The Film
Put six stars in a box and see if they can act their way out. That would be about as entertaining as this heist film where nothing goes as planned - in part because the plan is so nonsensical that even the complete suspension of disbelief can't save the day.
Matt Dillion, Jean Reno and Lawrence Fishburne play security guards who concoct a "plan" to enact a fake hijacking of their own armored cars, and walk away with the money. A sudden twist of fate and six seemingly inseparable buddies are now at odds, with the usual twist and turns that make the film feel like a testosterone-laden Panic Room. The film suffers from a lack of character development, a rushed plot and basically a lot of build up that then goes nowhere slow. The ultimate heist is the 88 minutes that you won't get back after watching Armored.
The Picture
Despite the fact that much of the film takes place within the armored cars, or later in an abandoned warehouse in the City of Industry, Armored actually looks quite impressive. The settings come to life and show off the contrast and shadow detail of the Blu-ray format quite well. The few outdoor sequences show off that sunny clear blue sky nicely as well, and the green of the massive amounts of money can't be missed. The 2.35:1 1080p presentation is about as good as you could expect, albeit there is so little to look at in this one.
The Sound
The 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack is good, and provides all the immersive background sounds you'd expect to hear from the rumble of the motors in those massive trucks to the intense pop and crackle of gunfire. This one does a bit less than expected with the ambient sounds however. As much of the story takes place with a character locked inside a truck, it seems more could have been to provide a soundscape that offer the muffled sounds that would be barely audible. Thus while the film looks as good as we'd expect on Blu-ray the audio isn't quite up to the task.
The Extras
The irony of the bonus features is that a making of featurette called "Planning the Heist" is included, and it is interesting in what went on to bring this to the big screen. Did no one address the issue that the story lacks a believable plan? Other extras include the usual BD-Live, Digital Copy and some additional background pieces on the stunts and production design. The producer and cast commentary are also included, and do address a few shortcomings.
Final Thoughts
Caper films are made or broken on the believability of the heist. The problem with Armored is that the plan is so off the charts that it fails terribly, and even an old school cop drama could offer a more convincing tale. While the disc provides a fine looking picture, and some interesting bonus material, the story falls so short that this one steals nothing but an hour and a half of your life.
Product Details
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