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Absolute Power
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
"Absolute Power" is based on the best-selling novel from David Baldacci; directed by (and starring Clint Eastwood), the film is a smart, well-paced thriller that provides plenty of great actors who offer similarly excellent performances.
The film stars Eastwood as Luther Whitney, a famous thief who found himself in the middle of another job when he's intrrupted by two people in the next room. He watches a couple whose intimacy turns violent, and the woman is killed during the fight by two men who burst in the door. It turns out that the man involved is the president of the United States(Gene Hackman) and soon, the White House begins a cover up, as the woman was also the wife of a very wealthy, powerful older man.
A number of agents, headed by Seth Frank(Ed Harris) are after Whitney, and the film becomes a well-done chase film, as Eastwood's character must outsmart his persuers. If other people had been involved with the making of the film, or if other actors had been involved, I really don't think the film would be as successful as it is. Harris turns in a superb performance, Eastwood is excellent as usual as both director and actor, and Hackman is good as well.
The film starts off seemingly like an ordinary thriller, but credit Eastwood and writer William Goldman for providing a film that keeps things not quite predictable, and a legion of characters who may or may not be what they originally seem. I haven't read the novel, but I must say that Eastwood's adaptation is certainly a successful one.
The DVD
VIDEO: Warner Brothers has done a wonderful job on "Absolute Power". There are some little spotty problems here and there, but for the most part, images look wonderful. Sharpness is consistently superb and images are well-rendered whether in the daylight or night, interiors or outdoor scenes. Shadow detail is very good, as well.
Jack Green's cinematography has been seen in quite a few major films; you may have seen his work in everything from "Twister" to some of Eastwood's other films, like "The Bridges of Madison County" and "True Crime". Here, he provides stunning work again, and the 2.35:1 frame is always well-composed. Colors are wonderful, as well; the film works with a palette of rich colors which look tight and well-saturated here, with no instances of problems. Black level is strong, and flesh tones are accurate and natural.
There are only a few little tiny problems; none of them take away from the viewing experience. These include the slightest couple of tiny marks on the print used, and only a couple of traces of pixelation.
A pan&scan version is located on the flip side. Aside from a few little spotty moments, this is an excellent early effort from Warner Brothers.
SOUND: "Absolute Power" also provides pretty involving sound, as well. The film is not hugely agressive, but provides an appropriate amount of surround use when needed. A lot of the film is simply dialogue-driven, but I enjoyed when it opened up more. Surrounds are mainly used for the score, or natural sounding outdoor sounds such as birds, etc.
The score is definitely great; it sounds wonderful as well, filling the listening space nicely, and sounding rich and well-recorded. Dialogue is also excellent, sounding especially natural and well-integrated.
MENUS:: Nothing too much going on in the menus, which is not out of the ordinary for the studio's early releases. Simple film images and blocky buttons for options.
EXTRAS: The one main fault fo the disc; only production notes, cast&crew bios and some text recommendations.
Final Thoughts: Good movie, great image quality, very good audio quality...no real extras. Still, "Absolute Power" is a good enough film to recommend.
"Absolute Power" is based on the best-selling novel from David Baldacci; directed by (and starring Clint Eastwood), the film is a smart, well-paced thriller that provides plenty of great actors who offer similarly excellent performances.
The film stars Eastwood as Luther Whitney, a famous thief who found himself in the middle of another job when he's intrrupted by two people in the next room. He watches a couple whose intimacy turns violent, and the woman is killed during the fight by two men who burst in the door. It turns out that the man involved is the president of the United States(Gene Hackman) and soon, the White House begins a cover up, as the woman was also the wife of a very wealthy, powerful older man.
A number of agents, headed by Seth Frank(Ed Harris) are after Whitney, and the film becomes a well-done chase film, as Eastwood's character must outsmart his persuers. If other people had been involved with the making of the film, or if other actors had been involved, I really don't think the film would be as successful as it is. Harris turns in a superb performance, Eastwood is excellent as usual as both director and actor, and Hackman is good as well.
The film starts off seemingly like an ordinary thriller, but credit Eastwood and writer William Goldman for providing a film that keeps things not quite predictable, and a legion of characters who may or may not be what they originally seem. I haven't read the novel, but I must say that Eastwood's adaptation is certainly a successful one.
The DVD
VIDEO: Warner Brothers has done a wonderful job on "Absolute Power". There are some little spotty problems here and there, but for the most part, images look wonderful. Sharpness is consistently superb and images are well-rendered whether in the daylight or night, interiors or outdoor scenes. Shadow detail is very good, as well.
Jack Green's cinematography has been seen in quite a few major films; you may have seen his work in everything from "Twister" to some of Eastwood's other films, like "The Bridges of Madison County" and "True Crime". Here, he provides stunning work again, and the 2.35:1 frame is always well-composed. Colors are wonderful, as well; the film works with a palette of rich colors which look tight and well-saturated here, with no instances of problems. Black level is strong, and flesh tones are accurate and natural.
There are only a few little tiny problems; none of them take away from the viewing experience. These include the slightest couple of tiny marks on the print used, and only a couple of traces of pixelation.
A pan&scan version is located on the flip side. Aside from a few little spotty moments, this is an excellent early effort from Warner Brothers.
SOUND: "Absolute Power" also provides pretty involving sound, as well. The film is not hugely agressive, but provides an appropriate amount of surround use when needed. A lot of the film is simply dialogue-driven, but I enjoyed when it opened up more. Surrounds are mainly used for the score, or natural sounding outdoor sounds such as birds, etc.
The score is definitely great; it sounds wonderful as well, filling the listening space nicely, and sounding rich and well-recorded. Dialogue is also excellent, sounding especially natural and well-integrated.
MENUS:: Nothing too much going on in the menus, which is not out of the ordinary for the studio's early releases. Simple film images and blocky buttons for options.
EXTRAS: The one main fault fo the disc; only production notes, cast&crew bios and some text recommendations.
Final Thoughts: Good movie, great image quality, very good audio quality...no real extras. Still, "Absolute Power" is a good enough film to recommend.
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