Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Max Payne is a maverick cop with little regard for rules and nothing left to lose. Hell-bent on revenge, he's determined to track down those responsible for the brutal murder of his family, but his obsessive investigation takes him on a nightmarish journey where dark fantasy collides with stark reality. As the mystery deepens, Max is forced to battle enemies beyond the natural world...and face an unthinkable betrayal that will drive him to the edge of his own sanity.

The first trailers I saw for this movie made me think this was going to be very similar to Constantine. Their visual styles are very similar but this film stays far more grounded in the real world than Constantine. Payne is a cold case cop who is still trying to figure out who killed his wife years ago. During his investigation he stumbles upon a new drug that was produced by a biological company for the government that has intense side effects such as nearly superhuman strength and crazy delusional imagery that drives its users insane. Video game adaptations are always hit or miss with far more misses than hits but this one isn’t too bad. This unrated cut adds a bit of character development but I didn’t find it overly different than the original theatrical cut.

This Blu-ray delivers a sumptuous visual image that could almost be a reference for high contrast displays. The visual style is like a mesh between the before mentioned Constantine and the popular graphic novel adaptation, Sin City. The image is nearly black and white with just enough color to add a nice sense of style to it. Most of the cityscapes show incredible depth and the light snowfall that is persistent throughout the film adds an incredible sense of dimension and fine detail to the imagery. HD presentations don’t get much better than this.

The DTS-HD Master Audio mix is an aggressive mix of low bass and outstanding spatial design. Bass extension is incredible and nears system threatening at times. The sound design is very aggressive with great spatial cues, surround use and dynamic range. Gunshots hit you right in the chest and the ominous score lends to the atmosphere and engaging visuals perfectly. Dialogue is balanced into the mix nicely and the soundtrack as a whole has a very open quality that is convincing and fun. A reference presentation all the way.

Lots of extras on this one. Fox has included an animated graphic novel that serves as a prequel of sorts to the events of the film. They also take advantage of the Bonus View features of Blu-ray with two picture-in-picture features. One is a making of feature with interviews and behind the scenes footage while the other focuses more on the production with the director. A feature audio commentary and picture documentary are also included. Disc two offers a digital copy of the unrated cut of the film for your portable device.

Fox has done a tremendous job with this one. The A/V presentation is reference quality and the film manages to be far more entertaining than most video game adaptations. Recommended.