Those Who Wish Me Dead - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Those Who Wish Me Dead



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras: :
Final Score:


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Movie
Those Who Wish Me Dead got THRASHED when it was released in HBO Max. A victim of the pandemic it was shuffled off to HBO Max, and everyone started dissing it left and right. It got so bad that I watched the first 5 minutes on HBO and decided to just turn it off and not waste my time until I got the physical release so as not to put myself what seemed to be utter drek twice. Well, Maybe it was a case of over exposure to negative opinions, or whether I’m just “different” than other critics, but I didn’t think the film was that bad when I watched it tonight. Ok, so it ISN’T the greatest disaster/survival movie of all times, but I also think it didn’t deserve all of the rabid hate funneled it’s way. It was a decent movie that had a good cast, and even a solid plot. But a movie that falls apart in the final act and makes you feel like it was a hollow victory for all involved.

Angelina Jolie is Hannah, a PTSD damaged fire jumper who is put on Fire Tower duty in Northern Montana after she fails a psyche eval RIGHT after watching a trio of young children get killed under her watch as a fire jumper. She’s got a sort of death wish going on, grumbling under the boredom of being stuck in a tower, but fully willing to take crazy stunt risks in order to get out of this existence. However, her mettle is going to be put to the test when she runs into a teenage boy named Connor (Finn Little) who is running from a pair of assassins (played by Aiden Gillen and Nicholas Hoult) that murdered his father and is now after him. The Details are pretty quick and easy, and fairly superfluous to the story in all reality. His father Owen (Jake Weber) was a forensic accountant who dug up some evidence against some powerful people, and said powerful people sent said assassins out to clean up all who found out. Toss said kid into the middle of and have him meet up with Hannah, and bingo, we have a survival thriller.

Not only is Hannah and Connor on the run from the two assassins, but a giant lightning storm starts off a wildfire that threatens to engulf everyone involved. If Hannah and Connor make it away from the assassins, they very well may not make it out from under mother nature and a LOOOT of fire.

The movie is fairly engaging and surprisingly gory. The few murders that happen throughout the film actually show some nasty guts and chewed up bodies. While there’s not a whole lot of super hollywood action moments, the fights are tense and visceral, filled with the country woodsy style that Taylor Sheridan is known for. One thing that caught my attention was how realistic the personalities of the two assassins were. There was no pontificating, no emotional Hollywood moments where you’re on their side. Simply two cold blooded killers who treat it as a job and do what is necessary to finish it. Period.

The final act really slogs down though. Everything feels like it just peters off in the last 25 minutes even though things DO get resolved. There’s no emotional connection with Jolie and Finne Little, which probably also stems from the fact that Angelina has so much botox in her face over the years that I don’t think she could make a facial expression if she wanted to. Jon Bernthal and Medina Senghore as the married survivalist couple were probably the best part of the movie, and while I’m fairly ambivalent about most characters in the movie, they were fantastic in the minimal roles they played (also something of note. I haven’t seen Tyler Perry in a big movie in YEARS, yet he plays a cameo as the Assassin’s boss for a 5 minute scene).




Rating:

Rated R for strong violence, and language throughout




Video:

While not the greatest film, the HBO Max version was shown in 4K and with Dolby Vision at that, which is obviously where the 4K master came from for this “dumbed down” 1080p edition. The image looks great for the most part, with some yellowed and orangey looking color grading, but most of the time it’s a fairly neutral look. The mountainy area of Montana looks lush and fertile, with deep greens outdoors mixed with earthy looking browns. Facial details look amazing, from the burn scars on Aiden’s face, to the little flecks of blood dribbling from a wound on Connor’s head. Blacks are deep and inky, though I did notice some noise swarming in the background (the opening shot with Hannah gasping awake in bed near the beginning is obvious). Aside from that and some minor banding, it’s a very impressive looking disc, even though we don’t get the full 4K experience that I wished we could have had.






Audio:

Warner is usually REALLY good about putting Atmos mixes on their films that had Atmos originally, even the Blu-ray discs, but the Atmos track found on the HBO Max encode is nowhere to be seen, instead giving us a basic 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix. That being said, this is NOT a weak track at all, and once again proves that you don’t have to be an Atmos track to sound fantastic in this day and age. The mix is a sonic powerhouse, literally leveling the entire sound stage with deep pounding bass and a massive surge of surround usage. The track does quiet down for some of the more talkey bits, but this is a tour de force mix that doesn’t let you go till the credits roll. The score, the roaring fire, the gunshots, everything just ripples with low end energy. Combined with a great sense of shifting and panning throughout the soundstage (especially with the fire), this is a track that is incredibly delightful to listen to.









Extras:

• Making Those Who Wish Me Dead

Final Score: ​

All in all, I wasn’t impressed with Those Who Wish Me Dead, but I also didn’t think it was as abysmal as people made it out to be too. It was a mediocre movie that was moderately entertaining, but at the end of the day it wasn’t nearly one of Taylor Sheridan’s best works. Especially when you compare it to things like Sicario, Hell or High Water and even Wind River. Something which makes me think that Sheridan is a better writer than he is a director. The Blu-ray looks and sounds great though, which coupled with the fact that I didn’t think the movie was half bad leaves me recommending it as a rental.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Angelina Jolie, Nicholas Hoult, Finn Little, Jon Bernthal, Aidan Gillen, Jake Weber, Tyler Perry, Medina Sengwhore
Directed by: Taylor Sheridan
Written by: Michael Koryta, Charles Leavitt, Taylor Sheridan
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, French, Spanish DD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Studio: Warner Brothers
Rated: R
Runtime: 100 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: August 3rd 2021

Recommendation: Rental

 

[Todd Anderson]

This is looking like a pass for me. Bummer, because those Sheridan titles you listed are great flicks!

 

[Michael Scott]

This is looking like a pass for me. Bummer, because those Sheridan titles you listed are great flicks!

Yeah I've noticed when he's director he's not nearly as good as when he's just a writer.

A better director could have made this a better movie

 

[Asere]

Saw this one on HBO MAX when it premiered. It kept me entertained.