Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 2, 2024

Stephen Hopkins' "Under Suspicion" (2000) arrives on Bu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. The supplemental features on the release include archival audio commentary Stephen Hopkins and Morgan Freeman; archival making of featurette with cast and crew interviews; and original trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Most articles about Stephen Hopkins’ film Under Suspicion will tell you that it is a remake of French helmer Claude Miller’s film The Grilling a.k.a. Garde a vue. This information is misleading. The two films work with the same original material from British author John William Wainwright’s novel “Brainwash”, but are very different. They change locations and some other crucial details, and, perhaps most importantly, their recreations of the character transformations at the center of the original material are done differently, too.

On a beautiful night in Puerto Rico, as the locals launch a huge celebration expected to last until the early morning hours, wealthy lawyer Henry Hearst (Gene Hackman) and his stunning wife Chantal (Monica Bellucci) arrive at a lavish mansion to attend a big donor event headlined by the governor. But before they can enter, Hearst is asked to quickly clarify a few bits from his recent testimony about the murder of two teenage girls in the office of Captain Victor Benezet (Morgan Freeman). The police station is across the street, so Hearst can quickly walk over to it and then walk back to the mansion to give the big speech the governor has requested from him.

But Hearst’s contradictory clarifications quickly frustrate Benezet and anger his younger assistant, Detective Felix Owens (Thomas Jane), and then create the impression that they are part of a big lie. While clarifying his contradictory clarifications and insisting that he must return to the mansion and give his big speech, Hearst provides Benezet with ample evidence that he is the elusive killer.

However, a visibly irritated governor interferes and Hearst is allowed to leave the police station and address his guests. Nevertheless, shortly after, with Chantal testifying too and providing additional damaging evidence, Benezet arrests Hearst and informs him that it will be in his best interest to make a full confession. But as Hearst begins describing the double life he has led for years and detailing the murders of the two teenage girls in front of a tiny camera, Benezet is forced to change his mind.

The narrative is broken into three uneven acts. The second is the biggest and features the most diverse material. The first and third acts are a bit like book ends, adding crucial support for the diverse material in the second act. As the main characters move through the three acts, they all undergo different transformations that change the nature of the drama that is chronicled in them.

For obvious reasons, Hearst’s transformation is the most substantial one. It is also the most consequential because all redirections and resets that occur in the narrative are either initiated or dependent on it. All other transformations are reactions to it as well.

Hopkins directs with impressive confidence and precision, which is one of the key reasons Under Suspicion is as good as The Grilling. The leads are excellent and share great chemistry too, which is the other key reason the drama it produces is so effective. However, Under Suspicion and The Grilling treat (and alter) the original material from Wainwright’s novel in unique ways that ultimately allow them to establish very different identities. For example, in Under Suspicion the overlapping of past and present events and the glimpses of striking beauty and poverty from different corners of Puerto Rico wrap up the drama with an unforgettable exotic atmosphere. In The Grilling, the supposedly routine questioning that unleashes the tense drama occurs in an urban environment whose atmosphere could not be any more different.

Under Suspicion and The Grilling utilize music to enhance their identities in drastically different ways, too. The former overflows with lush electronic/ambient tunes produced by award-winning American DJ and record producer Brian Wayne Transeau a.k.a. BT. The latter works with simpler chamber music harmonies by the great Oscar-winning French composer Georges Delerue.

Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Under Suspicion arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films.

The release is sourced from an older master, which I assume is the same master that has been used to produce different DVD releases in previous years. Why? I like Under Suspicion a lot, and a long time ago, in 2001, I added to my library the first R1 DVD release release of it that Sony Pictures produced. The high-definition and standard definition presentations of Under Suspicion are extremely similar, and this is why I think that the same master was used to prepare them. Does this mean that if you too have the R1 DVD release, this Blu-ray release should not be on your radar? No. What I meant above is that Under Suspicion has an extremely similar appearance on DVD and Blu-ray, so there are no framing and color balance discrepancies. However, even though the limitations of the master are obvious, on the Blu-ray Under Suspicion looks dramatically better. I upscaled my R1 DVD release to 1080p and in many darker areas there is just not enough detail, and the bigger the screen is, the easier it will be to tell. The Blu-ray produces visuals with superior density levels, shadow definition, and even clarity. Color balance is stable. However, this is an area where major improvements can be made. Superior saturation levels and better ranges of supporting nuances can make a big difference. Image stability is good. The best news is that there are no traces of problematic digital corrections, so even though Under Suspicion does not look as fresh and vibrant as it should, it still has a fine appearance. I spotted a few blemishes, but there are no large cuts, marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I revisited the film with the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and did not test the LPCM 2.0 track. I think that the lossless track is a pretty big upgrade in quality over the lossy 5.1 track found on the R1 DVD release of Under Suspicion. BT's soundtrack floods the film with lush melodies that sound a lot richer on the lossless track. The dialog is extremely clear, sharp, and easy to follow. The few bits in Spanish are translated directly in the film, as they are on the DVD release.

Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary by director Stephen Hopkins and Morgan Freeman was included on the original R1 DVD release of Under Suspicion that Sony Pictures produced in 2001. It is very good. The commentators address the original material that inspired Under Suspicion, the production process, some unique elements of the drama as it is recreated in the film, the style and visual appearance of the film, etc.

• Making of Featurette - in this archival Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, and Stephen Hopkins discuss their collaboration on Under Suspicion and clarify why it should not be seen as a remake of Claude Miller's The Grilling a.k.a. Garde a vue. Thomas Jane and Monica Bellucci also comment on their involvement with the film and the characters they play. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage U.S. trailer for Under Suspicion. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Booklet - 60-page illustrated booklet featuring multiple essays and technical information.

Under Suspicion Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A proper analysis of Stephen Hopkins' Under Suspicion cannot avoid the significance of the fact that it works with the same original material Claude Miller's The Grilling a.k.a. Garde a vue does. However, it is just as important to acknowledge the fact that the former was not conceived as a remake of the latter, which is precisely how a lot of American and international critics described it in the early 2000s. I think that Under Suspicion is a wonderful film uniting several excellent actors at the top of their game with a special identity and a frequently striking appearance. I picked it up on DVD in 2001 and have revisited it numerous times since then, each time liking it a bit more. The Blu-ray release we have reviewed is included in After Dark: Neo-Noir Cinema Collection Three, a six-disc, Region-Free box set. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.