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Hobo with a Shotgun: Collector's Edition
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Magnolia Pictures Review written by and copyright: Andy James & Noor Razzak (27th October 2011). |
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The Film
 The Rutger Hauer starring "Hobo With A Shotgun" is, frankly, not something I ever expected to see. Jason Eisener's feature length adaptation of his own winning Grindhouse trailer is the type of film you expect to find in a grimy, somewhat dodgy and dark video rental store. It's brutal, insane, graphic and lurid. And I kinda loved it. Hauer is the eponymous hobo, riding into town on a rail-car. Little can he suspect though that he is entering Hell itself. Or at least, as close as these crime ridden streets can make it. The Hobo is a man with a simple wish: to own a lawnmower. It's a strange, simple dream but it's his. However, he has to survive the villainous crimelord Drake (Brian Downey) that rules the streets and his two douchebag evil sons; Slick (Gregory Smith) and Ivan (Nick Bateman). He takes Abby (Molly Dunsworth), a young streetwalking woman he sees as something better, under his crazy wing and ends up unleashing swift, shotgun based vengeance upon the streets. "Hobo With a Shotgun" is a film that really doesn't hold anything back. Eisener goes all out here, throwing dark crazy paint on his celluloid with abandon and lashing in heinously bright colours that sicken and obfuscate. You've got to respect someone who's willing to take it that far. And Hauer is right there with him, amping up the crazy and chewing scenery like a starving, well, hobo. He's the only recognisable actor in the piece and he attacks the role with gusto: there's madness, sadness and a boiling anger all locked up in this man and his shotgun is his release. And Hauer's not even the maddest thing in the film! The two asshole gangster sons are irredeemable sacks of weaselly bastard evil, the pair of them looking like bad-guy jock characters from a "Revenge of the Nerds" film (1984-1992). Drake's favoured method of execution involves a rope, a truck and a manhole cover with a hole in it just big enough for a neck. Then there's The Plague: two demon escapees from the post-apocalyptic world of "Mad Max" (1979), they bring Hobo into a whole new realm of over-the-edge weirdness. Even though "Hobo With a Shotgun" is a film that feels like you should be discovering in early adolescence on a worn VHS tape, I'm glad I originally got the chance to see it in the cinema. So, too, did a little old lady sitting a few rows behind me - I wouldn't have thought she was the target audience? Perhaps she was a Hauer fan. Or, perhaps, she just really, really wanted to see an over-the-top crazy hobo with a shotgun. I know I did. And it was a blast.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 2.40:1 this image is mastered in HD 1080p 24/fps using AVC MPEG-4 compression codec. The film is essentially a grindhouse film, but in no way does it actually look like one, considering most films of this genre tend to look grimy, gritty and using cheaper film stocks (usually 16mm, which when blown up for theatrical exhibition features a heavy grain structure). This film, shot in digital on the RED camera, looks sharp, in fact sometimes a little too sharp. The colors are hyper-saturated giving the film a trippy-drugged out feel, like you just swallowed a handful of hallucinogenic drugs and colors are a little brighter and more vibrant then they are supposed to be. It certainly looks good, but it can give you a headache at times. Blacks are bold and deep, the image is crisp and detail looks terrific.
Audio
A single English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is presented at 48kHz/24-bit. The audio is a nice mash-up of aggressive action, hyper score and some nice active surrounds. The dialogue is clear and distortion free but seems mixed a bit lower than the rest of the audio. The surrounds are were this track comes alive, the gun shots reign throughout the track with decent power and weight behind them. The score is nicely mixed across the sound spectrum immersing the viewers. It's a rugged and powerful audio track that does a decent job of putting your home theater system through a workout. optional subtitles are included in English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
Magnet/Magnolia has released this film with a wonderful collection of supplements that feature two audio commentaries, an interactive feature, a documentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, video blogs, a test reel, interviews, a featurette, two promo trailers, two theatrical trailers, bonus trailers and BD-Live access. Below is a closer look at these supplements. First up is a feature-length audio commentary with director Jason Eisener and actor Rutger Hauer. If you're in for a fun, lighthearted and entertaining track then look no further. You'll not find a more enthusiastic commentator than Jason Eisener as he takes us through the process of getting this film made and the fun they had making it. Hauer also chimes in with some nice feedback and talks of his involvement in the film, the challenges among other things. A second feature-length audio commentary with director Jason Eisener, co-screenwriter John Davies, producer Rob Cotterill, and David Brunt (the original "Hobo" from the trailer). This track is still fun but a little more technical than the first one, taking a look at the filming process, the cameras and techniques used as the participants guide fans through the intense and grueling way that low budget films are shot. "Shotgun Mode" is an interactive feature which plays clips from various scenes during the film. An icon pops up and by pressing the 'enter' button on your remote you can access additional making-of segments. In total the "Shotgun Mode" clips (1080p) run for 106 minutes 27 seconds. "More Blood, More Heart: The Making of Hobo with a Shotgun" is a documentary (1080p) which runs for 45 minutes 22 seconds. This feature takes a look at the genesis of the project from the filmmaker's initially creating a trailer for the "Grindhouse" contest, getting huge attention on YouTube and scoring a deal to make it as a feature film. The features delves into the process of getting the film set up, the involvement of actor Rutger Hauer and the challenges of shooting the film on a low budget, shooting with digital cameras and the fast turn-around and the stress of the last day of shooting among other things. The documentary takes an intimate and close-up look at the production and how much fun it was making the film as these filmmakers were given the chance of a lifetime. We get a ton of great interviews with the cast and crew as well as some excellent behind-the-scenes footage from principle photography. Three deleted scenes are next (1080p) which can be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option, they include: - "A Stroll Through Hope Town" runs for 25 seconds, The Hobo is propositioned by a prostitute. - "The Landlord" runs for 53 seconds, the landlord evicts some people from their homes in this scene. - "Montage" runs for 4 minutes 40 seconds, and is a montage of unused shots set to music from the film. There's also an alternate ending (1080p) that runs for 33 seconds, in this ending Molly is turned into one of the Plague. A collection of nine video blogs (480p) follows, these are a series of blogs created for the online campaign of the film, they can be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option and they include: - "Live from Dartmouth" runs for 29 seconds, the director introduces viewers to the blog. - "The Goods" runs for 39 seconds, and is a montage of footage set to music. - "Day 4 Wrap" runs for 21 seconds, the director enthusiastically calls the end of shooting on the fourth day. - "Interview with Niv" runs for 48 seconds, is a short interview with the film's producer. - "Rookie Cop" runs for 41 seconds, this is a sort of faux interview with a rookie cop in the beat. - "Breaking News: Chaos in the City" runs for 37 seconds, a faux news program featuring a press conference with the police. - "Blood Truck" runs for 1 minutes 16 seconds, takes a look at the prop department's blood truck and the immense amount used during the filming. - "Budget Cuts" runs for 45 seconds, the producer is beaten up in this clip. - "Waves of Blood" runs for 53 seconds, this is behind-the-scenes footage of the crew celebrating after filming a bloody scene. Following that is the "Camera Test" reel (1080p) which runs for 3 minutes 28 seconds, and is a reel of footage shot during the testing phase of production under different lighting conditions and lenses. Two Fangoria interviews (480p) are next and can be viewed individually or with a 'play all' option they include: - Rutger Hauer, runs for 11 minutes 20 seconds. In this clip the actor talks about his involvement in the film and on the character among other things. - Jason Eisener, runs 33 minutes 9 seconds. The director talks about the idea for the film, the Grindhouse trailer contest, on the original Hobo in the trailer, on the idea of expanding the trailer into a feature treatment and developing the script, securing the financing, on the exploitation element, the competition with "Machete" (2010), on casting Rutger Hauer, picking locations and shooting the film among other things. "HDNet: A Look at Hobo with a Shotgun" is a promotional featurette (1080i) runs for 5 minutes 13 seconds, and is an EPK clip made for the HD channel HDNet. "Grindhouse Trailer Contest Winner: Hobo with a Shotgun" is the original contest trailer (480p) that runs for 2 minutes. "Hobo with a Shotgun Faux Trailer Contest Winner: Van Gore" is another contest trailer (480p) for "Van Gore" and runs for 2 minutes 1 second. There are two red band U.S. theatrical trailers (480p): - Theatrical trailer 1 runs for 1 minute 48 seconds. - Theatrical trailer 2 runs for 2 minutes 19 seconds. Two Canadian TV Spots (480p) are included: - TV Spot 1 runs for 30 seconds. - TV Spot 2 runs for 16 seconds. The disc also features some bonus trailers (1080p) for: - "Rubber" runs for 2 minutes 25 seconds. - "Troll Hunter" runs for 1 minute 23 seconds. - "13 Assassins" runs for 1 minute 57 seconds. - "The Perfect Host" runs for 2 minute 19 seconds. - "HDNet" promo runs for 1 minute 1 second. Finally the disc is equipped with BD-Live access for profile 2.0 players. The package also includes a code for a digital copy of the film.
Packaging
Packaged in a Blu-ray case housed in a cardboard slip-case.
Overall
The film review was originally published on the blog Rockets and Robots are Go! by Andy James. The A/V and supplements were reviewed by Noor Razzak.
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