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Quentin Tarantino Presents: Hell Ride (Blu-ray)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Genius Products Review written by and copyright: Rob Fields & Noor Razzak (27th November 2008). |
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The Film
 When this disc reached me, I was kind of surprised that it was a Quentin Tarantino produced movie. I had it figured for some kind of direct-to-video horror movie. Still, sometimes, you never know what you’re going to get until it gets into your own hands. Still, when you see Tarantino’s name on the cover, that should indicate that you’re more than likely going to be in for a treat. You can be sure that there’s going to be some violence involved. No, not just SOME. Try LOTS. There’s also going to be some SORT of good guys vs. the bad guys action. Okay, Tarantino’s been involved with both action and horror alike. But the battles are still going to be the same. As of late, you will see much of Tarantino’s roots planted. In this case, you will see much of the Grindhouse era. For those of you who don’t know what this means, there were movie houses that showed movies from B-films, to porno films, to exploitation, to anything that Hollywood didn’t normally make that would be considered 'out there' or 'cheesy.' Okay, “Grindhouse” (2007) was made by Hollywood, but Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez were fans of that era. They lived through it, and they wanted to bring the experience to you. Now, thanks to “Grindhouse”, that era may be making a comeback. Let’s see how “Hell Ride” compares and if Tarantino knew what he was doing in putting his name on the label. “Hell Ride” comes from writer/director Larry Bishop, it's a lean, mean mayhem machine – fully loaded with bikers, babes, and booze. Michael Madsen, Eric Balfour and legendary “Easy Rider” Dennis Hopper are part of a wild motorcycle gang bent on avenging the death of one of their own. With Vinnie Jones as the crazed arrow-wielding rival gang leader, “Hell Ride” is a savagely enjoyable good time where the women are hot, the bikes are even hotter, and the action never stops! From the opening logos and credits, you can already get the feel that it’s a Tarantino 'influenced' film. Okay, Tarantino didn’t make the film, nor did he write it. He only produced it. Still, you could swear that this film was his. It has the violence one would come to expect from a Tarantino style film. If you’re looking for lots of four-letter words, they’re all there. You want to see lots of killing? It’s here. You want to see lots of naked women? It’s got those those too. I’m surprised that the MPAA actually let this much slide for an 'R' rating. While these particular films aren’t my genre, I will go out of my way to watch a film with Tarantino’s name on it. Even though it’s a studio-made movie, it still conveys the Grindhouse era on it, even though...well, read the Video part of the review for a closer look at why. I liked seeing some of the familiar Tarantino staples such as Madsen, David Carradine, and Dennis Hopper in this film. As always, they deliver the goods when it comes to their acting ability. I’m also familiar with Balfour. He’s been in many TV shows and movies. Definitely a good character actor. While he may or may not stand out to people, depending who you are, his acting ability shows why he’s still in the business. I also enjoyed all of the twists that the movie had. Just when you think things are going good for one side, something happens to turn the tables. In other words, there aren’t too many sure things in this movie. The downsides? It’s too bad that the quality of the video didn’t match the quality of the trailer. I ended up seeing that first before going into the movie. I was thinking that it was going to be Grindhouse quality. I do so hate inconsistency. My final word: Even though this movie was directed by Larry Bishop, it still plays very much like a Tarantino film. If you’re a Tarantino film fan, then you’re definitely going to love this one.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 2.39:1 and in high-definition 1080p 24/fps mastered in AVC MPEG-4 compression codec. This transfer looks stunning, striking and just about everything you'd expect from an HD image. The picture is sharp but also retains a rough grindhouse feel which is matched by the color palette. There's grain but this is part of the look, detail is excellent, blacks are deep and bold and the image features great depth. There are no flaws to this image, Genius has done a terrific job with this image.
Audio
Two audio tracks are included in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround mastered at 48kHz/24-bit as well as a standard Dolby Digital 5.1 track in English. For the purposes of this review I chose to view the film with its trueHD track. The audio is impressive, aggressive and blasts through your surround system. It's a loud mix, but dialogue is clear and distortion free, the film's score pumps through the surround channels, ambient sound is also utilized to add depth and create an immersive track for viewers. Optional subtitles are included in English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
Genius Products has included some bonus trailers before the Main Menu, an audio commentary track, 5 featurettes, and the film’s theatrical trailer make up the Special Features presented on this DVD. Read further for insight into these titles. Only the featurettes have optional English subtitles. There is a feature audio commentary track by writer/director/producer Larry Bishop and director of photography Scott Kevan. These two men talk about the scenes as they watch them. These guys definitely aren’t wisecracking as they’re talking. No, they are giving you technical details. Bishop shares his thoughts about some of the scenes that he himself was in. If you enjoy the behind-the-scenes details and such, then you will definitely enjoy listening to these two talk for the whole length of the movie. I know I did. The first of five featurettes “The Making of Hell Ride” runs 8 minutes and 51 seconds. Here, you will see Bishop and associate producer Laura Cayouette talking about how Larry had talked to Tarantino about making the movie. Quentin gave Bishop his blessing in making “Hell Ride”. Apparently, Bishop had starred in biker movies in the past, so who better to write, produce, direct, and star in THIS movie? The second featurette “The Babes of Hell Ride” runs 5 minutes and 20 seconds. You will have interviews from some of the women of the movie. You will also hear from Bishop and Cayoutte as well as from other members of the cast about the women featured in “Hell Ride”. The third featurette “The Guys of Hell Ride” runs 14 minutes and 19 seconds. Here, you will get interviews from mostly the male members of the cast and crew. It is here that one key point is made about the film: There are NO good guys! Some of the cast explain their characters a little. Bishop basically tells you what he was looking for in each character, including his own. He also tells you that he wrote a part for Michael Madsen on the count of his connection to some of Tarantino’s films that he was in in the past. The next featurette “The Choppers of Hell Ride” runs 9 minutes and 35 seconds. It starts out with Madsen and Hopper giving their 2-cents. You also learn about Justin Kell, who was the motorcycle coordinator for “Hell Ride”. Kell wanted to make sure that each motorcycle identified with its rider. Drake also comments on how these bikes had to look like they had been through hell and back. Madsen tells about how his motorcycle came about. The final featurette is “Michael Madsen’s Video Diary” starts out with an advisory on how the video diary was shot and that noting was altered in order to preserve the original material. The video diary runs 9 minutes and 4 seconds. You will basically see behind-the-scenes footage of some of the shooting for “Hell Ride”. You will also get some input from Madsen himself. The film's theatrical trailer is a red-band version and runs 2 minutes and 45 seconds. For those of you who don’t know what a red-band trailer is, it is a trailer that MPAA has deemed for 'Restricted Audiences.' Unlike the green-band version, you get the gore, nudity, and foul language that comes with the red-band version. And being that this film has Tarantino’s name on it, would you Tarantino fans expect any less? Oh, and the trailer also has the scratches and blemishes that are similar to the way “Grindhouse” (2007) was presented.
Overall
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