BLU-RAY REVIEW

Source Code

Featured In Issue 158, July/August 2011

Picture4
Sound5
WSR Score5
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):
Summit Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
66118869
(MPAA Rating):
PG-13
(Rating Reason):
Some violence including disturbing images, and language
(Retail Price):
$30.49
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
94
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
Not Indicated
(Theatrical Year):
2011
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
07/26/11
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Duncan Jones
(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):
Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

When soldier Captain Colter Stevens (Gyllenhaal) wakes up in the body of an unknown man, he discovers he's part of an experimental governmental program called the Source Code that enables him to cross over into another man's identity in the last eight minutes of his life. Armed with the task of identifying the bomber of a Chicago commuter train, Colter must re-live the incident over and over again, gathering clues until he can solve the mystery and prevent an even deadlier second terrorist attack. (Gary Reber)

Special features include Access: Source Code Bonus View; commentary with Actor Jake Gyllenhaal, Director Duncan Jones, and Writer Ben Ripley; and up-front previews.

The 1080p AVC picture is extremely stylized with an overall "distorted" image quality that is fitting with the telling of the story. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate picture quality because of this stylization, which is unconventional. Colors are at times muted, depending on the perspective viewpoint, and otherwise are more richly hued and "natural." Black levels are deep and shadow delineation is revealing. Resolution is generally revealing of fine detail, but there is a "plugged-up" quality that casts a slight haze to the imagery. Still, the visual presentation is engaging and effectively supports the storytelling. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is tension-filled and driven by a Hitchcockian-styled orchestral music score. Chris Bacon's virtually continuous score is well recorded with a wide and deep soundstage presence that aggressively extends to the surrounds, providing an effective enveloping experience. Atmospherics and sound effects nicely enhance the suspense, supported at times with deep, powerful .1 LFE sub-25 Hz energy. Dialogue is spatially integrated throughout. This is a highly suspenseful and intense soundtrack that continues to build as the story unfolds, with an engaging holosonic® presence. (Gary Reber)