Black
Box
(2012/Lionsgate DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: D Film: C-
Black
Box,
which was originally finished in 2012 and is just now seeing a home
video release, sports a decent cast of C listers (Jason London, Ray
Park, Kevin Sorbo, and Brad Dourif to name a few) and a
genie-in-a-magic-lamp-esque plotline crossed with something along the
lines of Terminator
and Highlander.
What hurts the film the most are some of its lackluster special
effects and odd moments along the way that make the whole thing feel
a bit off kilter, mainly the scenes with Jason London.
Inside
a mysterious black box lies the secret to one's desires. As the
black box changes hands, each new owner must resist what they covet
most or prepare to defend their salacious greed against an immortal
assassin (Sorbo). As several lives collide, can they escape the
wrath of avarice and the black box? Sounds a lot like Hellraiser
without Pinhead, huh?
The
highlight of the film is Brad Dourif, who faces off against Sorbo in
his home and he makes it apparent that he is an unstoppable force as
Dourif greets him with gunfire but it doesn't phase him. Dourif
always been a zany and original twist to a role and it was nice to
see him pop up in this.
Presented
in standard definition with an anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio of
1.85:1 and a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 track, the film looks fine on
DVD but could benefit from a high definition upgrade. English and
Spanish subs are also on the disc along with a Digital UV copy.
The
only extra is a trailer and trailers for other Lionsgate releases,
which are mostly played before the disc hits the menu.
All
in all, Black
Box
has some decent science fiction ideas but many that feel recycled
from other sources and crunched into a short feature film length (the
whole film is only around 80 or so minutes). The concept was perhaps
too big for its budget, however that doesn't stop it from having some
decent performances by veteran actors.
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films
