The Movie
It's funny how people's opinions of movies can vary so much. Many
who see Bullet for the first time dismiss it as
just another excuse to exploit violence, sex and profanity.
Others love it no matter what, simply because their favorite
rapper, the late Tupac Shakur, stars in it. Some think the plot
is pointless, while others feel the execution of the story is
excellent. Well, one thing that's certain is that this gritty
movie pulls you into its powerful, albeit harsh, reality of life
on the streets. And if you take a step back and look beyond the
violence and brutality, you will see a movie about family, and
the destructive capabilities that drug use can impose on it. Yes,
at times the plot loses some of its focus by deviating from the
real story, but overall it's a decent film. If director Julien
Temple had focused more on Bullet's dysfunctional family, it
would have been a much better movie.
Mickey Rourke plays "Bullet," a recently released
convict who spent eight years in jail for a crime he didn't
commit. Rourke, who co-wrote Bullet, plays a
tough, laidback guy from the streets so perfectly, it's almost
impossible to imagine anyone else performing this role any
better. Throughout the film we follow Bullet as his life quickly
self-destructs amidst blatant drug abuse and the forces of
revenge inflicted by his drug-dealing nemesis "Tank,"
played convincingly by Shakur. And although Shakur's part is
rather small for a headlining character, he makes his presence
known with credible realism, though falling well short of
Rourke's performance. But perhaps the best acting in the movie is
given by Ted Levine, who plays Bullet's schizophrenic older
brother, Louis. Louis is mentally ill and believes he is a member
of an elite military Special Forces unit, dedicating half of his
daily routine preparing for the next immanent battle. Levine's
time on screen is almost always humorous and adds just the right
amount of over-the-top antics, telling us that, yes, Bullet has
one messed up family.
Aside from the acting, Bullet also shines
brightly in its music. The songs throughout play as important a
part in the movie as the main characters themselves, with some of
the best songs coming from Barry White. After watching this
movie, it's clear why the soundtrack was so successful back in
1997.
In summary, Bullet is a movie about street life,
and how its consequences can affect a loving family. The movie is
loosely based on the real life happenings of screenwriter Bruce
Rubenstein, which may be why Bullet feels so
real and cruel at the same time. Life is often presented in
movies as a bunch of roses, and Bullet does a
good job showing us the thorny side.
The DVD
Video: New Line Home Entertainment gives us the
rare choice of picking between two aspect ratios; Widescreen
1.85:1 and Full Screen 1.33:1. This is a welcome addition and
should always be included on the disc if space allows. Also
included is the choice between "rated" and
"unrated" versions of the film.
Overall, the transfer looks great. New Line consistently produces
high quality DVD's and Bullet is no exception. The picture is
generally sharp and detailed, with no visible signs of edge
enhancement. Colors are bright and accurate, and black levels
look true, which is good, because a majority of this movie is
filmed in the dark. There's really nothing to complain about, as
this is an excellent video transfer.
Audio: The audio is presented in Dolby Digital
Stereo. Besides the absence of any solid special features, this
was probably the most disappointing aspect of the DVD. A gritty
action movie like this deserves a 5.1 audio track. And although
the stereo soundtrack does an adequate job of filling the sound
field, I kept longing for the fuller sound that Dolby Digital 5.1
provides. But the included soundtrack isn't bad, as the music and
dialogue come across clear and audible.
Menus: The menus are mostly static, with the
major exception of the scene selections menu, which shows a
moving video clip of each chapter. You can expect a stationary
picture with a vague montage of movie moments being shown in the
middle for most of the menus. Overall the menus are functional,
but fail to dazzle or take that extra step in immersing you into
the DVD.
Extras: This DVD is almost completely void of
special features. The only inclusion is a five-minute
"making of featurette" that shows a small glimpse into
the story behind Bullet. This featurette is not very informative
and should have been longer and more detailed. But as this was a
straight-to-video release, I suppose getting at least one
featurette is better than nothing.
Final Thoughts
Bullet was left on the shelf for a while before
being released straight to video. So unless you rented or bought
the VHS or Laserdisc, this may be the first opportunity for many
to see the movie. Seeing Bullet on DVD was my first time
ever viewing the movie, and I admit my expectations were very
low, which may have helped lift my overall impressions in the
end. And although I did enjoy the movie, I would probably suggest
against buying this DVD unless you're a diehard fan of the movie
or its actors. You don't really get any special features of any
kind, so you had better like the movie, because that's all you
get. But the movie is entertaining and offers an interesting look
into the life of a dysfunctional family and the effects drugs can
have on people with potential. So, Bullet is definitely worth
checking out at least once.
