Blood Work on DVD
Now and then, its nice to see an A-list Hollywood icon
taking a role thats appropriate for his age, rather than some of the
older and more decrepit actors trying to pull off the sexy action hero well
into their 70s.
Clint Eastwood plays Terry McCaleb, an aging FBI detective on the
trail of a serial killer. But when the case turns into a foot chase, he
collapses from a heart attack and requires a transplant to stay alive. Shortly
after being released from the hospital, McCaleb is approached by a woman
claiming to be the sister of the woman from whom Terry received his new heart.
She asks him to try and find out who killed her sister, stating:
Youre alive because shes dead. Its the least you can
do.
So McCaleb becomes a private investigator and shows the local cops
a thing or two about solving murder cases. As the plot unfolds, we learn that
the killer is the same man McCaleb was chasing when he had his heart
attack.
Its a typical whodunit thriller, but the writing is much
better than usual. The details that lead McCaleb to the killer are not nearly
as hard to believe as the average murder mystery, and its nice to have a
hero who isn't invincible, but who can still triumph in the end. Eastwood
speaks in his usual gruff, unenthusiastic tone, but it works. Clearly though,
hes a much better director than actor.
Blood Work may not be anything particularly new, but it does
deliver where many similar movies have failed. In fact, it may be the best
whodunit since L.A. Confidential (which was, interestingly enough, also penned
by Brian Helgeland). The skilled writing and direction, and a fabulous
performance by Jeff Daniels all add to the believability and intrigue.
Its well worth checking out for fans of the genre, or anyone wanting to
see an example of how these movies should be done.
Unfortunately, despite how good the movie is, it performed less
like Eastwoods more successful films (such as Unforgiven) and more like his much less successful
films (such as Absolute Power). Still, the DVD provided by Warner Bros. is not
bad, considering.
The video is presented in separate widescreen and "full screen"
(read "Pan&Scan") versions (why are
studios doing them separately now?), and the picture quality is quite
impressive. For the most part its very clear, but now and then its
a tiny bit grainy. This is not a big deal, since it gives it more of a classic
whodunit feel, and the overall quality makes up for it. The audio track (5.1
Dolby Digital) is pretty good, but as always, more surround use would have been
nice. Granted, there are not plenty of opportunities for massive surround use,
but a few occasions would call for such, yet theyre still fairly limited.
Now and then you can hear a few sound effects crackling out of the rear (insert
joke here), but nothing spectacular.
Extras on the disc include a making-of featurette that includes
the typical cast and crew interviews, and A Conversation in Spanish with
Clint Eastwood, Wanda de Jesus and Paul Rodriguez (with English
subtitles). Neither are overly lengthy or interesting, but the movie deserves
some extras and here they are.
Overall, a nice presentation for a very deserving film.
Blood Work, from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
110 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) 16x9 enhanced, 5.1 Dolby Digital
Starring Clint Eastwood, Jeff Daniels, Wanda de Jesus, and Anjelica Huston
Screenplay by Brian Helgeland
Produced and directed by Clint Eastwood
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