BASIC
($28) is the kind of movie that is entertaining and entertaining while you
are watching it, but falls apart in your mind afterward, if you think
about it too much. There are plot holes in this military murder mystery,
but the performances, John Travolta’s in particular, really make BASIC
fun to watch. Travolta stars as Tom Hardy, a DEA agent with career and
drinking problems, who is requested to do a favor for an old friend in the
military. After a training exercise in the Panamanian rainforest goes
horribly awry, Colonel Bill Styles (Timothy Daly) calls on former Army
Ranger Hardy to "unofficially" help out with the investigation.
The
mystery involves six potential Army Rangers and their drill sergeant that
were deposited in the jungle- and only two of the trainees making it out
alive. With one of the survivors unconscious and the not talking, it falls
to Hardy to assist the official investigator, Captain Julia Osborne
(Connie Nielsen), to get at the truth. What follows is a series of
conflicting stories (and flashbacks) concerning the death of Sergeant
Nathan West (Samuel L. Jackson) and why the group of trainee Rangers
seemingly turned on one another during a fierce storm in the jungle. To
say any more about BASIC would spoil the film’s surprises, and
there are a number of them, as the story twists and turns in, around and
on itself. The cast of BASIC also includes Giovanni Ribisi, Brian
Van Holt, Taye Diggs, Dash Mihok, Cristián de la Fuente, Roselyn Sanchez
and Harry Connick Jr..
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made BASIC available on DVD in a
2.40:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. This is a very good transfer of very dark and difficult
material. Most of BASIC takes place at night or in very darkly lit
interiors, which is compensated for by excellent shadow detail throughout
the majority of the film. Some shots are a bit lacking in definition, but
the picture never appears soft or muddy. In general, the image comes
across as sharp and very nicely detailed. Colors are hemmed in by the film’s
lighting design- one cannot see bright colors, if there isn’t any light
shining on them. Anytime the lighting allows, colors do become stronger
and better saturated, but for the most part hues come across in a
restrained manner. Blacks appear very inky, whites are strong and the
image provides a good grayscale during darker scenes. Digital compression
artifacts never offer a major cause for concern.
BASIC
comes with a great sounding Dolby Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack. The
sound designers would seem to be having a field day on this movie, pumping
up all of the film’s action sequences and those involving the violent
storm that occurs during the flashbacks. All of the discrete channels are
aggressively utilized for sound effects, as well as creating strong
atmospherics. Sound effects are distinct and pan in various direction
across the soundstage in a very convincing manner. Dialogue is always
crisply and cleanly rendered; maintaining intelligibility, even when sound
effects are at their most ferocious. Fidelity is excellent, which benefits
Klaus Badelt’s fine musical score. The bass channel is highly potent,
which adds weight and percussive impact to the film’s explosions and
gunfire. A French 5.1 track is also encoded onto the DVD, as are English
and French subtitles.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as well as the DVD’s supplement materials.
Director John McTiernan is on hand for a running audio commentary that
proves to be informative, but a bit slow moving. Basic: A Director's
Design is a twenty three minute program that proves to be more in
depth than the typical behind-the-scenes featurette, without the expected
emphasis on John McTiernan. Basic Ingredients: A Writer's
Perspective runs seventeen-minutes and features screenwriter James
Vanderbilt, who discusses his screenplay, as well as offing a look at
deleted scenes. A theatrical trailer for BASIC, as well as bonus
trailers for BAD BOYS II, FORMULA 51, IDENTITY, TEARS
OF THE SUN, S.W.A.T. and XXX close out the supplements.
Thanks
to John Travolta’s presence, BASIC remains entertaining for its
ninety-nine minute running time, even if the story doesn’t hold up under
careful scrutiny. What does hold up, is Columbia TriStar’s fine DVD
presentation, which looks quite good and sounds even better. If you are
interested in checking out BASIC at home, there is no better way
than the DVD.
BASIC
($28) is the kind of movie that is entertaining and entertaining while you
are watching it, but falls apart in your mind afterward, if you think
about it too much. There are plot holes in this military murder mystery,
but the performances, John Travolta’s in particular, really make BASIC
fun to watch. Travolta stars as Tom Hardy, a DEA agent with career and
drinking problems, who is requested to do a favor for an old friend in the
military. After a training exercise in the Panamanian rainforest goes
horribly awry, Colonel Bill Styles (Timothy Daly) calls on former Army
Ranger Hardy to "unofficially" help out with the investigation.
The
mystery involves six potential Army Rangers and their drill sergeant that
were deposited in the jungle- and only two of the trainees making it out
alive. With one of the survivors unconscious and the not talking, it falls
to Hardy to assist the official investigator, Captain Julia Osborne
(Connie Nielsen), to get at the truth. What follows is a series of
conflicting stories (and flashbacks) concerning the death of Sergeant
Nathan West (Samuel L. Jackson) and why the group of trainee Rangers
seemingly turned on one another during a fierce storm in the jungle. To
say any more about BASIC would spoil the film’s surprises, and
there are a number of them, as the story twists and turns in, around and
on itself. The cast of BASIC also includes Giovanni Ribisi, Brian
Van Holt, Taye Diggs, Dash Mihok, Cristián de la Fuente, Roselyn Sanchez
and Harry Connick Jr..
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made BASIC available on DVD in a
2.40:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. This is a very good transfer of very dark and difficult
material. Most of BASIC takes place at night or in very darkly lit
interiors, which is compensated for by excellent shadow detail throughout
the majority of the film. Some shots are a bit lacking in definition, but
the picture never appears soft or muddy. In general, the image comes
across as sharp and very nicely detailed. Colors are hemmed in by the film’s
lighting design- one cannot see bright colors, if there isn’t any light
shining on them. Anytime the lighting allows, colors do become stronger
and better saturated, but for the most part hues come across in a
restrained manner. Blacks appear very inky, whites are strong and the
image provides a good grayscale during darker scenes. Digital compression
artifacts never offer a major cause for concern.
BASIC
comes with a great sounding Dolby Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack. The
sound designers would seem to be having a field day on this movie, pumping
up all of the film’s action sequences and those involving the violent
storm that occurs during the flashbacks. All of the discrete channels are
aggressively utilized for sound effects, as well as creating strong
atmospherics. Sound effects are distinct and pan in various direction
across the soundstage in a very convincing manner. Dialogue is always
crisply and cleanly rendered; maintaining intelligibility, even when sound
effects are at their most ferocious. Fidelity is excellent, which benefits
Klaus Badelt’s fine musical score. The bass channel is highly potent,
which adds weight and percussive impact to the film’s explosions and
gunfire. A French 5.1 track is also encoded onto the DVD, as are English
and French subtitles.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as well as the DVD’s supplement materials.
Director John McTiernan is on hand for a running audio commentary that
proves to be informative, but a bit slow moving. Basic: A Director's
Design is a twenty three minute program that proves to be more in
depth than the typical behind-the-scenes featurette, without the expected
emphasis on John McTiernan. Basic Ingredients: A Writer's
Perspective runs seventeen-minutes and features screenwriter James
Vanderbilt, who discusses his screenplay, as well as offing a look at
deleted scenes. A theatrical trailer for BASIC, as well as bonus
trailers for BAD BOYS II, FORMULA 51, IDENTITY, TEARS
OF THE SUN, S.W.A.T. and XXX close out the supplements.
Thanks
to John Travolta’s presence, BASIC remains entertaining for its
ninety-nine minute running time, even if the story doesn’t hold up under
careful scrutiny. What does hold up, is Columbia TriStar’s fine DVD
presentation, which looks quite good and sounds even better. If you are
interested in checking out BASIC at home, there is no better way
than the DVD.
