Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		1.5

Those Who Wish Me Dead Blu-ray Movie Review

Smoke and mirrors.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III August 6, 2021

Taylor Sheridan's Those Who Wish Me Dead depicts Angelina Jolie as a "smoke jumper" -- an elite firefighter trained to combat wildfires -- and that's not even the worst thing about it. This is an action film with missing teeth, a thriller with poor pacing, and a drama with few compelling characters. It plays oddly, feels cheap, and had no real through-line that makes audiences want to keep watching intently. I did anyway, because that's my job, but anyone coming into this with high expectations is bound to be disappointed. In short, it makes Chain Reaction look like The Fugitive.

And though it technically shouldn't feel overlong at 100 minutes, Those Who Wish Me Dead's stop-and-start momentum holds the former position more than the latter Immediately, we're introduced to smokejumper Hannah Faber (Jolie) by way of a recurring nightmare from her past: the day she failed to save a fellow firefighter and three campers trapped in a harrowing wildfire. Cut to the present: Hannah's been demoted to a fire lookout in Park County, Montana, where she goofs around with co-workers and apparently has a death wish for re-enacting parachute deployments on back roads, much to the dismay of local deputy sheriff Ethan Sawyer (Jon Bernthal). Elsewhere, forensic account Owen Casserly (Jake Weber) learns of his boss's death in a gas explosion... which, as we see moments earlier, was actually a staged assassination by brothers Jack and Patrick Blackwell (Aidan Gillen and Nicholas Hoult). Fearing for his own life, Owen flees with his young son Connor (Finn Little) in the hopes of reaching his brother-in-law, sheriff Ethan. Sadly, they don't make it far: they're ambushed by the Blackwells and Owen dies in the resulting chaos, while Connor makes a tearful getaway with his dad's hand-written note full of... um, top-secret accounting information, I guess.

Predictably, Hannah spots Conner in the woods and finally has a shot at personal redemption; doubly so, since part two of the Blackwells' spree includes an intentionally set wildfire nearby to distract local authorities from the messy ambush set earlier. But this pretty much serves as a microcosm of the film's shortcomings: Those Who Wish Me Dead distracts us with well-shot action and cheap, emotionally-heightened drama to compensate for its poorly-written script, gaping plot holes, and all-too-convenient coincidences. Just like its characters, there's an awful lot of distance between the story beats and, try as it might, this film just can't manage to join everything together in a smooth, convincing manner. Smaller fundamental problems can be seen too, most notably bad casting -- Jolie, obviously, but both of the Blackwells (especially Aidan Gillen as Jack) are either unconvincing or just plain forgettable. It doesn't help that Those Who Wish Me Dead makes no real attempts to flesh out those bad guys or their background/motivation, which works in tandem to spell out the the film's most nagging flaw: besides for Connor, it's tough to genuinely care for anyone here, and thus everything that happens to them. The end result is occasionally decent window dressing for an end product that feels slapped together, and I'm betting very few members of the creative team got what they wanted.

Warner Bros.' Blu-ray includes a short behind-the-scenes featurette with some good info about the filming experience, which apparently included the construction of a massive forest built from diseased and dying trees to minimize the environmental impact of its mostly practical effects. But even that feels like something of a waste when the end result lands with so little impact. For established fans and curious newcomers, though, Those Who Wish Me Dead is still a serviceable disc with solid A/V merits that, despite no true 4K option, get the job done well enough.

Those Who Wish Me Dead Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Those Who Wish Me Dead was a digital production with a 2K intermediate, which means that the lack of a 4K option stings a little less than most recent WB titles that didn't get one. And while that format could've undoubtedly pushed a few scenes into stronger territory, this 1080p transfer does a good job with the film's patchy but occasionally stunning visuals. Numerous outdoor scenes, mostly filmed under natural light, stand out with solid depth and fine detail, with rocky textures and dense, leafy forest interiors benefitting the most from its fundamental strengths. Most if not all of the fire was a controlled burn rather than cheap CGI, which certainly works in its favor and adds tension with bright color saturation and very few unsightly artifacts or banding from heavy smoke (the latter was occasionally present, but rarely distracting). Rare moments of heavy CGI, such as the gas explosion early on, stick out like a sore thumb but that's no real fault of the disc. Similarly, indoor scenes -- or at least those with little to no natural light -- don't fare as well: they flatten out considerably but still hold their own with black levels that rarely succumb to black crush or compromised shadow detail. Overall, though, it's solid treatment with only few small areas for improvement.

Those Who Wish Me Dead Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The audio fares slightly better and, what's more, it hasn't been compromised: its native sound mix was apparently DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio rather than Dolby Atmos, which means that you're getting something a little closer to a true theatrical experience here. Dialogue is clean and crisp, while most of its more impressive moments are due to heavy action scenes, especially those laced with heavy gunfire, raging infernos, and singular moments like a cliff-diving car crash and several weighty establishing shots. Those Who Wish Me Dead typically aims for a heavy atmosphere -- even if its shortcomings don't necessarily warrant it -- but this well-balanced mix is still sonically impressive and, for the most part, doesn't show any room for improvement. I'm not sure if it's been rebalanced for smaller home theaters (I'm guessing not, based on the other missed opportunities of this Blu-ray release), but it does manage to achieve a pretty respectable dynamic range that won't have you reaching for the remote every few minutes.

Optional subtitles are included, as well as a few foreign dubs and descriptive audio tracks.

Those Who Wish Me Dead Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

As is Warner Bros.' custom these days, Those Who Wish Me Dead is a one-disc release -- no 4K option, DVD sold separately -- and ships in an eco-friendly keepcase with poster-themed cover art and a matching slipcover. It's also pretty slim on bonus features, as the studio usually reserves those for bigger box-office performers.

• Making Those Who Wish Me Dead (14:30) - This short but interesting behind-the-scenes piece delves lightly into the film's tricky production, which includes subbing in New Mexico for Montana, practical effects, and the admiral task of building an admittedly impressive "protected forest" out of diseased and dying trees -- even a previously burnt-out forest section was put to good use. Featured participants include director Taylor Sheridan, original novel author Michael Koryta, executive producer Steven Zaillian, actors Angelina Jolie, Finn Little, Aidan Gillen, and more. There's a little too much back-patting for the director, but it's still worth a look.

Those Who Wish Me Dead Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Taylor Sheridan's Those Who Wish Me Dead is based on a popular and well-received source novel, but its transition to film mostly falls flat due to bad casting, an awkward pace, and very few characters to genuinely care about. This isn't a total loss, but its occasionally impressive qualities never stay above water long enough to push everything in the right direction. Warner Bros.' home video strategy, like most in recent months, skimps on bonus features and omits a 4K option entirely, although the included featurette is worth watching and its A/V merits certainly pull their own weight. This one's still a tough recommendation for all but the most interested fans, though.