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Tortured (The)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray B - United Kingdom - Entertainment One Review written by and copyright: Samuel Scott (26th November 2014). |
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The Film
 ***This is an A/V and Extras review only. For reviews on the movie from various critics, we recommend visiting HERE.*** The only way to ease the pain, is to inflict some. The perfect marriage of Craig (Jesse Metcalfe - Desperate Housewives) and Elise Landry (Erika Christensen - Six Degrees, Flight Plan) is suddenly shattered when their young son is abducted and murdered. When the killer (Bill Mosely - Halloween, The Devil's Rejects) is brought to trial, he manages to plea bargain his way to a lighter sentence. Utterly outraged by this miscarriage of justice, the grieving parents decide to take matters into their own hands. They capture the murderer, imprison him and subject him to the same monstrous acts he perpetrated upon their defenceless child. The unforeseen consequences, however, challenge their ideas of vengeance, justice and the true nature of evil.
Video
Entertainment One have released the horror revenge movie "The Tortured" on to Blu-ray in the United Kingdom, using an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 (according to imdb, original aspect ratio is 1.85:1). The transfer is 1080p, and uses an AVC MPEG-4 encode. It's a good looking release. The first thing that strikes you with this transfer in some of the opening scenes, is the heavy use of blue hues to give the film a cold and bleak look. Overall, the palette selected is driven towards dark and lifeless colours with plenty of blacks, browns and greys on display and barely anything colourful except in one or two scenes set outside. Filmed using the film style digital camera, the Arri D-21, the print has the expected digital shine that comes with it, with details generally strong outside of the shadows. Facial close-ups show minute details, the environments during the theft of the van look natural and lush, and fabrics and intricate clothing patterns look fine. Shadow details are a bit of a mixed bag though. Sometimes strong, but often disappearing against black clothing and unlit rooms, it is the main downfall of this release. There's no obvious damage on show here, and no major reasons for concern. The film is uncut, and runs 81:39.
Audio
Two audio tracks have been included: - English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 - English LPCM 2.0 Stereo For my viewing, I opted for the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, which was a solid, and often robust affair. As with a lot of horror movies, the LFE and surround speakers get some good use for a couple of cheap scares during the more gory and squirmish scenes, but are also used to envelop the score by Jeff Rona (Exit Wounds, Homicide: Life on the Street). More subtle effects come into play every now and again too, with good directionality and channel separation. Dialogue is clear at all times and volume levels are consistent throughout. There are no causes for concern here, with no drop outs, scratches, or background hiss. It's an above average, formulaic horror track, that is better than the film it accompanies. Optional English subtitles for the hard of hearing are included.
Extras
The first extra is unforgivably titled "Cast and Crew Interviews", and runs for a very brief 1:34. In all honesty, these aren't interviews at all, rather a single question of "how far would you go?" aimed at several cast and crew members including assistant director Robert Crippen, actor Fulvio Cecere, director Robert Lieberman, actress Erika Christensen, and sound mixer John Boyle. The only extra of any substance is the "Behind the Scenes" featurette, clocking in at 10:33. Director Robert Lieberman tells us he has never done a movie like this before, and the deep and emotional aspects of fate involved with the story. There are also interview snippets with various other cast and crew members, along with some raw b-roll footage and snippets from the set. It's a standard fluff piece, but an easy watch thanks to the short run time. If it was longer, it would have needed to look more at the technical aspects. There are also several start-up trailers: - "7 Days" (0:34) - "Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre" (1:12) - "[REC]2" (0:38)
Overall
An intriguing idea, with a good if expected twist, "The Tortured" suffers from a lack of originality and a poor cast selection for the two main characters (Erika Christensen and Jesse Metcalfe). Torture porn sub-genre fans will find enough here to enjoy, though most will want to give it a wide berth.
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