Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Brian (Mark Ruffalo) and Paulie (Ethan Hawke) grew up like brothers on the gritty streets of South Boston as thugs. They graduate from petty crimes to more serious offenses and eventually fall under the influence of organized-crime boss Pat Kelly (Brian Goodman), at which point their lives begin to spiral out of control.

Based on the true story of director/co-writer Brian Goodman, who spent a few years in jail before getting his break in Hollywood, What Doesn't Kill You is hardly original, and the strong first and second acts are a counterbalance to the less-than-inspiring ending. The acting is pretty good, especially Ethan Hawke, and the cinematography captures the essence of life on the streets.

This isn't an attractive 1080p encode due to the subdued and muted color palette, which does capture the drab atmosphere on the streets of Boston. Black levels leave a lot to be desired, and the contrast is pumped up a notch or two as well. Detail is generally strong and stable, and the ample grain is kept intact, but this isn't a demo piece by any means.

Much like the video encode, the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack isn't that impressive. The dialog is intelligible throughout, and the dynamic range is rarely tested with only occasional scenes utilizing the surround speakers. The score by Alex Wurman is the most exciting aspect of the track, featuring a robust midrange and nice separation across the front soundstage.

The bonus features include a feature commentary by Brian Goodman and writer Donnie Wahlberg, 13 deleted scenes, and a making-of featurette, both in standard definition. Rounding things out are seven HD trailers of other Sony Blu-rays.

The "seen it before" screenplay offers nothing new—you know, the guy who wants to go straight after one last job—but I found the performances riveting enough to keep me interested. The ho-hum audio and video don't add much to the experience, but it's at least worth a rental.

Release Date: April 28, 2009

Studio: Sony Pictures

Movie: 6/10

Picture: 7/10

Sound: 7/10

Review System

Source

Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player

Display

JVC DLA-RS1 projector

Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics

Onkyo Pro PR-SC885 pre/pro

Anthem PVA-7 power amplifier

Belkin PF60 power conditioner

Speakers

M&K S-150s (L, C, R)

M&K SS-150s (LS, RS, SBL, SBR)

SVS PC-Ultra subwoofer

Cables

Monoprice HDMI cables (source to pre/pro)

Best Deal analog-audio cables

PureLink HDC Fiber Optic HDMI Cable System (15 meters) from pre/pro to projector

Acoustical treatments from GIK Acoustics