Arsenal
(2017/Lionsgate Blu-ray)
Picture:
B+ Sound: B+ Extras: C+ Film: C
Arsenal
(2017) is another mob flick with a decent cast in Nicholas Cage, John
Cusack, and Adrian Grenier (HBO's Entourage). The film scored
dreadfully low with critics and didn't see a wide theatrical release
likely due to its tired storyline and drastically over the top acting
by Cage (whose fake nose in the movie is laughably distracting), an
actor who seems to be drowning in 'Direct to VOD/Home Video'
obscurity these days. The best actor in the film is Cusack, who is a
snide wise-cracking plain clothes cop but even he can't save the bad
screenplay, which seems to have been written in hopes that Guy
Ritchie would direct it.
Two
brothers, Mikey (Schaech) and JP (Grenier) live two different lives.
JP lives a modest life running a construction company, while Mikey is
up to no good, getting himself mixed up with a Mob Boss (Cage) and
ultimately getting kidnapped and tied to a chair. In an attempt to
find him, JP enlists the help of Sal (Cusack), a cop, who both follow
the dirty trail to bring his brother home. Along the way, we are
treated to several bad moments for Cage's character, who most of the
time is covered in blood, killing people in slow motion, and yelling
out his lines to the point of incoherent jabber.
Presented
on Blu-ray disc with a 1080p high definition transfer and a
widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 and paired with a nice sounding,
lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 track, the film looks and
sounds fine for Blu-ray disc with sharp character details and high
contrasted colors that feel very cinematic despite the film's lower
budget. Also included is a digital UV copy of the film.
Special
Features:
Feature-Length
Audio Commentary with Director Steven C. Miller
''Building
an Arsenal'' featurette
Extended
Cast and Crew Interviews
Other
Lionsgate Trailers
A
lackluster Mob movie, Arsenal doesn't really bring anything
new or exciting to the table, save a decent performance by Cusack.
-
James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
