|
.
 |
| . |
|
| . |
|
.
Now Available |
|
|
| ..... |
Natural Born Killers :
Director's Cut |
"The
media made them superstars" |
Reviewed by
Cass Nunn |
Director
Oliver Stone
Cast
Woody Harrelson,
Juliette Lewis,
Tommy Lee Jones,
Robery Downey Jr.
Music
Leonard Cohen and others
|
| Screen
Format/s |
1.78:1 Anamorphic Widescreen |
| Audio
Track/s |
DD5.1
English
DD2.0 Commentary |
| Subtitle/s
|
None |
| Region Code
|
4 |
| Chapters
|
30 |
| Disc Format
|
DVD9 |
| Running
Time |
117 minutes |
| Extras |
-
Director’s cut Trailer
- Deleted Scenes
- Alternate Ending
- Audio Commentary: Oliver Stone
- Featurette: Chaos Rising |
| Classification
|
R18+ |
| Distributor
|
Universal
Pictures |
| Release
date |
13th December
2000 |
 |
|
|
|
..... |
|
| . |
 ... |
Natural Born Killers would have to be one the hardest
films I have ever reviewed especially in summarising the plot. As this has been and will
always be a film of such controversy that is often compared to A Clockwork Orange. While A
Clockwork Orange really turned me off this film had quite a different effect and it really
will have amazing effects on every viewer. While I see this as a 90’s version of
Bonnie and Clyde, this could also be taken as having some amazingly blunt social
implications as well.
The story is about the rise to fame and the ensuing fall of Mickey (Woody Harrelson)
and Malory Knox (Juliette Lewis). Mickey and Malory are basically a moving disaster and
they kill and murder people for any minor thing that bothers them. They start off in a
diner having a quiet meal where Malory takes offence to the sexual advances of a couple of
disgusting rednecks. And for this they pay in a violent shooting.
As they feel more and more invincible their killing spree goes on until they are
eventually cornered.
The film features flashbacks from when they are imprisoned and of course flashbacks,
which describe the unsavoury environment in which, Malory was brought up.
Really you need to watch this too make of it what you wish. While I found the senseless
violence a little overbearing it did have it’s purpose in the film.
So how does this transfer hold up? |
.... |
VIDEO
Again the Video transfer of this film is equally hard to review. The film is presented at 1.78:1
and is Anamorphic Widescreen. There are so many intended differences in the
visual aspect of the film it is difficult to find fault but at the same time while
watching the film you can’t help but feel that the quality isn’t there. This is
all very much intended and is not a fault with the transfer by any means.
The images are reasonably sharp and clear throughout the
transfer and show no signs of edge enhancement. Shadow detail is also quite good but never
great and again I don’t think this is a transfer fault.
There is a prevalence of grain throughout the film, which at times is obviously
intended but at other times I feel is a quality inherent of the source material that was
not intended.
Colour saturation also varied for the most of the film, but this is also an intended
characteristic, which gives the film a lot more character, similarly to the way colour is
used in the The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, in that particular scenes are
intended to have emphasis on particular colours.
There are only a few small instances of shimmering and mpeg artefacts. |
AUDIO
The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track is by far the biggest
improvement to this film’s transfer to DVD rather than that other format that has
moving parts in it (VHS).
There is a lot of dialogue in the film and most of it is
clear and easy to understand except for a few mumbly sequences, which unfortunately cannot
be helped, as this is again a problem derived from the source.
The surround channels and LFE channel are given a real workout and at times become a
little too invasive into the audio field. This is of course intended as it really keeps
you on your toes throughout the film. The violent nature of the images is given a whole
extra kick with a violent reaction in the audio as well. While the surrounds helped to
support the score they also gave a lot of directional effects life and were working
overtime throughout the same can be said for the LFE channel, which also gets a big
workout |
EXTRAS
- Director’s cut Trailer: A trailer making the bold
statement that this is the directors intended cut of the film.
- Deleted Scenes: Six scenes which have not been included in
the directors cut, and they really didn’t need to be included anyway.
- Alternate Ending: A strange and yet interesting alternate
ending.
- Audio Commentary: Oliver Stone: Lots of great background
info to be had here folks, but still difficult to sit through. Featurette:
- Chaos Rising: Basically a collection of interviews and some
other feature material.
OVERALL
While anything violent really isn’t my thing there will always be something to be
said after watching this film.
|
| PICTURE
QUALITY |
8/10
inconsistent yet still pretty good |
SOUND
- Quality
- 5.1 WOW Factor |
9/10 a bit too much too hard.
9/10 heaps of wow in this one. |
| EXTRAS |
6/10 not especially great |
| OVERALL |
8/10 this will always have
it’s standing in film. |
Review Equipment
TV: GE 68cm (16:9 selectable)
DVD: Pioneer 737
Receiver: Yamaha RX-V595a
Speakers:-
Fronts: B&W 602 (on a pair of custom made stands you'd KILL for)
Centre: Venturi
Rears: Wharfedale Diamond R6
Sub: M&K v75
- Reviewed 10th July 2001
* jpeg files for internet promotion use
only. Copyright© exists on all aspects of these files by Universal Pictures Video |
|
|
