6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.8 |
Within the FBI, there exists a division dedicated to investigating and prosecuting criminals on the Internet. Welcome to the front lines of the war on cybercrime, where Special Agent Jennifer Marsh (Diane Lane) has seen it all... until now. A tech-savvy Internet predator is displaying his graphic murders on his own website — and the fate of each of his tormented captives is left in the hands of the public: the more hits his site gets, the faster his victims die. When this game of cat and mouse becomes personal, Marsh and her team must race against the clock to track down this technical mastermind who is virtually untraceable.
Starring: Diane Lane, Billy Burke, Colin Hanks, Joseph Cross, Mary Beth HurtThriller | 100% |
Crime | 40% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
French: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Bonus View (PiP)
BD-Live
Region free
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Any American who visits the site is an accomplice to murder.
Whenever I see that a film is rated "R" for "prolonged sequences of strong brutal violence," I
figure we're in for either a trick or a treat, a film brimming with over-the-top violence in the vein
of Robocop or
another
sophomoric attempt at grossing out a bunch of teenagers with a dime-a-dozen film like Saw III. What
happens,
however, when audiences don't see what's advertised in the rating? With all the newfangled
ways we're seeing the MPAA spell out everything that happens in the movie in the ratings box
(I'm still wondering what "incidental smoking" is, a new one courtesy of the rating for Saawariya), I'm
beginning
to wonder if there isn't some sort of gimmick or trickery going on, describing the reasons behind
the rating to subconsciously lure in the audiences who flock to films like the Saw series and make a
few extra bucks on
what would
otherwise be another "see it and forget it" psychological thriller with a 3-week theatrical run
and paltry home video sales and rental numbers. Perhaps having reviewed some of the
grossest-of-the-gross violent movies over the past few months I've become desensitized and
what may be
disgusting to the casual viewer, such as another ho-hum torture scene or shootout, leaves no
lasting impression on that part of my brain attracted to certain violence in film. Such is the case
with Untraceable, a film that hardly
showcases the nonsensical and over-the-top violence of a film like Hostel, violence that seems to be
"advertised" by the
film's
rating. I'm the last person who wants to see violence for the sake of simply seeing how far the
envelope can be pushed (which is why I disliked Hostel so much), although when film
presents violence with class and for a reason (see Black Hawk Down), I'm
all
for it. With Untraceable, however, the excessive violence is just not there, the movie
actually having to rely
on (gasp!) a plot rather than buckets of blood to sell itself once you sit down with your drink and
popcorn.
This is us watching you watching us watching you.
Untraceable is found on Blu-ray with a good-looking 2.40:1, 1080p high definition transfer. This is yet another one of those films that seems so methodical in its shot selection, color palette, and overall drab look that it's a bit harder to judge than your standard-fare, nothing fancy movie. The film's subject matter is bleak, and the look of the film exaggerates that feel quite a bit. Shades of gray dominate most frames, all other primaries faded and dulled to the extreme. The image isn't super-detailed, but it looks good nevertheless, the dark, gray, dreary look of the film sometimes making detail appreciation and recognition a bit harder than normal. The image isn't overly sharp, either. Softness abounds in many scenes, but then again I firmly believe it's all part of the visual style of the movie. Flesh tones and black levels are both solid, about as good as can be expected at the moment. Many scenes are so dark that blacks dominate the screen, but there isn't much lost detail, all that seems to be obscured is what was meant to be obscured. Overall, I was pleased with this transfer. This is yet another Blu-ray that replicates the theatrical experience very well, retaining the wonderful film grain that gives it that cinematic feel, not to mention enhances the tone of the movie considerably. It's an extremely dark and gritty tone, befitting the mood of the movie extremely well, perhaps the best part of the movie, visually. This transfer is anything but crystal-clear, well-defined, and clean; instead, the movie opts for a darker, ugly look, one that is replicated to near perfection on this disc.
Boasting a fine soundtrack, Untraceable's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless sound mix offers listeners a fairly engrossing, realistic listening experience, one that that provides all the basics of a great soundtrack. This one is a fun listen, but reference quality it is not, mostly because of the slightly less aggressive nature of the mix that we hope for and expect from the best action-oriented pictures. There is very good sound panning right from the opening credits, and the sound is expertly placed as it moves across the front of the soundstage. Perfectly rendered ambience in many outdoor scenes adds to the realism of the mix, each sound placed appropriately and at just the right volume to boot. Rain and thunder are almost a character in the movie, and these moments are very dynamic without being in-your-face, the effect simply real and immersive, not over-pumped or too loud. Dialogue reproduction proved to be fine, although I did notice several instances featuring slightly muddled or hard-to-hear dialogue, though such instances were far and few between. While not numerous in number, several sequences offer very good bass, especially near the end of the film. Lows are never too low or distorted, instead rumbling at what seems to be the perfect level for the action depicted on-screen. You'll never feel it rattling the windows or your bones, but it is there in a large enough quantity to bring a smile to your face and a "wow, this sure is lifelike" signal to your brain. A few gunshots heard at the end of the movie proved to be so muted and subdued that they sounded like a pop gun, easily the worst part of this soundtrack. Otherwise, Untraceable offers up a solid, fun listen, one that at this point in the Blu-ray new release game is pretty much par for the course, and that, as they say, ain't bad.
Fans of Untraceable won't be left searching for extra material online as Sony has
graciously
included a few extras on this disc. First is a commentary track with director Greg Hoblit, producer
Hawk Koch, and production designer Paul Eads. Frankly, the commentary is a bit on the boring
side, spending a good deal of time on the choice of Portland as the setting as well as the city's
many
unique locales that made filming there a joy. We only hear minor anecdotes about the kill
scenes,
such as what color to make the "heat lamp" scene. There are a few moments of dead air, which
the participants gleefully poke fun at, admitting they got caught up in the movie. Unless you're a
fan of the movie, I'd pass on listening to this one.
Tracking Untraceable (480p, 15:45) looks at the origins of the film, the background of its
writers, the re-writes and polishing of the script that fleshed out the motivation of the killer, and
assembling cast and crew. Untraceable: The Personnel Files (480p, 15:07) features the
primary cast discussing their roles and working on the film. The Blueprint of Murder
(480p,
13:32) examines the creation of the look and feel of the film, from the sets to the special effects,
all
on a lower-than-average budget. The Anatomy of Murder (480p, 5:44) is a
behind-the-scenes look at
the make-up used for the murder sequences.
Perhaps the best feature on the disc is a picture-in-picture (bonus view, profile 1.1) feature
entitled
Beyond the Cyber Bureau. Via a secondary video box displayed in the lower right hand
corner, we see numerous interviews with the cast and crew discussing every aspect of the film.
Participants are labeled, their name and position identifying them to the left of the box. We also
see conceptual drawings, how shots are set up, and the application of make-up, for example.
Frankly, I find the picture-in-picture features much more satisfying than your standard 10-15
minute features, such as some of the ones found on this disc. The integration of the special
features
right into the film makes the experience of watching them much more satisfying, especially when
they correspond to each segment of the movie they play over. The disc is also BD-Live (profile
2.0) enabled, allowing viewers to go on-line to view additional content, at this time only trailers
for upcoming Blu-ray and theatrical films (all from Sony, of course) were available. There is also
an option to
take a BD-Live survey at the time of publishing. Finally, 1080p trailers on the disc itself for Premonition, Perfect Stranger, Vacancy, We Own the Night,
Vantage Point,
and the usual Sony Blu-ray montage conclude the supplemental materials.
Fans of suspense movies who don't mind just a bit of gross-out imagery and with the ability to let slip by a few laughable moments will probably enjoy Untraceable just enough to have a good time at the movies. The story and the film's visuals are each strong enough to carry the picture. This is fortunate, because although I found the movie to be a good one, I thought the performances of the leads did not quite meet the requirements of the material. Although there have been a couple of Sony discs I haven't been pleased with, the studio generally puts out a great product, and this is yet another fine, but not perfect, release. It sports very good audio and video quality, both proving to be about what we should expect from a middle-of-the-road new release. The disc also features a good supplemental package, one that takes advantage of both Blu-ray 1.1 and 2.0 profiles. This is a solid package, one that fans will be thrilled with, and newcomers to the movie might want to give a shot. Recommended.
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Uncut Version
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The Dirty Harry Collection
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