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CSI: Immortality AKA C.S.I. Crime Scene Investigation AKA CSI: The Finale
R1 - America - Paramount Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Eric Cotenas (9th January 2016). |
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The Film
 After fifteen years, Anthony E. Zuiker's highly influential forensic science sub-genre police procedural CSI: Crime Scene Investigation comes to a close with the two-hour finale CSI: Immortality (actually eighty-four minutes without commercials and neatly divided into two halves for future screenings in hour time slots). When a suicide bomber (Trumbo's Rick Kelly) blows himself up in the Eclipse Casino, his conversion to Islam at first suggests an act of terrorism; but the CSI team – with soon-to-retire D.B. Russell (Cheers' Ted Danson) handing off the case to Sara Sidle (ER's Jorja Fox) who has applied for lab director – find some irregularities in the evidence. As owner of the casino via her late mobster father, former CSI investigator turned Los Angeles field office FBI agent Catherine Willows (Under the Dome's Marg Helgenberger) – who left the show in season twelve – insists on being part of the investigation despite the conflict of interest. Further overshadowing Sara's control of the investigation is the return of her ex-husband and the department's original head Gil Grissom (Manhunter's William Peterson) who Sheriff Ecklie (U.S. Marshals' Marc Vann) calls in after a clue points towards dominatrix-turned-sex therapist Lady Heather (The O.C.'s Melinda Clarke) with whom Grissom had a therapeutic and intellectual relationship. When another bomber ('s Breeda Wool) is discovered at a school recital, the massacre is seemingly averted and the children and parents escape; but the bomber delivers a message purportedly from Lady Heather before detonating the bomb and taking a bomb squad technician with her. A package that shows up addressed to Grissom is thought to be a bomb but turns out to be the corpse of the man who killed Lady Heather's daughter containing a MicroSD card with a message from the disguised killer promising that the two bombings are just the beginning. Lady Heather becomes more of a likely suspect when it is discovered that both bombers were her patients. Although Sidle is ready to believe that Lady Heather has mentally programmed her patients to kill (with the help of a mind-controlling South American flower called "Devil's Breath") as an act of revenge against humanity for the murders of her daughter and granddaughter, Grissom believes that she is being set up by one of her patients. A mix of discoveries gleaned evidence and from Grissom's interpretation of clues from the killer splits the team up to pursue different leads, leading both groups into deadly traps. The finale, aired eight months after the close of season fifteen (and sold separately from the last season box set), feels rather extraneous and unnecessary. To the casual viewer, the entire enterprise from pre-established characters given little in the way of character arcs in the crowded scenario and a not-particularly-compelling final case, could just as easily be another episode bidding farewell to another established character while the others continue on with a new leader (which fans may have preferred over the spin-off CSI Cyber which started airing two weeks after the final episode of season fifteen). Obviously mounted to give a sense of closure to the show's fans, there is little sense of threat to any of the principal characters even when they are directly threatened, and the regular team – Greg Sanders (The Rules of Attraction's Eric Szmanda), Dr. Al Robbins (The Negotiator's Robert David Hall), David Hodges (Little Miss Sunshine's Wallace Langham), David Phillips (David Berman), Morgan Brody (Solstice's Elisabeth Harnois), and Henry Andrews (Ocean's Thirteen's Jon Wellner) – are given so little to do and so little screentime that the uninitiated may not be able to distinguish them from some of the "intern of the week" guest stars on equally outlandish rival forensic procedural Bones. Former Captain Brass (L.A. Confidential's Paul Guilfoyle), now working security at Willows' casino, has a few scenes before an injury takes him out at the end of part one but George Eads (Dust to Dust) - who appeared in all fifteen seasons as CSI tech Nick Stokes - does not appear in the finale or its deleted scenes. Also shunted to the sidelines is Danson's Russell who spending most of the story sitting at his computer trying to decrypt the deliberately-blurred image of the killer from the MicroSD card video in favor of a dreary love triangle between Grissom, off-puttingly sour Sidle, and Lady Heather (seemingly a poor woman's Catherine Tramell from Basic Instinct). Even Helgenberger's Willows half-hearted subplot story with her weepy mess of a daughter Lindsey (Faking It's Katie Stevens) having doubts about her abilities as a second generation CSI investigator – as well as mulling over taking in the orphaned children of one of her casino employees killed in the blast – loses a bit to the cutting room floor and seems pointless rather than coming full circle. All of this leaves little room for an intriguing case or a chance to see the high-tech investigation techniques and CGI explorations of corpses. The killer makes no impression when initially introduced and their reveal during the climax is as much an anticlimax as the setpiece involving the final bomb. The finale may satisfy those who are invested in the characters but it does nothing to win over the casual viewer in terms of character development or plotting, seemingly lacking whatever it had to distinguish itself from the many spin-offs, imitations, and innovative rivals. 
Video
Paramount's dual-layer disc lists the program as "Immortality Parts 1 & 2" although there is no direct access to part two and no scene selection menu (chapter 6 of 10 commences the second part) although it appears to be presented here in its feature broadcast version without part one end credits and part two recap and opening credits. The interlaced, anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen presentation looks quite slick in standard definition when one considers the mostly backlit, predominantly blue and grey look. There is some NTSC smearing in the reds during the casino scenes, but that is to be expected. 
Audio
Audio options consist of English Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo tracks as well as a Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo dub. The 5.1 track gives a bit more surround presence as expected, but the sound design is not overly adventurous. Optional English SDH subtitles are also included. 
Extras
Extras start off with an audio commentary by creator Anthony E. Zuker in which he discusses his bittersweet feelings about writing the finale while looking forward to CSI: Cyber. The discussion is full of platitudes for the cast (possibly some emphasized because their characters had less to do in the finale). More interesting are his comments on the casting of the killer and concern over how obvious it would be given their recognition and identification with a memorable movie role (and how the audience trying to guess the killer's identity by how they are introduced is part of the weekly viewing ritual for fans).  The "Case Closed" (23:03) finds Zuker, blockbuster executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer (no stranger to identikit procedural drama with Without a Trace and Cold Case), CBS president Les Moonves reflecting on the show's influence on pop culture (spawning a sub-genre of police procedurals) as well as the good and bad aspects of the "CSI Effect" that both informed the public about the science of investigation but also gave them unrealistic expectations. The cast reflect on their starts on the show and their favorite moments on the show. Peterson and Helgenberger also contribute to the discussion of how the look of the film was conceived with amusing anecdotes on flashlight beams while the producers discuss the challenge of visualizing the science to keep the viewers interested in the technical dialogue. In "CSI: Sign Offs" (12:34), the major cast members speak to the camera, thanking their fans for the support and musing on the big part the show has played in their careers (with Danson the most moving about coming on to the already successful show and having the opportunity to be part of the phenomenon). The Deleted/Extended Scenes (9:14) may interest fans of the show but offer very little of interest for the casual viewer. We get redundant scenes of D.B. discovering that the LHK logo on the gold piece matches Lady Heather's logo, we get a scene of Doc presenting the other half of the key to Catherine, Catherine fails at cheering up her daughter who feels she has made a bad impression on Grissom (in the episode, we only see Catherine asking Grissom to talk to her), and a scene meant to precede the final scene that is implied by Sidle's actions.
Overall
CSI: Immortality - or CSI: The Finale as it is titled on the DVD cover - may satisfy those who are invested in the characters but it does nothing to win over the casual viewer in terms of character development or plotting, seemingly lacking whatever it had to distinguish itself from the many spin-offs, imitations, and innovative rivals. 
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