Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Edge of Darkness (Blu-ray)

David Vaughn  |  May 10, 2010

Thomas Craven (Mel Gibson) is a veteran homicide detective for the Boston Police Department and a single father. When his only child (Bojana Novakavic) is murdered on the steps of his home, everyone assumes that he was the target. During the investigation he begins to suspect otherwise and this leads him into a dangerous world of corporate cover-ups and government collusion.

Gibson's back in the saddle after a couple year hiatus from the silver screen and he plays a familiar character as a police officer looking to avenge his daughter's death. The film is based on an old BBC miniseries directed by Martin Cambell, who fortunately directs this feature as well. My only gripe is some gratuitous gore that didn't need to be included although I was wildly entertained.

Video Highlights

  • VC-1/1080p encode on a BD-25 disc
  • Commendable detail
  • Accurate flesh tones
  • Strong depth with solid contrast and deep blacks
  • Occasional soft shot

Audio Highlights

  • DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack
  • Dialog-intensive track that's well articulated
  • Front-loaded presentation
  • Solid dynamics
  • Room-filling ambience

This is a solid video presentation from Warner and the soundtrack isn't much to test your system except for one scene towards the end of the film that certainly jolts the audience.

Bonus Materials

  • 8 Focus points (HD)
  • 4 Deleted/Alternate scenes
  • BD-Live enabled
  • Digital Copy/DVD version of the film on second disc

Gibson's return to the screen doesn't break any new ground for him but that's OK by me – I like him in this type of role. The presentation is quite good and definitely worth a rental.

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Release Date: May 11, 2010
Studio: Warner

Movie: 7/10
Picture: 8/10
Sound: 8/10

Review System

Source
Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player

Display
JVC DLA-RS1 projector
Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics
Onkyo Pro PR-SC885 pre/pro
Anthem PVA-7 power amplifier
Panamax M5400PM power conditioner

Speakers
M&K S-150s (L, C, R)
M&K SS-150s (LS, RS, SBL, SBR)
SVS PC-Ultra subwoofer

Cables
Monoprice HDMI cables (source to pre/pro)
Best Deal analog-audio cables
PureLink HDC Fiber Optic HDMI Cable System (15 meters) from pre/pro to projector

Acoustical treatments from GIK Acoustics

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