The Movie
Alec Baldwin stole his scene (and arguably the whole show) in the big-screen adaptation of David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross, so perhaps the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright had a hand in casting the dashing actor in The Edge...? Mamet's screenplay, under the direction of Lee Tamahori (Die Another Day) weaves a tale of adventure as brilliant but uptight and socially awkward billionaire Charles Morse (Anthony Hopkins) takes what he thinks will be a daytrip while on an Alaskan holiday. He's invited by a slightly shady fashion photographer (Baldwin), who may or may not have murderous intent, but after their small plane crashes in the wilderness, Charles discovers that he's not quite as smart as he'd hoped. And when a huge Kodiak bear begins stalking the human prey, wits and determination are all that stand between life and death. The early scenes in particular rely upon Hopkins' reserved performance, and his slow emergence from his shell lends an unexpected charm to a tale of survival under brutal, frightening conditions.
The Picture
As Fox has done on some of their previous catalog Blu-ray releases, The Edge is presented in old-school MPEG-2, and it's not at a particularly high bitrate. (The package lists it as an average of 18 Mbps.) Although shot on film, this 2.40:1 master exhibits some severe video strobing, plainly visible in the plane crash sequence but elsewhere too. I remember the way the image broke up on the original DVD version during the fast action of several shots when the bear attacks a particular character, and that problem persists here. If I had to guess I would say that this was the same master, more than 10 years old, which is a shame. Lightly snowy wind does not play well in compressed digital video, and I noted a nasty after-image lingering on the screen following a fade out, then a just-as-nasty before-image preceding a fade-in. Perhaps the best thing I can say about this disc is that there's no distracting edge enhancement.
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio sound is pleasingly aggressive with a deft use of the five speakers and subwoofer. The directionality of a plane is effectively captured, with a thoughtful channeling of the wind across the soundstage. Ample exploitation of the rears keeps us, y'know, on edge, with creaks or an off-screen bear or other discrete noises. Bass reinforcement is respectable, with more obvious moments such as the big rainstorm, complete with thunder. And Jerry Goldsmith's lovely, thrilling score has never sounded better.
The Extras
We don't really get jazzed about trailers, but that's all that this disc is packing, for this movie and the catalog titles Broken Arrow, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Flight of the Phoenix and The Siege. All are in MPEG-2 at varying bitrates, and all except Butch are accompanied by Dolby Digital 5.1 audio.
Final Thoughts
The awe-inspiring scenery of The Edge is a character unto itself, unfortunately it--like everything else in this movie--doesn't receive its due, the fault of a sub-par, outdated video master. A pity, as the film itself (and the DTS-HD Master Audio sound) are worth checking out.
Product Details
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