In the past few years, films starring Liam Neeson have shared a common theme. Ever since Taken, Liam Neeson starred in a lot of revenge films. Although Cold Pursuit seems like another Liam Neeson revenge film, it’s surprisingly not. Cold Pursuit is actually a dark comedy that just happens to be a revenge film. So don’t expect this to be an edge-of-your-seat thriller or an action-packed ride. This isn’t that type of film.
Yet most of the comedy doesn’t come from Liam Neeson. Neeson’s performance is similar to those we’ve seen in his other revenge films. It’s from the larger-than-life characters around him that provide most of the laughs in the film. Let me tell you, there are quite a few gut-busting laughs in this film. Not a lot but there are a few in there.
At the same time, these characters give the film much of its entertainment value. You’re more invested in the storylines between the two rival gangs than you are with Neeson’s quest for revenge. That’s not to say that you’d care more for the gangs than you would Neeson’s character. It’s just the turf war between the two is more compelling than the revenge story.
Be that as it may, none of the characters are interesting enough to attach ourselves to them. They’re one-dimensional characters that serve the overall plot line or to make us laugh. This includes the useless law enforcement characters in the film. It’s amazing they left in these characters when they don’t really bring much to the overall storyline. They’re just there.
Overall, Cold Pursuit is a surprisingly different kind of Liam Neeson revenge film. It’s hilarious and interesting revenge film and not the stale thrillers we’re accustomed to seeing. Unfortunately, the characters are simply too bland to provide audiences with any emotional attachment to them.
Movie Rating: 3/5 atoms
Video
Cold Pursuit hits Ultra HD Blu-ray with an HDR transfer and a 2.39:1 aspect ratio. With Cold Pursuit taking place mostly during the day and in white, snowy areas, this is a bright film. Thus, the bright spots just pop from the screen. Also, you won’t find any bloom whatsoever in these areas. When it comes to the black levels, they’re a deep black.
Unsurprisingly, the overall color palette for the film consists of cool, bright colors. This isn’t a very vibrant and colorful film. So, as a result, the colors never really jump off the screen. Similar to the color palette, the color saturation looks natural and alive. Since the film was shot in 4K, the video is so incredibly clear. The edge details are crisp and clean and the film grain isn’t visible either. Overall, this is a great video transfer.
Video Rating: 5/5 atoms
Audio
Cold Pursuit hits Ultra HD Blu-ray with a Dolby Atmos and a core 7.1 Dolby TrueHD Master Audio track. So as you’ve probably guessed, Cold Pursuit isn’t necessarily a dynamic action-packed film. That’s why you won’t find a lot of dynamic movement of sound across the soundstage. Not to mention, there’s a lack of overhead effects in this mix as well. It does show up once in a while but not often. That being said, the accurate placement of sounds completely envelopes you in the soundstage.
The music tends to lend itself to the overall atmospherics of the film. It’s not intrusive or overpowering, but it balances itself quite nicely alongside the dialogue. But the biggest—and best—surprise is hearing the loud bass of the subwoofer in this mix. It adds so much weight to the score and to the small number of fights. Overall, this is a fantastic mix.
Audio Rating: 5/5 atoms
Special Features
Cold Pursuit has the following special features on the Ultra HD Blu-ray disc:
- Welcome to Kehoe: Behind the Scenes on Cold Pursuit
- Interview with Liam Neeson
- Interview with Hans Petter Moland
- Deleted Scenes
- Nels and Kyle Talk At Open Road
- Grace Flushes Her Drugs
- Sly and Bone Distribute
- Kim Hit On By Drunk Ski Dude
- Gip Interacts with Teen Outside Store
Believe it or not, “Welcome to Kehoe” is a legit, non-promotional featurette. It’s refreshing to see since these kinds of releases simply take the easy path and put these behind-the-scenes YouTube featurettes in the release. Not to mention, the featurette covers a lot of various topics about the making of the film.
The interviews with Neeson and Petter Moland are both honest and insightful. Unfortunately, the interviews are just cut and edited in a very bland way. No music, no intercut scenes, just them simply talking about the film. All of the deleted scenes are scenes that never really added much to the film.
Special Features Rating: 3/5 atoms
Overall, Cold Pursuit is a decent Fargo-esque type black comedy/mystery thriller. Be that as it may, it’s refreshing to see Liam Neeson do something a bit different with his revenge films. Both the video and audio are fantastic while the special features are surprisingly insightful.
Overall Rating: 4/5 atoms
This Blu-ray was reviewed using a retail/advance copy/unit provided by Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
The post Cold Pursuit – 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review appeared first on Nerd Reactor.
from Nerd Reactor
0 comments: