Primal Fear on Blu-ray Disc Review
By Rachel Cericola
The Film
Despite an all-star cast, the true pull of
Primal Fear is a young Edward Norton. Before taking on Larry Flynt, jacking up for
American History X, or going green in
The Incredible Hulk, Norton beat out 2,100 other young hopefuls for a role in this legal drama. He also snagged an Oscar nomination. Not bad for your first film, eh?
Norton plays Aaron Stampler, a 19-year-old altar boy accused of the extremely brutal murder of a Chicago archbishop. Richard Gere is the hotshot lawyer willing to work pro bono to put his name in the headlines; Laura Linney is the prosecutor. The cast (and that's just the tip of the iceberg) is very good. Even the story has plenty of interesting elements, including religion, pornography, multiple personalities, and a land scheme.
However, the movie also has plenty of cliches (the two legal eagles have a romantic history, the multiple personality twist). Also, you'd think filmmakers would want to do something with its overflowing cast. That actually might be a good thing, though. After all, at 130 minutes, the film seemed to drag out longer than jury duty. Still, if you can hang in,
Primal Fear is worth a viewing, especially for a peek at Norton's first, Oscar-nominated performance.
The Picture
Not sure what makes this the "Hard Evidence Edition," but it certainly shows off new detail in high-def. The 2.35:1 transfer is very clear, with solid blacks and a lot of detail, especially during aerial cityscapes and close-ups on street shots. Of course, some of this detail is also bad, making the bloodstains seem less gruesome and more like syrup.
The Sound
The TrueHD format delivers a lot of trains, cars and other street sounds. However, when it comes to the dialogue, keep your finger on the rewind button. There's a lot of low talking in this movie, and we found ourselves rewinding and cranking up the sound more than a few times.
The Extras
We may have found a winner for the world's most boring commentary contest. While there are a few nuggets, none of the cast is present -- not even Steven Bauer. They may as well have had actual lawyers do it (which could have been kind of interesting). Speaking of legal jargon, expect to get a lesson in extras such as "The Psychology of Guilt." The most notable feature is "A Star Witness: Edward Norton," which is a new interview, but basically 14 minutes about how the actor was perfect and beat out a ton of others to play Stampler. It's a bit long-winded, but also lets slip that the filmmakers were originally looking at Leonardo DiCaprio for the Oscar-nominated role.
Final Thoughts
Beyond the shadow of a doubt,
Primal Fear is worthy of a peek on Blu-ray. It's got a top-notch cast and great detail. However, we find it guilty of being a little boring and dragging on about 30 minutes too long. In other words, it's probably not a necessity; go for the rental instead.
Where to Buy:
Product Details
- Actors: Richard Gere, Edward Norton, Laura Linney, John Mahoney, Alfre Woodard, Frances McDormand, Terry O'Quinn, Andre Braugher, Maura Tierney
- Director: Gregory Hoblit
- Audio/Languages: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (English), Dolby Digital 5.1 (French, Spanish)
- Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Region: A
- Number of Discs: 1
- Rating: R
- Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Disc Release Date: March 10, 2009
- Run Time: 130 minutes
- List Price: $29.99
- Extras:
- A Star Witness: Edward Norton
- Commentary by director Greg Hoblit, writer Ann Biderman, producer Gary Luccesi, executive producer Hawk Koch, and casting director Deborah Aquila
- Primal Fear: The Final Verdict
- The Psychology of Guilt
- Original Theatrical Trailer
