BLU-RAY REVIEW

Death Knot

Featured In Issue 265, January/February 2023

Picture3.5
Sound4
WSR Score3
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):
Well Go USA
(Catalog Number):
WGU03448B
(MPAA Rating):
Not Rated
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$29.98
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
(Running Time In Minutes):
101
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
1/17/2023
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
(Director):
Cornelio Sunny
(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):

"Death Knot" is the story of the sudden suicide of two sibblings' estranged mother. After the event, the siblings return to their hometown and are immediately confronted by angry villagers. Convinced that the woman was a devotee of a dangerous brand of black magic deemed responsible for a string of mysterious deaths over many years, the locals demand tat the siblings leave and allow for the burning of their childhood home in order to rid the town of the curse. While initially skeptical, a string of strange occurrences leads the siblings to believe there may be more truth to the rumors than they dreamed possible. (Gary Reber)

Specia features include upfront previews and the trailer.

The 2.39:1 1080p picture, reviewed on a Sony Bravia Z9D 4K Ultra HD HDR display, was photographed on Super 8mm and sourced from a 2K master Digital Intermediate format. The imagery is stylized with filters that create a creepy appearance during scenes within the mother's house. This results in a soft look in backgrounds while keeping the main characters relatively in focus. Exteriors are realistically sharp. Color fidelity is natural but often muted. Flesh tones appear natural, Contrast is generally balanced with muted white levels, revealing shadows and acceptable blacks. Resolution at times is generally good but often appears soft. Overall, this is a low budget production that is generally satisfying visually, (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1-channel soundtrack is dynamic sounding with natural sounds of movements and atmospherics. Rain and thunder are often prominent as a background element and sound perfectly natural. The music is aggressively enveloping in the surround channels. As well, panning effects are aggressive to effective effect. The Indonesian dialogue (with English subtitles) sounds generally well integrated. This is an effective holosonic® soundtrack with aggressive surround envelopment. (Gary Reber)