- Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
- Video Codec: VC-1
- Resolution: 1080p/24
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1 (Quebec), Spanish (Castilian) Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 (Latin American)
- Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
- Region: ABC (Region-Free)
- Studio: Warner Home Video
- Blu-ray Release Date: May 11, 2010
- List Price: $35.99
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BestBuy.com:
Purchase Edge of Darkness on Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack at CD Universe
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Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
After many years spent behind the camera directing such controversial films as The Passion of the Christ and Apocalypto and his much publicized drunken run-ins with the law, Mel Gibson finally returns to a role in front of the camera with this remake of the 1986 BBC television mini-series, Edge of Darkness.
It may be the perfect role to ease Gibson back into the good graces of the viewing public and Hollywood executives, because it doesn’t stray too far from the roles like Lethal Weapon and Payback that made Gibson a box office draw to begin with.
In Edge of Darkness Gibson plays Boston police detective Thomas Craven whose daughter Emma (Bojana Novakovic) is gunned down right in front of him as the film begins. While everyone believes he was the real target, Thomas is not so convinced, and he starts an investigation into his daughter’s murder. It leads him down a path of conspiracies and cover-ups and toward a violent path of attrition involving politicians and government contractors.
Gibson does a pretty good job as the grieving father and cop gone off the rails seeking revenge on the men responsible for his daughter’s death. Starting the film with his daughter’s death may have been a clever way to put him instantly in the audience’s sympathies, but the character’s ultimate dark side is a more fitting return given the circumstances revolving around Gibson’s personal life.
Directed by Martin Campbell and also staring a sublime Ray Winstone as a hired “clean up” man simply named Jedburgh, Edge of Darkness is a slow moving thriller with enough twists to keep viewers interested, but ultimately it is a paint-by-numbers genre film of the likes we’ve seen many times before, particularly its violent ending which should take no one by surprise at all.
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
The 2.40:1 VC-1 encoding from Warner delivers with deep, inky blacks, sharp, textured details, and a fine layer of grain that keeps things looking film-like. Shadow detail is relatively strong, even if there is a little bit of crush. Flesh tones are solid, but color reproduction does shift around a bit do to the film’s changing color palettes.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
With a solid DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack that delivers enough “oomph” when necessary, Edge of Darkness is an encompassing soundscape that helps draw the listener in and bolster the film’s edgy atmosphere. Dialogue is delivered cleanly, gunshots are beefy, and there’s enough ambience, atmospherics, and discrete effects to keep things lively.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
There are a nice bit of supplements here offering interviews with the filmmakers and actors. Also, who can argue against the bonus DVD and digital copy?
The supplements provided on this release are:
- Focus Points:
- Mel’s Back (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:04.00)
- Making a Ghost Character Real (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:03.32)
- Scoring the Edge of Darkness (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:03.29)
- Revisiting the Edge of Darkness Mini-Series (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:02.32)
- Thomas Craven’s War of Attrition (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:04.51)
- Boston as a Character (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:02.57)
- Director Profile: Martin Campbell (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:03.21)
- Edge of Your Seat (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 0:02.36)
- Deleted & Alternate Scenes (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 0:05.23)
- DVD
- Digital Copy
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
Edge of Darkness won’t be setting any new trends in cinema or winning any awards, but it might make a perfect weekend rental flick and it works as a solid return to the screen for Mel Gibson.
Additional Screen Captures:
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Edge of Darkness on Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
