Every now and then, a film comes out with little in the way of fanfare or critical acclaim and just takes you by surprise. The film just completely captures your attention. pulling you into the action, playing mind games with you as you try to figure out what is really transpiring on the screen before you, all the while staying one step ahead of you. One such film is Inside Man.
Film
Inside Man is directed by Spike Lee and written by new comer to the big screen, Russell Gewirtz. And what a first time screenplay it is from Mr. Gewirtz! This is not your typical Spike Lee film which is probably why it is my favorite of his films. The film has quite a cast starring Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster and Christopher Plummer in an intriguing film about a bank robbery that is more than just a robbery and one that spirals into a possible game of cat and mouse between a criminal mastermind and a determined police detective and a power broker with a hidden agenda.
The film starts out with what appears to be a simple bank robbery that turns in to a hostage standoff. However, as the film moves forward, you discover a real sense of unease on the part of the bank president who is hiding a secret that he is afraid will somehow be exposed by the heist. He enlists the aide of a power broker or fixer if you will, who tries to pull all the necessary strings with the Mayor of New York and the police department, to gain access to the decision making process around the hostage negotiations in order to protect her client’s interests. As quickly as the robbery and hostage situation began, it ends, with the authorities left wondering who and what were involved and more importantly, why. Inside Man is a beautifully written, directed and acted film that is a real treat. I continue to enjoy this film even after repeated viewings, which is the sign of a well written and put together film. Highly recommended.
Video
This is another excellent transfer by Universal. The print looks pristine without evidence of dirt or other imperfections which is to be expected given the film’s vintage. The film has a very natural color palette with excellent blacks and shadow detail. The shadow detail is important as large segments of the film take place in a bank where most of the lights are turned off. I had no difficulty making out details and action taking place in the shadows.
Skin tones are very natural looking as well with the only exception being the subsequent interview sequences with the individual hostages sprinkled throughout the film. These segments have a very stylized, overblown and hot look, which was intentional on the part of the director to differentiate these sequences, in terms of time, from the rest of the film. In addition to the black level, I also thought that the overall clarity of the image here was excellent, but just a shade below the top looking films on Blu-ray, with the image lacking that n’th degree of detail and sharpness that are the hallmarks of the very best looking films on Blu-ray.
Despite that one very minor quibble, this is a great looking film and is one that should thrill fans of the film. I know it sure did for me. I found the overall picture quality on the Blu-ray release of Inside Man to even surpass the level on the prior HD DVD release which was no slouch in its own right.
Audio
I have no reservations at all about the audio encode on this disc. It is excellent in all respects. The Dolby True HD that was present on the HD DVD release is replaced here by a new DTS HD Master Audio track that I found to be an improvement over the excellent previous True HD encode. You know that you are going to be in for a treat with the opening music which has deep, solid and pulsating bass and excellent overall fidelity.
The dialogue track is beautifully recorded as well and helps capture the varying acoustical spaces presented in the film. You have a real sense of real voices in real space, capturing the varying acoustical cues from scene to scene beautifully. This is important as this is a dialogue driven film. All of the little audible details in each scene were clearly able to be heard, things such as footsteps, the sound of barrier tape being deployed, rustling of papers, even the sound of a person biting into a slice of pizza were clearly audible.
I also enjoyed the way the surround speakers were employed to create an excellent sense of ambiance and immersion. These are all the hallmarks of an excellent recording and top notch sound design IMHO and are present here in spades. As hinted at previously, the musical score is presented with excellent fidelity, characterized by a smooth and open sound with excellent transparency and imaging and deep bass. The limited gun fighting scenes sounded totally involving and really grabbed your attention especially in juxtaposition with the rest of the film. Whether low sounding dialogue or explosions and gun shots, this track handles them all with great fidelity and aplomb. This is an excellent audio presentation of this film and was a thrill to experience on this lossless audio track.
Special Features
While I loved the film, the extras are a bit sparse. The extras include the obligatory director’s commentary with Spike Lee and over 20 minutes of deleted scenes. Also included is a making of featurette that is presented in HD where the cast, crew, director and the producer, Brian Glazer, discuss the making of the film. Also in HD is a featurette entitled 4 which features Spike Lee and Denzel Washington discussing the four films they have made together, hence the designation 4, up to and including Inside Man. By far, 4 is the most interesting of the extras. The release is BD-Live enabled which will allow you to download exclusive material from the web. The release does not include a digital copy of the film however.
Final Thoughts
Inside Man is a wonderful film that is both and underrated and overlooked. It features excellent picture and audio quality and is a worthy addition to the collection of any film fan. If you haven’t seen the film yet, check it out on Blu-ray. Highly recommended.
