- Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: Norwegian DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit), Norwegian Dolby Digital 5.1, English D0lby Digital 2.0
- Subtitles: English
- Subtitles Color: White
- Region: ABC (Region-Free)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Digital Copies: N/A
- Run Time: 80 Mins.
- Studio: Entertainment One
- Blu-ray Release Date: May 14, 2013
- List Price: $24.98
Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:3/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(The below TheaterByte screen captures are taken directly from the Blu-ray Discs and losslessly compressed in the PNG format. There should be no loss of picture quality with this format. All screen captures should be regarded only as an approximation of the full capabilities of the Blu-ray format.
The Film
[Rating:3/5]
This Norwegian medieval action/adventure film, Escape (Flukt), pretty much sums up all it’s about in its title. Directed by Roar Uthaug, who thus far has seemed fascinated with this thriller-type genre, having made 2006’s Cold Prey, the strongest thing Escape has going for it is the moody atmosphere, allusions to the fantasy worlds of George R. R. Martin and Tolkien, and the magnificent, sweeping shots of the Norwegian landscape. Beyond that, this paint-by-numbers adventure is phoned in, with an ending we can see coming well before it completes.
The story is set in the 14th century, some ten years after the Black Death has swept through Norway, young teenager Signe (Isabel Christine Andreasen) is migrating with her parents and young brother to find a better place to settle when the are set upon by a ruthless band of killers. Only Signe is spared, presumably for deviant purposes. The gang’s leader, a tall, fearsome blonde woman named Dagmar (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal), wants to use Signe to help bring forth a new baby sister for the young Frigg (Milla Olin), a young orphan whom Dagmar and her minions have raised from young. Dagmar, an outcast who was accused of witchcraft and cursing her village with the plague, has been hardened over the years and lost the ability to bear a child. Clinging desperately to Frigg and the idea of giving her a little sister, she doesn’t realize she has driven the little girl away, and the two make a break for it. Queue the “escape” and what is meant to be the thrilling, pulse-pounding adventure through the hillsides and valleys to hunt down Signe and Frigg and bring them back to the fold.
While this film does offer an escape, pun intended, that’s all it provides. Its action sequences aren’t on par with the big budget blockbusters, the character development is given only a small modicum of time. The plot development on the whole, in fact, is rather unbalanced, to say the least. We very much have a film in three distinct thirds. Early on, Escape drags and seems like it is going to set up something deeper and perhaps more intriguing and worthwhile. Then it moves onto the chase, in which certain choices are made that make little sense and end in predictable scenarios. Not to give anything away, but when Signe and Frigg stop for a brief respite, we just know that Dagmar and her henchmen are going to interrupt. Finally, the finale rushes to wrap everything up in a tidy little package with a neat little bow on top. This might be okay for a slow day as a popcorn film to pass away ninety minutes, but it’s instantly forgettable once the credits start to roll.
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
The AVC/MPEG-4 1080p encodement of Escape has good detail and strong contrast, but it does show some slight issues with digital anomalies such as banding, video noise, and posterization, especially in the darker scenes. This may very well be due to the film being squeezed onto a single-layer BD-25 disc, or it could simply be a byproduct of the production. However, it keeps the film from scoring any higher on the VQ, which is a shame, as the moody shots of the bleak Scandinavian landscape are some of the stronger aspects of this one.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
The original Norwegian-language lossless track offered in a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) mix provides a rousing bit of entertainment. It is dynamic, atmospheric, and really surrounds the listener with lots of little discrete foley effects. Dialogue is full and clear while low frequencies are deep and resounding.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]
There’s nothing much here to see except what feels like a thrown together pile of brief leftovers.
The supplements:
- Original Norwegian and English Versions
- Trailer (2.35:1; 1080p/24)
- The Visual Effects (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:02:40)
- Deleted Scenes (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 00:05:41)
-
Bloopers (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 00:01:51)
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:3.5/5]
Escape doesn’t stand up to the strong slate of Scandinavian thrillers that we have been seeing of late. This low budget adventure is a throwaway for a rainy. Watch it, forget it, or skip it entirely.
Additional Screen Captures
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Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:3/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2/5]