|
|
 |
Prison Break: The Final Break
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (10th August 2009). |
|
The Film
 Upon its premiere "Prison Break" (2005-2009) was a hit show, with a first season that filled each episode with intense drama, intrigue and thriller-esque sensibilities that hooked viewers from the opening frames until the climactic break from Fox River Penitentiary. The series was written from the standpoint to bait viewers and extend a story line that's essentially a feature film idea into a long running television series. The writers played with viewers, moving our characters one step closer then dragging them two steps back in each episode as complications arise, some so overwhelming and seem impossible to overcome yet our hero, Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller), happens to be a super-genius who plans for everything... including unforeseen events in order to break out his brother, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell). So for all the drama, interesting characters and set-ups there are an equal amount of eye-rolling moments that'll have you call "bullshit" at your screen. I overlooked these flaws in the first season, which was entertaining and managed to hook me throughout, but the creative team lost me somewhere around the middle of the second season. That season introduced one of the better characters of the series in Agent Alex Mahone (William Fichtner) only to have him revealed as another 'puppet' working for 'the company' the clandestine society whose behind all the conspiracy that underwrites this entire series only to surface much more prominently in the final season... after they escape once again from their Panamanian prison in the third season. A season which resembled a cross between a prison escape movie and "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome" (1985). After four long years "Prison Break" has come to an end, our main characters have cracked the conspiracy, they have earned their freedom and the bad guys have gotten their comeuppance. All plot lines have neatly (or roughly depending on what you think of this series) been wrapped up. "Prison Break: The Final Break" is not the final season of the series, this is Fox's attempt to cash-in on the final dregs of this show, as they present only what happens between the second to last and the final episode here as a feature-length special. Seriously Fox? What's the point? Why not just release the entire season to begin with. Here we have the entire crew finally coming to the end of their four year struggle for freedom and to clear their names. Fans that followed the series will be happy that pretty much everything that's been laid out over the years has been wrapped up (a luxury that some Fox shows never got; "Firefly" (2002-2003) and "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (2008-2009) are a couple of examples), there's a fair deal of predicability here and a couple of surprises that you might not expect like the return of some characters I thought we'd never see again. I see no point in detailing the plot points of this final episode as it won't be helpful to anyone new to this series, there's just too much backstory for anyone new to jump in here. While fans that have followed it will already have watched the series finale when originally broadcast, so this release is either for people that missed the final episode and want to rent it, or those that fall into Fox's trap of handing over their hard earned cash to quickly line their pockets. After the first season it became clear that the gimmick for this show is that it continues to jump the shark and elevate the suspense at every possible turn. That formula continues right to the end. Despite this I was mostly satisfied with the finale, nothing groundbreaking occurs and the episode does provide some climactic sequences that'll keep you on the edge of your seat. I frankly grew tired on Wentworth Miller's whisper-like tone of speaking and there were plenty of times I was disappointed with where the writers had taken this series that really needed to end after it's second season. Spending any money on this disc seems like a waste of money when you can simply wait until the entire season is eventually released. This is one of a few reasons that I find it hard to recommend buying this disc.
Video
Presented in the show's original broadcast ratio of 1.78:1 high-definition in 1080p 24/fps and mastered in AVC MPEG-4 compression. This is a big budget show that shoots on film and does a great job of presenting the series with a flashy and well maintained camera style. The image is sharp and clear, without any noticeable flaws. The colors are vibrant and well balanced, black levels are bold and although there is some noise it's not too distracting. Light grain pops up and some darker scenes the grain seems a bit heavier and this adds to the weight of the production and gives it a filmic look although some scenes appear a bit flat. There are no compression problems and overall the picture is perfectly suited for the high-definition format.
Audio
A single English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is included mixed at 48kHz/24-bit, the audio is impressive and performs solidly throughout the run time of the episode. First impressions of the track are that it's aggressive but tends to cheat it's aggressiveness with a high bass concentration. The rumble is very effective at times but can also be a bit annoying at other times. Dialogue is clear and distortion free and the show's score manages to immerse viewers amid the action. Speaking of action, those scenes pop, the audio is nicely mixed for an effective overall experience. Optional subtitles are included in English, Cantonese, French, Mandarin, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish and Thai.
Extras
Fox has released this final episode with only a small collection of extras that include a pair of deleted scenes and bonus trailers. Below is a closer look at these supplements. The only real extras on this disc are a collection of two deleted scenes that can be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option and include: - "Agent Wheatley Warns The Warden" runs for 1 minute 12 seconds, Agent Todd Wheatley (Chris Bruno) gives the warden (Amy Aquino) some advice that comes with a warning about keeping her job. - "Mahone And Pam At The Market" runs for 2 minutes 57 seconds, Mahone finds his estranged wife Pam (Callie Thorne) at a local market and tells her about what he's been doing and wanting to get back together only to discover she's moved on. Bonus trailers on this disc are for: - "The Marine II" which runs for 37 seconds. - "12 Rounds" which runs for 2 minutes 23 seconds. - "Lie to Me" spot which runs for 1 minute 3 seconds. - "The Dollhouse" spot which runs for 1 minute. - "Locked Up Abroad" spot which runs for 32 seconds. - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel on DVD" spot which runs for 17 seconds.
Overall
|
|||||
|