Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 23, 2019

There’s a pull quote on the back cover of Triple Threat which compares the film to The Expendables, and at least in terms of a property assembling a large and varied cast of stars (either in or arguably past their prime), that may suffice as well as anything as an apt summary. (Notably my colleague Brian Orndorf also references The Expendables in his review that appeared during Triple Threat’s theatrical exhibition.) The underlying plot dynamics of “heroes for hire” and an attempt to free some supposed prisoners may also evoke memories of the American franchise, but the film is arguably simultaneously too simple minded and overly convoluted to work as much more than an admittedly effective series of set pieces.

Supposedly “brain dead” action flicks aren’t always models of narrative clarity, and it’s questionable how effective Triple Threat is in terms of doling out putative plot points. There are massive info dumps at various junctures in the film that just kind of stop things cold, but the underlying premise is one of betrayal and subterfuge, along with a hefty dose of revenge. In just the first of what might initially seem like detours away from the action adventure element, a pre-credits sequence offers a fantastically wealthy heiress named Tian Xiao Xian (Celena Jade) who vows to use her funds to eradicate an organized crime syndicate which is wreaking havoc in the (apparently fictional) region of Maha Jaya. After that introductory sequence, the film then segues to two guides for a rather, yes, Expendables like team of mercenaries. The guides are Payu (Tony Jaa) and Fei (Tiger Hu Chen), who help get team leader Devereaux (Michael Jai White) and his group of fighters to what is labeled an “MI6 Black Ops” facility in the jungle. That little aspect would seem to suggest that maybe the Brits are going to be at least some of the bad guys in the film, especially when Devereaux and company slaughter umpteen locals who are evidently part of the operation, all on the way to freeing a guy a British commander at the site warns them is a terrorist. The “is he or isn’t he a terrorist?” turns out to be Collins (Scott Adkins), whose true motives play into the overall plot dynamics.

While the freeing of Collins is the ostensible point of this first action set piece, there’s a sidebar of sorts that turns out to have considerable consequences for parts of the rest of the story, especially that aforementioned revenge angle. One of the local henchmen populating the British MI6 facility is a guy named Jaka (Iko Uwais), and in the melee of Devereaux and his team shooting pretty indiscriminately into anything that moves, Jaka’s wife takes several bullets and quickly expires. Jaka himself has some brief hand to hand combat but an explosion leaves him supposedly mortally wounded and the team moves on to their main objective. Of course, Jaka is not mortally wounded and he’s now nursing a rather significant grudge.

The film by now has at least three separate stories it’s unspooling, and it takes some time for everything to be woven together, and even then more curmudgeonly types are apt to see a few threads hanging loose from this particular “weave”. What propels the film is a nonstop array of just gonzo action scenes, all well staged though perhaps too reliant on quick cutting to establish rhythm. The sheer number of hyperbolic smack downs keeps the energy high even when the "narrative" may leave many scratching their heads and wondering what exactly is supposed to be going on. There is so much double dealing and quadruple crossing in this film that it ultimately becomes kind of a crap shoot as to who you might think the heroes and villains are, but the fight scenes keep this thing buoyant, if only barely at times.

Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Triple Threat is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb once again comes up fairly short on technical specs for this shoot, but I found some references to Arri Alexa Minis and I'm once again assuming things were finished at a 2K DI. This is a very appealing looking transfer for the most part, with a vivid palette and good delineation even in some really heavily graded material, including large swaths of the film that are bathed in reds, oranges, blues, purples and ambers. Shadow detail is well above average even in some pretty dark scenes, and a glut of close-ups offer excellent fine detail levels. There is a slightly ragged look, at least relatively speaking, to the early jungle material and a few establishing shots (which may be stock footage), but otherwise this is a problem free and very sharp and precise looking transfer.

Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Triple Threat features an energetic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that offers the requisite LFE when things go boom (which they do with a fair amount of regularity), and which also provides near constant immersion in not just the big action sequences, but relatively quieter moments as well. A lot of the film takes place outside, and ambient environmental effects dot the surround channels quite believably. There's also good directionality in several of the knock down, drag out fights. Dialogue is also rendered cleanly and clearly, though some of the speakers here are pretty heavily accented and so the optional subtitles may come in handy.

Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interview with the Cast (1080p; 10:09) features Scott Adkins, Michael Jai White, Michael Bisping, Celina Jade, Iko Uwais, Tiger Chen, and Tony Jaa.


• Teaser (1080p; 1:11)


• Trailer (1080p; 1:10)

As is typically the case with Well Go USA Blu-ray releases, the above supplements have been authored to follow one another automatically (so that playing the Interview supplement is essentially like hitting a "Play All" button). After the Trailer for this film plays, the disc has been authored to move on automatically to trailers for other Well Go USA releases. Those trailers for other Well Go USA releases also play automatically at disc boot up.

Triple Threat Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Triple Threat could have arguably used a bit of pruning here and there, or at least a more securely delineated focus on what exactly it wants its main story to be. There are some fantastically exciting fight scenes here, and for those who like that kind of action offering, Triple Threat will most likely provide adrenaline jolts in spades. Technical merits are solid for those considering a purchase.