BLU-RAY REVIEW

Brick Mansions

Featured In Issue 193, January 2015

Picture4.5
Sound5
WSR Score3.5
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
2296932
(MPAA Rating):
PG-13
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$
(Disc Type):
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
90/100
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
(Regional Coding):
(Theatrical Year):
(Theatrical Release):
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
(Director):
Camille Delmarre
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(Subtitles):

In Brick Mansions, Damien (Walker) is an undercover cop determined to bring down Tremaine (RZA), the crime lord who murdered his father. Tremaine rules the violent criminal compound known as “Brick Mansions,” but he's thwarted at every turn by a heroic ex-convict named Lino (Belle). Their paths nerver should have crossed, but when Tremaine kidnaps Lino's girlfriend, Damien and Lino become unlikely allies, and must work together to stop Tremaine's plot to devastate the entire city.

Both the theatrical version (01:30:17) and the unrated extended version (01:40:01) are available. Special features include the featurettes On Set Action With Paul Walker (HD 02:13), Becoming Tremaine (HD 04:10), and Brick By Brick: Creating The Characters (HD 06:06); the theatrical trailer; upfront previews; and an UltraViolet digital copy.

The 2.38:1 1080p AVC picture was photographed digitally with the Red Epic camera system in the Hawk Anamorphic format. Clarity is excellent, with the fast-moving imagery consistently sharp and pristine. The color palette during the intense action scenes is stylized with a hue set of drape browns, greens, grays, and beiges that evoke the urban decay throughout at the Brick Mansions. Fleshtones remain essentially natural throughout, Contrast is nicely balanced with strong blacks and revealing shadow delineation. Resolution is excellent, with fine detail exhibited throughout, especially during close-ups. Overall, this is a nicely produced action film that looks great.

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is a real energy boost, with particularly aggressive atmospherics and sound effects that are directionalized throughout the holosonic® soundfield. The Foley element is extremely active, especially during the numerous action sequences. Gun fire is pounding. All of the action sequences are bolstered by deep, powerful bass that extends at times to sub 25 Hz frequencies, for a strenuous workout in the .1 LFE subwoofer channel. The hip-hop music score is dynamic and punchy sounding and provides effective envelopment. Dialogue retains clarity, though, there is a lot of ADR that is wanting in natural spatial integration. This is a terrific, dynamic sonic experience with plenty of deep bass energy that is an engaging experience.