going for it, including a fantastic third act that ventures beyond the walls of the sterile research facility, into the deserts of New Mexico. The game changes fast and frequently too, with Nic racing to adapt to several startling developments which require him to make a series of increasingly difficult decisions and sacrifices. Cursing the character with muscular dystrophy isn't just a gimmick either; it's crucial to both his arc as a bewildered, vulnerable protagonist and the truth and nature of his circumstances as each revelation comes to light.

The opening minutes are perhaps the film's weakest, toying with found footage-isms Eubank and Lanzenberg quickly and thankfully abandon. The move from the research facility to the wider world is a bit rocky as well, although not nearly as rocky during repeat viewings (which not only hold up, but improve). There's also a manufactured quality to the ambiguity the filmmakers employ; with secrecy being prioritized over everything, including the script's internal logic. Still, for every misstep there's an impressive stride, for every stumble a leap, for every missed opportunity a greater, grander peek behind the curtain. This is low-budget filmmaking done right, and the sort of diamond in the rough you hope to stumble across via RedBox or VOD (yet so often can't seem to find).

The Signal Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Signal features a striking 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation with very few distractions. A bit of noise creeps into darker scenes, particularly when Nic, Haley and Jonah first track the strange signal to its source, but each instance traces back to the film's photography, nothing more. Colors are convincing and carefully saturated, skintones are natural and lifelike, and black levels are quite satisfying. Detail delivers as well, with crisp, clean edge definition, rewarding fine textures and revealing delineation. And with no ringing, aliasing or compression anomalies to report, there aren't really any complaints to level against the encode.

The Signal Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The confines of the research facility, the tightness of the examination rooms, and the emptiness of the desert are captured perfectly thanks to another excellent DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track from Universal. Distant machines, hallway chatter and the low, omnipresent drone of air filtration dwell believably within every inch of the facility, while each element is embraced and distributed by an exceedingly immersive, 360-degree soundfield. Rear speaker activity is assertive and engaging, without anything in the way of front-heaviness or prioritization mishaps. LFE output is restrained when restraint is called for and unleashed with a remarkable fury and ferocity the moment things begin to go terribly wrong for Nic and his friends. Dialogue remains clear and intelligible at all times, without floating above the soundscape or being buried beneath it. And Nima Fakhrara's score is incorporated into the mix deliberately and impeccably. Ultimately, if you enjoy The Signal, you'll undoubtedly come away appreciating the impact and precision of its AV presentation.

The Signal Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audo Commentary: Director/co-writer William Eubank and co-writers/consulting producers Carlyle Eubank and David Frigerio deliver a largely technical but no less interesting scene-by-scene commentary, touching on everything from the genesis of the story to the film's casting process, performances, cinematography, FX, pacing, tone, influences and more.


• Deleted/Extended/Alternate Scenes (HD, 10 minutes): Though hit-or-miss on the whole, the seven scenes in this small collection of cuts and trims are worth sampling. Just be prepared for some redundancy.


• Behind The Signal (HD, 10 minutes): Standard making-of fare. Worth a watch, despite the fact that the filmmakers' audio commentary is far more extensive and revealing.


• Brilliant! (HD, 1 minutes): An outtake courtesy of Laurence Fishburne.

The Signal Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Signal isn't revolutionary, but what it does, it does extremely well. While there are a few glaring flaws (most of which stick out a bit more with each repeat viewing), the ambitious low-budget genre pic is better than most high-dollar sci-fi blockbusters, even in terms of its FX; not too shabby considering the film's humble roots and production limitations. And Universal's Blu-ray release? Even stronger, with a terrific video presentation, an enveloping DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, and a solid complement of special features. Worth renting? Sure. But it's also worth a blind buy, so long as you don't set your expectations too high.