The Long Kiss Goodnight |
Roadshow Entertainment/Roadshow Entertainment .
R4 . COLOR . 116 mins .
MA15+ . PAL |
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The second pairing of Geena Davis and Renny Harlin brings another action adventure story to the big screen. Their previous effort in Cuthroat Island was considered a box office flop. They needed something cooler, something more attractive to both a male and female audience - and it proved to be a hit. Samantha Caine (Geena Davis) is your average mother who starts to have horrific flashbacks from a past she can't remember. When she finds out the true reason for her memory loss all hell breaks loose as this former assassin remembers that she in fact was a government agent called Charlie Baltimore. Meanwhile, Mitch Henessey (Samuel L. Jackson) is the detective out to help Charly find her enemies and bring them down.
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The transfer used here is the same as that from the original release. We are treated to a very good looking image that needs a little bit more to nudge it closer to being a reference transfer. The problem here is that I felt the print to be a little dirty in some areas and a tad soft given the quality I've seen on some of their other past and future work. In some areas, the softness actually consumes details that should be there such as a picket fence looking more like a white wall. This is not an overtly bad problem as this example is more of imagery in the background. Black levels are fine, yet the shadow detail is missing and actually consumes some objects rather than defining them. It's hard to rate this transfer, as in comparison to other transfers it's fine but in comparison to the best out there it's a little lacking. In all fairness though, colour saturation is as expected and the 2.35:1 anamorphic image does have a lot to offer over what a non-anamorphic transfer wouldn't have produced, if you understand what I mean here.
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There's one thing that you can associate with all Renny Harlin's action films - an excellent soundtrack. This is no exception and is tremendously active from the opening credits. First off, the basics. Dialogue is clear and audible all the way through with no sign of audio synch problems. All levels across the front sound stage are evenly matched. Directionality is abundant, as almost every scene has some sort of split surround or motion effect to compliment the on-screen action. When we are at the skating ring, anyone moving across the screen produces a swoosh. Whilst not realistic, it does help compliment the film's outrageousness. You want bass? Well as Paul mentioned in his review of Deep Blue Sea (or is that Deep Bass Scenes?), these soundtracks go deep, real deep. In the final scene when the explosion occurs you will experience a whoppingly exaggerated amount of bass which will satisfy all action fans with the right equipment.
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I enjoyed this movie, my mother enjoyed this movie, but my little cousin got scared pretty early on. I guess Geena Davis's face with short hair and heavy make-up can do that to a kid. This is one of the better female action hero flicks and is a 180 degree turn from her role in Thelma & Louise. The idea of a female assassin is always a good movie topic (La Femme Nikita) and this attempt is a good one at that. You'll enjoy the ride, trust me.
LINK: http://www.dvd.net.au/review.cgi?review_id=60
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