Halo:
Nightfall (2014/Microsoft Blu-ray)
Picture:
B+ Sound: A- Extras: B Film: B-
Survival
is a Choice.
Halo
is without question of the most popular video game titles in modern
history, so it's no surprise that Microsoft Studios decided to come
out with this live action webseries, produced by Ridley Scott and
Scott Free Productions, as one of their first efforts together. The
film is shot well and the digital effects aren't terrible, but will
you be lost if you don't play the game? Not necessarily, but you
will probably get a lot more out of it.
Serving
as an origin story for Agent Locke, a secondary playable character in
Halo 5: Guardians, Nightfall is intended to connect the
stories of Halo 4 and Guardians. An ONI unit under
Locke's command is deployed on the distant human Outer Colony of
Sedra to investigate terrorist activity. Sedra is described as a
backwater world harboring a disdain for the Unified Earth Government
and the UNSC. During their investigation, a Sedran city is attacked
by a Sangheili terrorist wielding a biological weapon that only
affects humans.
Locke's
team is forced to work together with Sedran Colonial Guard commander
Randall Aiken and his troops to track down the origin of the
bioweapon. During their search, the unit is drawn to a partially
intact section of Installation 04, the Halo ringworld destroyed by
the Master Chief in the first Halo game. A grave threat present on
the ancient construct soon turns the mission into a desperate fight
for survival.
It
reminds me of an upscale Sy-Fy Channel production. The costumes,
production design, and overall scope is there, but the acting, long
dialogue featuring heavy 'tech talk', and lack of name recognition
hurts. I believe the plan is to make a TV series following this
film, so hopefully they will get some B list celebrities. Call up
The Rock or John Cena for the next one! Watching this makes me think
of what could have been if Neil Blomkamp would have gotten to make
his version of a Halo a few years back before he made District
9.
Presented
in 1080p high definition with a 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio and an
MPEG-4 AVC codec. The audio is a crystal clear, lossless DTS-HD
Master Audio 7.1 track and lossy, lesser Dolby Digital 5.1 in various
languages. The presentation is really nice on this disc! Incredible
sound and the details on the characters don't leave much to be
desired. Very sharp and nice work here.
If
you are a fan of Halo then I would say check this film out.
It's nothing too amazing but it could have been far worse. Decent
production design helps but all in all I crave a better cast.
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films
