Inspector Pierre
Niemans (Jean Reno) faces the threat of the apocalypse while
investigating a series of ritual murders.
CRITIQUE
Crimson Rivers:
Angels of the Apocalypse is a decent but less interesting
movie sequel to the successful and intriguing Crimson Rivers,
which was directed by Mathieu Kassovitz. The new story follows
Niemans as he and a hot shot young detective (Benoit Magimel) are
on the trail of a group of assassins killing seemingly innocent
people, but these killings serve a purpose as the script later
points out; they mimic the deaths of the twelve Apostles.
Something eerie and dangerous is brewing inside a monastery,
something is about to usher in the end of the world, and
Christopher Lee (who appears for a total of maybe eight minutes)
plays the villain who leads his thugs dressed as monks to fulfill
some vague prophecy.
The script is by Luc
Besson, who is most known for his awesome work on Leon and
The Fifth Element. Besson tells a story that is supposed to
be mysterious but in the end doesn't add up to much. The character
of Niemans works alone until his investigation brings him to
detective Reda, which occurs after about thirty to forty minutes
into the story. Later both team up with an expert in Christian
mythology and the formula of the original movie is in place.
While the plot is
somewhat muddled and not always easy to follow, there are a number
of cool sequences, one involves a pretty crazy foot chase (man
that's a lot of running and jumping) and another cool sequence
occurs outside a shack by the lake. Props for that go to the
director of photography Alex Lamarque and director Olivier Dahan.
Another good aspect about the movie is the music by Colin Towns,
which heightens the mood and makes scenes play better than if
there wasn't any music.
My overall reaction
to Crimson Rivers: Angels of the Apocalypse is there are
some cool things going on but the story lacks intrigue and
cohesion. The plot concerning the "apocalypse" is not fleshed out
or explained enough to make it important, the plot lacks urgency.
On one final note the assassins who dress as monks move like
martial arts samurai of some kind and possess incredible strength,
a fact that is explained later in the movie but during the action
is highly questionable.
THE VIDEO
Sony presents
Crimson Rivers: Angels of the Apocalypse in 2.35:1 anamorphic
widescreen.
The colors look clean and
vibrant and somewhat muted during the darker sequences, and there
are quite a lot of them. Picture quality looks fine, there is good
amounts of grain here and there as are some specks in some scenes.
Dark levels are fine, sharpness and detail look good. Overall,
this is a pretty good transfer. Optional subtitles include English
and French.
THE AUDIO
Sony presents the
film in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround in both English (dubbed) and
French. Dialogue is fairly clear and easy to understand in terms
of the English language version. The dub track is produced quite
nicely and the voice cast deliver their lines pretty well, and the
person who does Jean Reno's voice sounds close to the actual Reno.
The music and sound effects are presented clearly as well. The
front speakers do a pretty good job reproducing the audio across
both front channels. Surround usage is evident in a few scenes but
limited.
THE EXTRAS
The back of the DVD
mentions a making-of featurette, which I assumed would be standard
fare, one of those 15-minute programs that airs on HBO or Starz.
To my surprise, Making of Crimson Rivers: Angels of the
Apocalypse(72:13) is a comprehensive documentary that
takes a look at the filming and scouting of various locations,
also featuring interviews with the director, cinematography and
others. The documentary is in French, naturally, and presented in
anamorphic widescreen. English subtitles are offered.
Next are a series of
brief but interesting featurettes focusing on specific topics,
including Lighting (4:43), Weapons (6:58), Design
(5:23), Corpses (4:54), and Sound Design (4:50).
Ultimately the enjoyment of these featurettes and the documentary
depends on whether you found the movie interesting. Even though I
think it's an average thriller at best, these extras are good to
have.
Lastly, there's a
deleted scene (1:27) that takes place in a strip bar but is
inconsequential.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Crimson Rivers:
Angels of the Apocalypse is not a bad film, it's an average
thriller that tells a somewhat muddled story. The filmmaking
aspect is good, however, with really nice cinematography, a few
interesting locations and sets, as well as good production design.
The DVD includes good extras and the film is average, it's worth a
rental.
