Wrath of Man - Blu-ray Review

Michael Scott

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Wrath of Man


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Movie: :4stars:
Video: :4.5stars:
Audio: :4.5stars:
Extras: :
Final Score: :4stars:



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Movie

Guy Ritchie was once the king of witty British crime dramas back in the late 90s and early 2000s. He made a legend of himself with Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch (the spiritual successor to Lock, Stock) and kept a pretty good name for himself going till about 2010 or so. That’s when he decided to go more “mainstream”, and did films like The Man from Uncle, both Sherlock Holmes films with Robert Downey Jr., and even a Disney film with Aladdin. It wasn’t till 2019 that the man decided to get back to his roots with gritty British crime dramas by making The Gentleman. Following it up with more of the same, Wrath of Man keeps much of the same crime tropes that made Ritchie a success, but kind of blends American with British (in a way similar to The Gentleman) with a taught action thriller that puts Jason Statham and Ritchie back in the drivers seat.

The film opens up with a seemingly unrelated armored car robbery that ends up with multiple people dead and the perps getting away. Fast forward to whenever in time we are and we see “H” (Jason Statham), and ex security officer moving from Europe to the United States where he takes a job at Fortico Security systems as an armored car driver. He’s quiet, has very little to say, but when the car he’s in gets robbed the seemingly mild mannered security guard unloads a can on the villains and systematically takes them out like a pro. The Higher-ups at Fortico do a pittance to look into the situation, but internally they’re relieved as that seemingly unrelated armored car robbery at the beginning of the film has them on edge and they could use the help.

What seems like a typical robbery movie is anything but, as Guy Ritchie pulls out all the stops and tells the seemingly linear story from a VERY non linear point of view. The film is sectioned off into four distinct chapters. The first being the “present” where H is obviously hunting for someone. The second rewinds the clock 5 months to show just WHY “H” is going undercover as a lowly security guard, the third being from the point of view of the armored car thieves who instigated the whole thing at the beginning of the film, and the 4th jumps back to the present where “H” and the thieves come to a little bit of a reckoning as all stories tie into this one.

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I don’t want to give too much away, as this is pretty typical of a Guy Ritchie story. Everything is interconnected, nothing is as it seems, and while the ending is a little easier to predict than some of his other films, it’s really the ride that makes it all worth the while. Action is vicious and brutal, but it’s not non-stop as you might expect from the opening 20 minutes. Sure Statham does his super commando thing for a couple of scenes, but the 2nd and 3rd story are very quiet, with them retelling some of the events that happened prior, as well as tuning the film into a thriller manhunt. However, that final scene is an all out bloody war between thieves and ….well….another thief, and it’s a mile a minute thrill ride when the bullets start cooking off.

Acting is all around good to great, with quite a few name brand actors coming in to give bit rolls, and medium sized rolls. I was a bit worried about Scott Eastwood as the kid is NOT in the same league as his dad Clint is, but he does a very impressive job at playing a complete jackass (which is really where he excels in his film career). Statham certainly leaves is mark on his films, and he’s kind of a mixture of his old witty self from previous Ritchie movies, as well as the cold hardened killer of his action movie days. One thing that actually surprised me was how restrained Ritchie was with the dialog. Usually Guy Ritchie films are kind of known for their use of heavily verbose language, biting dry humor, and rat-a-tat-tat lightning interchanges. The film has a few moments like that, But Ritchie doesn’t go too overboard with that sort of dialog, and keeps it a bit more down to earth. He still does make great use of lightning quick scene changes, forcing the audience to keep up with his breakneck speed of a story in 2 hours, even though it feels a bit slower than previous films of his pedigree.




Rating:

Rated R for strong violence throughout, pervasive language, and some sexual references




Video: :4.5stars:
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There IS a 4K UHD release of Wrath of Man coming internationally, but with all the hullabaloo with MGM and their massive financial woes, I’m shocked that this actually got a release at all. For those not 4K equipped it won’t matter, but for us 4K fanatics it did come with mild disappointment that we didn’t get one. Still, this is a very nice looking 1080p release that showcases fantastic details and great colors. The opening scene in sunny Los Angeles is absolutely stunning, and while the movie shifts to a more brown and blue toned affair as the film gets underway, still manages to showcase the glitz and brightly lit establishing shots in the city. Fine detail is superb for the most part, with only a few scenes that are heavily stylized keeping some of the detail at bay. Ritchie likes to use cool blue dark scenes with pushed white levels that sort of “cream” in the darkness, and give the blacks a sort of gauzy look. This shows up several times such as when H’s men go in looking for who did the armored car job, as well as the darkness in the back of an armored car. Otherwise black levels are strong, and outside of some faint banding, fairly artifact free. The dual layered Blu-ray does a fine job at capturing all of the little nuances, making this an excellent Blu-ray release.






Audio: :4.5stars:
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The singular 5.1 DTS-HD MA track found on the disc is as excellent as the video is, with great dialog, punchy bass, and a heavy surround mix that really lays it on thick. The opening scene sets the groundwork for the rest of the mix, showcasing a powerful score, thundering bass, and a sense of dread and intensity. The track quiets down for a bit, but soon picks up again with the impending gun battles that blast out of nowhere. The intense score really pushes the track forward, with a powerful bass line that really doesn’t let up at ALL during the runtime of the film, as well. Dialog is crystal clear throughout the film, even and including the Statham’s guttural British accent. It’s a well done mix that doesn’t let go of the listener till the credits roll, and really makes use of directionality during many of the fights. Great mix.








Extras:
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Final Score: :4stars:


Wrath of Man is a great return to form for director/writer Guy Ritchie, and while it’s not going to rival the greats like the previous mentioned gangster movies he’s legendary for, it’s a great movie that really showcases his lighter side, while still utilizing many of the staple tropes that made him a legend. Statham and Ritchie have always worked together like a hand and glove, and here is no different. It’s a tight 2 hour thriller that barely feels 90 minutes. I kind of wished for a 4K UHD for this flick like The Gentleman, but being that the theatrical and release rights were shared with Miramax and MGM (who is under MASSIVE redistribution) we’re lucky we got a release out of this at all. You can tell that Warner barely got enough rights to distribute the film and extras and even making it a combo pack fell by the wayside as this movie is barebones as it gets (one audio track, one subtitle track too). Still, don’t let that keep you from watching it, as Wrath of Man is a VERY good flick to watch if you’re a Guy Ritchie fan. Great watch.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Jason Statham, Holt McCallany, Josh Hartnett, Rocci Williams, Jeffrey Donovan, Scott Eastwood, Eddie Marsan
Directed by: Guy Ritchie
Written by: Nicolas Boukhrief, Eric Besnard, Guy Ritchie
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH
Studio: Warner Brothers
Rated: R
Runtime: 108 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: July 13th 2021
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Recommendation: Good Watch

 
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tripplej

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Thanks for the review. Never heard of it but will check it out now.
 

Grayson Dere

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I just watched this over the weekend! It was pretty good! : )
 
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