MovieFreak.com - "Identity" Special Edition DVD Review by John Teves

DVD REVIEW

Identity - Special Edition (2003)

Starring: John Cusack, Ray Liotta, Amanda Peet

Director: James Mangold

Rating: R

Distributor: Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment

Release Date: September 2, 2003
Review posted: September 15, 2003

Spoilers: None

Reviewed by John Teves

Synopsis

Ten complete strangers are stranded at a remote desert motel during a raging storm and soon find themselves the target of a deranged murderer. As their numbers thin out, the travelers begin to turn on each other, as each tries to figure out who the killer might be.

Critique

IDENTITY is a film that will have you talking about it for hours. It has its own level of originality, bringing with it a breath of fresh air. The film isn’t perfect, but it does have a great cast giving IDENTITY the level of credibility that most thrillers don’t reach. Now this is not your typical thriller, it goes a little deeper into the psyche to really freak you out. This film will never insult your intelligence.

Additionally, it offers enough enticement and scheme that signifies the realm of understanding what the truth really entails eventually rising to its peak making everything else get warped around and leaving you in a feeling of bewilderment. Sound like fun? Oh it is - I don’t want to give anything away so I’ll just say this – IDENTITY provides an adequate “who done it” mystery/thriller. It’s unquestionably above-average film in the genre, and definitely worthy of a rental.

The Video

IDENTITY appears in both an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and a full frame presentation; the widescreen image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. For the most part, the disc offered a consistently fine visual experience with few concerns to note. Sharpness looked crisp and well-defined throughout the film. At no point did I see any signs of softness or fuzziness, as the film always appeared clear and distinct. I saw some examples of jagged edges and edge enhancement. Print flaws remained very minor. I detected no signs of specks or grit; the movie seemed to be nicely clean and fresh. For the most part colors appeared vibrant and rich. The movie made positive use of the tones, and they always stayed clear and accurate, with no problems. Black levels were deep and dense, and shadow detailed looked appropriately heavy but not excessively thick. Overall IDENTITY provided solid picture that consistently looked terrific.

The Audio

IDENTITY is presented in a Dolby Digital 5.1 track. Though it did display a moderate emphasis toward the front speakers the DD5.1 track offered a solid sound-field that worked nicely as it used all five channels. Sounds seemed to be discreetly and appropriately localized, and they blended together efficiently - presenting a clear and accurate atmosphere. Although the forward speakers did dominate the proceedings, the surrounds contributed quite a lot of audio as well. During quieter scenes, the rears usually offered soft but effective environmental sounds like rain and thunder. However, they really came to life during the films more frightening scenes - these elements helped make the movie more exciting and encasing and they did so in a natural and believable manner.

Audio quality also appeared to be solid. Dialogue sounded distinct and crisp, however during certain scenes speech showed signs of edginess and problems related to jumpiness, it could have been my disc, but it wasn’t anything that would overall effect the presentation of the film. Effects were nicely vigorous and dynamic, and they packed a strong punch when necessary. Those elements showed no distortion and they seemed to be clear and bold throughout the film. Ultimately, IDENTITY provided a very positive auditory track that worked well for its material.

The Extras

Commentary by director James Mangold
Theatrical trailer(s)
Exclusive branched version of film with alternative ending and additional scene (widescreen version only)
Four deleted scenes with optional director's commentary
Storyboard comparisons
STARZ special: On the Set of Identity
Full-screen and widescreen anamorphic formats

Overall

With a nice video transfer, decent audio quality and some reasonable extras, IDENTITY is an entertaining film for those Friday or Saturday night movie rentals. This film comes highly recommended.

John Teves rates the film 4 out of 4.

Review originally appeared on DVDFreak.net

VERDICT: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

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