The Sentinel (2006/DVD-Video)
Picture: C+ Sound: B- Extras: C- Film: D
Michael
Douglas has had a rough time of it lately, not getting to make the cutting edge
films he used to make all the time.
Outside of a few slight comedies, everyone is waiting for him to get
back to form since he did Traffic
and that has not happened. Now, he has
made the sadly terrible The Sentinel,
a 2006 would-be thriller with Kiefer Sutherland, Eva Longoria and Kim Basinger,
now not on the poster art. Our theatrical
film critic turned in the following review that I strongly agree with:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3643/The+Sentinel+(2006/Theatrical+Film+Review)
Now the
other reason some thought this might be a good film is because it is based on a
book by Gerald Petievich, who wrote the book that inspired the classic 1980s
thriller To Live & Die In L.A.,
directed by William Friedkin. My review
for the fine standard Special edition DVD can be found at:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/571/To+Live+&+Die+In+L.A.
Of
course, expecting a second classic might be much, but director Clark Johnson
did not do a disastrous job on the mixed S.W.A.T.
revival and it was hoped he would excel.
Instead, the result is a much worse film that is flat, dull and
predictable, or the total opposite of the Friedkin masterwork.
What is
worse is that in the way people talk and the story is structured, you can pull
some common denominators between the films, showing Petievich as the source of
both works. However, this film is so
flat and dull that it never lives up to any potential it might have had and George
Nolfi’s screenplay is loaded with missed opportunities at every turn. What a mess.
The
anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image is surprisingly dull and cannot put a
patch on the detail, use of color or other clever strategies Friedkin’s film offered. Cinematographer Gabriel Beristain,
A.S.C./B.S.C., is also dull, on the colorless side and very unmemorable. The same goes for the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix
that has some surrounds going for it, but is an unimaginative mix
otherwise. Extras include a
Johnson/Nolfi commentary, two mixed featurettes and alternate ending/deleted
scenes with optional Nolfi commentary.
Even the extras are better on To
Live & Die In L.A., which oddly covers some of the same material.
- Nicholas Sheffo
