Unbreakable, Blu-ray (2008)
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson
Studio: Touchstone Pictures 57036
Video: 2.35:1 anamorphic/enhanced for 16:9 color, 1080p HD
Audio: English 5.1 uncompressed PCM (48K/24-bit), English, French, Spanish DD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: Deleted scenes with commentary by Shyamalan, Behind the Scenes with Bruce Willis, Comic Books and Superheroes – exclusive feature with Samuel L. Jackson, The Train Station Sequence with multi angle feature, Night’s First Fight Sequence – from childhood home movie
Length: 102 minutes
Rating: ****
This is Shyamalan’s semi-supernatural low-key thriller designed to be a sort of follow-up on his successful The Sixth Sense, which also starred Willis. The rather deliberately-paced film sets up a meeting between security guard Willis and a mysterious comic book maven and shop owner who suffers from a brittle-bones condition that causes him many fractures and much pain. The guard is married and with a young son, but his marriage seems to be on the rocks. The stranger learns about the guard after seeing newspaper articles about a terrible train wreck in which he was the one and only survivor. Not only that, but he didn’t have a scratch on him.
The obsessed comic book man prompts him to check into how often he’s been sick, and the guard is reminded that he never has been; plus he’s survived a serious auto wreck unscathed, and was as a child on the bottom of a swimming pool for five minutes and thought drowned. Mr. Comics’ theory is that superheroes and villains do exist and that Willis’ character possesses unique powers. He urges him to go to a large train station waiting area, where he picks up evil doings just from being jostled momentarily by certain people passing by. The worst is vision of a workman forcing his way into a home and killing the owner. Willis follows him, does his superhero bit, and likes it.
The revealment of his powers is handled in a very matter-of-fact way, with the acting never over the top. The unexpected climax of the story is a bit strained and stretched – a fault which has been pointed out before in other films by Shyamalan. But overall it’s an interesting trip for any fan of his special approach, though not as successful as was The Sixth Sense.
The transfer is excellent, with plenty of minute details in the images keeping one’s interest when the action seems slow. The uncompressed surround is terrific, as always. The scene in the rain is the most realistic I’ve experienced in a film – began to think I was getting wet. The special feature with Samuel Jackson about comic books is well worth watching, but the clip from Night’s First Fight home movie is embarrassing.
– John Sunier
