Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Salt

 

Salt is a 2010 action/spy thriller starring Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The movie is kind of a mix between the Bond franchise, the FX show The Americans, and a combination of plot elements from lots of other spy/secret agent movies that have come down the pipe. In some ways, there is not a lot new here, but the twist of making the main character a woman, Evelyn Salt, played by Angelina Jolie, does add something that makes the movie stand out on its own. The movie is about a CIA agent, Salt, who is accused of being a Russian sleeper agent in the US who will carry out an assassination within a couple days. The movie then basically becomes part chase story, part is she, or isn't she a Russian Spy mystery, that really does not get resolved fully until the end. The main supporting roles go to Liev Schreiber and Chiwetel Ejiofor as fellow CIA agents trying to track her down and bring her in. The movie clearly sets up a possible sequel or even franchise of films that may or may not ever materialize. But even as its own stand-alone movie, it is very good.

The Blu-Ray is a single-disc release that contains three versions of the movie. First, there is the PG-13 theatrical version, an unrated director's cut, which has a different take on a death scene that would have pushed it to an R rating, a twist on the ending of the movie, and a bit more character development, mainly between Salt and her husband. There is also an unrated extended edition, which actually has a shorter running time than the director's cut, which mainly has a totally different ending from the other two films, plus the changed death scene. All three versions of the film are good and are honestly all worth watching. The extras include several behind-the-scenes and making-of featurettes that end up running probably an hour and a half total. There is also a commentary track on the theatrical version of the film by the director Philip Noyce and some of the visual effects and sound crew members. The bonus content fleshes out the overall story and provides a lot of interesting history about the real KGB "illegals" program of placing spies in America and other countries, as well as some of the U.S. history of doing the same thing. And the AV quality of the movie in HD is very good. 

The movie has a good blend of action and suspense and does not reveal too much too soon into the movie. While I cannot say everyone will like the movie, if you are a fan of any of the principal actors and/or director or just generally like the spy movie genre, this is definitely worth checking out. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Gia

 

Gia is a 1998 biographical movie that tells the story of the rise and fall of model Gia Carangi, who shot to fame in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The movie stars Angelina Jolie, who plays Gia as an adult, Elizabeth Mitchell, Faye Dunaway, and Mercedes Ruehl. Mila Kunis also has a small role as a young Gia. The movie dramatizes Gia's career and how her life was ultimately cut short due to heavy drug use and contracting AIDS from using infected needles. The story spans essentially a 9-year time frame from when she was discovered at 17 to her death at age 26.

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is good. It is an upgrade in video quality from the DVD, but since there are no CGI effects or even great cinematographic shots, it is not a movie that you necessarily need to upgrade to HD if you already own the DVD. There are no bonus features included on the blu-ray, just the movie itself. 

Overall, the movie is very good. The strength of the movie is the acting. While all the actors do a wonderful job, Angelina Jolie really shines. It was one of her relatively early roles as a lead, but it established that she had real acting chops. The role really did call for someone who could pull off being flawlessly gorgeous when all made up, but could also pull off being crazy, vulnerable, caring, dramatic, and funny. Angelina was able to do all of that, and as a result, it is more than just a movie where she looks hot and is naked for a few minutes (although that is not bad either). It is absolutely worth the time to watch.

DVD/Movie Review: Mr. & Mrs. Smith

 

Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a 2005 Action/Dark Comedy starring Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Vince Vaughn, Adam Brody, Michelle Monaghan, Jennifer Morrison, and Kerry Washington. The best way I can describe the movie is if you take War of the Roses, combine it with True Lies, and mix in a little Bourne Identity action sequences, you have this movie. In this case, both spouses are agents; neither one knows about the other, and most of the film surrounds what happens after they find out. The two things that make the movie work as well as it does are that it is very well written, mostly tongue in cheek, and the great chemistry between Pitt and Jolie. The two played off each other perfectly, whether it was with comments or even looks, which made the dark comedy moments great.

The supporting cast is good, but they are used very minimally. Vince Vaughn is in the role when he really does the best, as the sidekick wisecracking buddy. Adam Brody of The OC fame and Jennifer Morrison from House and Once Upon a Time have small roles in the movie as well. There are two great action scenes in the movie, one a total spoof on The War of the Roses, and the second a great car chase sequence.

The special edition DVD's extras include about 8 minutes of deleted scenes, an 8-minute making-of feature, and the trailers. There are also three separate commentary tracks on the film from the various filmmakers. Nothing is too extensive, but it's okay for what is there. 

All in all, it is very well written and well acted, and of course, Pitt and Jolie provide eye candy for their respective audiences. So, if you are in the mood for an action movie that has some humor, this is worth the time to watch and/or to add to a physical media collection.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider

 

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a 2001 movie based on the widely popular video game series. It stars Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig, Chris Barrie, Iain Glen, and Noah Taylor and was directed by Simon West. Jolie stars as Lara Croft, a British archeologist who gets caught up in a search for an artifact sought by members of The Illuminati. 

If you try to take this movie too seriously, you will probably walk away hating it. If you take it for what it is, an action movie with a little bit of drama and humor sprinkled in, then you can enjoy it. It is definitely not the traditional summer blockbuster with an explosion every two seconds. While there is a lot of action, there is a plot that the action does slow down for. It is not what I would call an overly deep or complicated plot. It is a pretty basic bad guys want to rule the world story, but there are aspects to it that involve more than just fighting or shooting. I think the pace of the movie was just right. Clocking in at basically a little over an hour and a half, it did not try to do too much, and was able to keep the action going, tell the story that they were trying to tell, then got out before dragging on. 

The movie's A/V quality is great. It looks and sounds great in the HD format. There are a lot of special effects, but those do not really detract from the movie at all (unlike, say, Lucas' special effects-laden movies). They used enough sets and location shots that the effects really did enhance things. For those who get the discs and like bonus material, there is a lot here. There are a bunch of behind the scenes features ranging from 5 min to 25 min. Some are general "making of" features, others focus on the special effects, and other show the training regimen Angelina Jolie went through to become the character. The fact that she did many of her own stunts in the movie was impressive given what they had her doing.

Ultimately, if you don't like action movies and/or Jolie, you probably will not like this movie. I have not really played any of the games, so I am not sure how faithful to the character as she is portrayed in the video games the filmmakers stayed, but it does seem like they were trying to. While it is not the best movie ever, on the whole, I think it is worth the time to watch if you are looking for an action movie.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life

 

The Cradle of Life is the 2003 sequel to Angeline Jolie's 2001 film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, adapted from the popular video game franchise. It stars Angelina Jolie, Ciaran Hinds, Gerard Butler, and Djimon Hounsou. Jolie (who reprises her role as Lara Croft) and Gerard Butler (from 300), are on a quest to find Pandora's box and the Cradle of Life. Of course, there are bad guys who are also after the box for nefarious purposes. There are a bunch of very unrealistic action sequences and stunts (including Lara punching a shark and then riding it to the surface of the ocean) that rival the Fast and Furious movies for their absurdity. And, like in the first movie, they put Jolie into the tightest outfits possible to show off what she has going on.

The A/V quality of the Blu-Ray is excellent. If you have a surround sound system, there is sound coming from all the speakers at almost all times. The movie looks great in HD, and the practical and CGI effects blend together very well. There is a decent amount of extras included, such as a director's commentary track on the movie, about ten minutes of deleted scenes, about forty minutes of behind-the-scenes and making-of featurettes, a portion of Gerard Butler's screen test, and a couple of music videos. Ultimately, the movie is good but not great. Some of the action sequences either border on or jump headlong into the absurd. It is definitely a movie that you can have on in the background and still easily follow along with what is going on, even if you look away for a few minutes at a time. Jolie plays Croft exactly as she did in the first movie, and Chris Barrie as Hillary and Noah Taylor as Bryce provide the comic relief. It is definitely a "turn your brain off and enjoy it" kind of movie. It requires a lot of suspension of disbelief; certainly, not everyone will enjoy it. But, in general, if you liked the first movie, you will probably like this one. On the other hand, if the first movie did little for you, then this is probably not going to do anything for you either.