When it comes to gripping opening scenes, Shattered has to come near the top. As the credits roll, we are passengers in a car as it careens down a long, winding highway at top speed. Then, suddenly, instead of taking the next turn correctly, the car – and us along with it – smashes head-on into the barrier at the side of the road, and goes straight over. Still in shock from that first-person view, we shift suddenly to see the car arc over the highway's edge and fall... down, and down, and down, smashing to pieces along the way. Car crashes may be a dime a dozen in ordinary action movies, but the opening scene in Shattered is starkly impressive.

What's more to the point, this scene is more than just a spectacular way to open the film: it's the pivotal point of the entire film. You see, the two passengers in that car were Dan Merrick (Tom Berenger) and his wife Judith (Greta Scacchi); she escaped virtually unscathed, but he was rendered unrecognizable by his horrific wounds. Even after reconstructive surgery brought him back to normality, Dan is haunted by the accident, because he has lost his memory of anything before that night. But since Dan's loving wife is so devoted to nursing him back to mental and physical health, and since he has a fantastic house, a full bank account, and an important job at a high-powered architectural firm, it seems that all he needs to do is to put the past behind him and start enjoying his second chance at life.

Except that some things just don't add up. In fact, viewers will start spotting some of the ways that these things don't add up even before Dan himself twigs to it. But soon enough he figures out that something is not right, and enlists the aid of a semi-retired private detective (Bob Hoskins). As the story unfolds, Dan uncovers an astounding maze of deception.

One of the things that makes Shattered stand out a bit from the crowd of mystery/suspense thrillers is its shockingly effective presentation of the emotional impact of the main character's car accident. The repeated, slightly stylized, imagery of Dan's face impacting against and shattering the car windshield is used in short, intense cuts along with rapid-fire flashbacks of him being tossed around inside the car like a rag doll, with the result being a viscerally effective rendition of his experience. It's entirely convincing that, after this literally "shattering" experience, Dan would suffer from amnesia; and it's equally convincing that his desperate need to recover his memory causes him tremendous psychological pain as his experience comes back to him in bits and pieces.

Shattered lends itself well to theorizing about what's going on while the movie is progressing; viewers are given exactly the same clues as the characters are. Some aspects of the mystery are relatively easy to figure out, but other parts are much trickier; during the course of the film, I created a couple of theories about what was going on, found supporting evidence, and then was forced to re-evaluate when the plot thickened and conflicting evidence surfaced. Director and writer Wolfgang Petersen (best known for films like Das Boot and Air Force One) here does an excellent job of setting up a suspense thriller where the tension comes naturally from the story. Often the hardest thing to pull off in a film like Shattered is the final "twist": can the film come up with an ending that makes sense given the clues scattered throughout the story, that is at least partially unexpected, and that offers a compelling closure to the film? Shattered provides a strong finish in this regard, pulling the various plot threads together effectively and offering a sense of closure that is slightly unexpected as well as satisfying.

The DVD

Video

Shattered is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and I was pleased to note that it is anamorphically enhanced. The image is a notch above average on the whole, with natural-looking, bright colors and a good level of detail. Contrast is satisfactory as well; while some of the very dark scenes could have used a bit more detail, on the whole the darker scenes look fine, with solid black levels. The main issue with the transfer is a substantial amount of grain in the image, combined with some noise and edge enhancement. Unfortunately, half the space on the DVD is wasted by a pan-and-scan transfer of the film, or we might have had a slightly better transfer. All in all, though, Shattered offers a respectable viewing experience.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 soundtrack gets the job done. Dialogue is clear and clean, there's no noise in the background, and everything sounds as it should. The main problem with the sound is that the extremes of volume are badly handled: the dialogue scenes are far too quiet relative to the more explosive scenes. Certainly, the film is going for a shock effect with the sudden loudness of the flashback scenes, but it's one thing to make the viewer jump in his or her seat, and quite another to be so loud as to be physically unpleasant. I ended up turning on the "dynamic range compression" feature to avoid having to lunge for the volume control, and this effectively "tamed" the soundtrack. (It still made me jump at all the right moments, so the effectiveness of the soundtrack didn't depend on its extremes of volume.) Apart from that, the rest of the soundtrack is perfectly fine.

A Spanish Dolby 2.0 track is also provided, along with English, French, and Spanish subtitles.

Extras

I suggest that viewers not linger on the menu screen, as for some odd reason the montage of images in the background picture include several definite spoilers for key events in the film. The only special feature is a trailer, anyway, so there's no reason not to just hit "play movie" right away.

Final thoughts

Shattered ends up being a stylish and entertaining thriller, offering a complicated plot that's intelligently handled. The story is suspenseful and interesting throughout; it's the kind of movie that rewards viewers who actively try to puzzle things out as the story develops. With its decent anamorphic transfer, Shattered is a good bet for a purchase if you're in the mood for a suspenseful evening.