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Below
Stars:
Matt Davis, Bruce Greenwood, Olivia Williams, Holt McCallany, Scott Foley, Zach
Galifianakis, Jason Flemying, and Dexter Fletcher
Writers:
Lucas Sussman, Darren Aronofsky, and David Twohy
Director:
David Twohy
Feature
length: 105 minutes
Extras:
Optional Feature Commentary With Director And Cast, Optional Director Commentary
For Deleted Scenes, “The Process” Featurette, Theatrical Trailer, And Home
Video Sneak Peaks
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Subtitles:
English Captions and Closed Captions
Packaging:
Keep Case
Chapter
Stops: 18
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Year
of Theatrical Release: 2002/DVD Release: 2003
Theatrical
Distributor: Dimension Films
Home
Video Distributor: Dimension Home Video
MPAA
Rating: R
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
During
World War II, the submarine USS Tiger Shark picks up three survivors from
an apparent U-boat attack. Diving to avoid another enemy ship, the crew of the
ship soon begin to experience instances of paranoia, hallucinations, and finally
the outright fear that there is something aboard the ship that is not quite
human, not quite alive, and not quite dead either.
Writer
and Director David Twohy has become a brand name when it comes to genre films
although he still has not quite crossed over into mainstream recognition as a
Director the way people might associate a John Carpenter or Wes Craven with the
kind of film they are probably going to see attached to the names respectively,
but his previous credits as Writer and Director of “Pitch Black” and “The
Arrival” along with this new release “Below” has me inclined to think that
if “The Chronicles Of Riddick” feature film with Vin Diesel is a hit, he may
finally have the crossover name recognition he deserves. However for now, at
least viewers in the know can enjoy his films on DVD.
Co-scripted
and produced by Darren Aronofsky (PI) “Below” is an interesting mix of World
War II thriller and supernatural suspense. The film features some spectacular
looking underwater effects and creates a great feeling of claustrophobia and
terror as the ship begins to feel like a giant haunted tomb. Those looking for a
gory flick filled with monstrosities will be likely disappointed since
“Below” aims for the more suggested horror of the unseen with only the
briefest glimpses of any paranormal entities and some old fashioned use of sound
and shadow the create a creepy atmosphere. The attention to detail is impressive
and the cast led by Bruce Greenwood (Nowhere Man) works well enough together to
make the viewer feel that they are seeing a real submarine crew instead of a
bunch of actors in costumes. If there is any caveat I have with “Below” is
the solution, which seems a bit ridiculous if not contrived. Overall though I
would note that there is more to like in “Below” than there is not to like
and the film is definitely worth a rental now that “Below” is available on
DVD courtesy of Dimension Home Video.
Presented
in an anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio, “Below” looks great on
DVD with excellent contrasts and a very detailed picture. There are no instances
of compression anomalies or color bleeding at all. The English Dolby Digital 5.1
Surround Soundtrack has a very effective discrete sound mix that adds to the
creepy atmosphere of the film viewing experience at home. English Captions and
Closed Captions are encoded onto the DVD as options. Director David Twohy
participates in a lively optional feature length audio commentary track with
Actors Bruce Greenwood, Hot McCallany, Zach Galifianakis, and Nick Chinlund that
is more conversational than screen specific. Twohy also provides optional
commentary for three deleted scenes (8:18) presented with a very good quality
letterboxed (1.85:1) aspect ratio with English Stereo Sound. These scenes are
made up of “Creepy Comic” (1:36), “R2 Hot Fish” (3:38), and an alternate
“Red Flare Ending” (3:03).
The
featurette “The Process” (12:24) is a video diary of the production shot by
Twohy that gives plenty of production footage to final scene comparisons as well
as script excerpts that show the changes that occur to the pages with the actors
performances as well as storyboard and effects shots plans. The featurette is
refreshing for the most part because it gives a concise look at the making of
the film without being superficial. The (1.33:1) theatrical trailer for
“Below” (2.27) is presented along with five other home video trailers for
“Halloween Resurrection” (2:00), “Dracula 2002: Ascension” (1:02),
“Tangled” (1:15), “Undisputed” (1:42), and a “Dimension: Cutting Edge
Films” (1:51) advertisement. All six trailers feature full English Dolby
Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The main menu opens with an animation that gradually
stops with a selection of standard interactive still frame DVD menus that are
all easy to navigate.
“Below”
is available on DVD now from Dimension Home Video and well worth a look.
©
Copyright 2003 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
Buy This DVD Now By Clicking On The Text Link Below!
Below