Movie Reviews

Three cops, a call girl, a mysterious millionaire, a tabloid journalist fuel a labyrinthine plot rife with mystery, ambition, romance and humor.

Honestly, cop thrillers don’t get much better than this. Never mind the incredible cast and performances, the story alone is a clincher. This re-launched the career of vixen Kim Basinger but also put Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe in the spotlight. A great tapestry of murder, intrigue and thrills. Few films are this good.

The Blu-ray presentation does a great job of capturing the stylistic cinematography of this film. It was always meant to look a bit dated and I loved the use of striking color, stark contrast and slightly muted detail. While the image is not razor sharp it still has great fine detail, dimension and depth. Colors are bold when they want to be and give the film the dated look it’s going for. Fans won’t be disappointed.

The Dolby TrueHD soundtrack is a good time and a decent upgrade from the previous DVD release. The most striking quality is Goldsmith’s score, which sounds very rich and opens up the soundstage considerably. Dynamics are excellent in the more intense sequences and the spatial feel of the mix is quite good. Dialogue is reproduced nicely and doesn’t seem to get lost in the mix.

This 2-disc set includes a feature commentary with the director and just about every actor in the film. There is also a collection of features on the production and it adaptation from book to screen. Warner has also included the pilot episode of the TV show, which never went anywhere, an interactive map of LA and an isolated 5.1 score for fans of Jerry Goldsmith’s work. The second disc is a CD and includes a few selections from the film’s soundtrack.

Catalog titles don’t get much better than this and Warner has done a great job bringing this one to Blu-ray. A must own in my opinion.