The Marine
(DVD-Video + Blu-ray)
Picture: C+/B-
Sound: B-/B Extras: B Film: C
The Marine feels like it's right
out of the mid-1980s when action films were ruled by
one-man-armies embodied by the likes of Stallone, Schwarzenegger and
Chuck Norris. But those similarities are clearly intentional, right down
to having the trailer for Commando
(1985) starring Schwarzenegger present on The Marine on the DVD edition.
This release has been issued in both regular DVD and the high def
Blu-ray format.
Produced
by Vince McMahon's WWE Films and starring WWE champion John Cena, John Bonito’s
The Marine (2006) is derivative in
the extreme, but some good stunt work and humorous touches in the script --
such as references to Deliverance
and co-star Robert Patrick saying, "This guy's like The Terminator" -- make it a
lot more tolerable than it could have been.
The
muscular Cena stars as John Triton, a U.S. Marine who saves many of his own men
in Iraq after defying an order. Despite saving the lives of fellow
Marines, Triton is still unceremoniously kicked out of the corps for disobeying
an order. But when he gets back home to South Carolina, he barely has
time to make love to his wife (Kelly Carlson) before she ends up getting
kidnapped by a group of ruthless diamond thieves on the lam (led by Patrick of Terminator 2 fame).
Of
course, Triton will then go into one-man-army mode and dispose of the bad
guys one by stinking one while trying to save the little lady. Lots of
explosions, big explosions, ensue.
The Marine brings to mind something Cannon
Films might have made 20 years ago starring someone like Michael Dudikoff,
albeit with better production values. But in a day and age when most
action films have become overwhelmed by unconvincing CGI, there's something
almost nostalgic about an actioner like The
Marine that simply relies on old-fashioned stunt work and
pyrotechnics.
And
I'll give McMahon this much: It's refreshing to see a movie (even one as
preposterous and predictable as this) that without reservation celebrates a
member of U.S. armed forces heroically during a real-life time of war when
much of Hollywood seems to sympathize with America's enemies.
Fox's DVD
of The Marine presents the film in
both its PG-13 theatrical cut and an Unrated cut. Both versions are presented in 1.85:1
anamorphic widescreen with 5.1 Dolby Surround sound, while the Blu-ray offers
only the Unrated version in 1080p MPEG-2 @ 21 MBPS digital High Definition
video from the HD shoot. The DVD is on
the soft side, with limited color and detail, while the Blu-ray shows the
limits of the HD shoot more than expected.
The Dolby mix on both discs are not bad, but typical of Dolby mixes for
action films with much boom and little character. The English Dolby is not on the Blu-ray, but
DTS HD Master Audio lossless 192kHz/24-Bit 5.1 is and it is the best sound
playback, but even the upcoming DTS HD chip is not going to save the mix from
being anything more than adequate.
Extras in
both versions include several featurettes, the original theatrical trailer
(which is exclusively HD on the Blu-ray), footage of the World Premiere at Camp
Pendleton and some WWE promotional features.
Cena is yet another would-be action hero who could be the next big thing
if he can break free of formula and bad scripts. With no True
Lies sequel on the way, he should take advantage while he has the chance.
-
Chuck O'Leary and Nicholas Sheffo
