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Attack the Block
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Andy James & Noor Razzak (25th November 2011). |
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The Film
 Joe Cornish's "Attack the Block" is a film I have been reading a lot about over the course of the year - it has been playing many film festivals overseas, enjoying a gradual release across the United States and had great word of mouth spread through the blogosphere. When I was recently in the States, I was lucky enough to catch it for myself. If you have not heard of "Attack the Block" until just right now, it's an alien invasion flick set in a London block of council/low-rent flats with a young gang of "hoodies" as the heroes. It's well good. Comparisons have been made to Edgar Wright's debut feature, "Shaun of the Dead" (2004), and it's easy to see why: Cornish has taken a typically big budget American genre (in this case alien invasion) and transplanted it successfully to a very British setting; Cornish and Wright are mates and both worked on the script for "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn" (2011) and have been working on an "Ant-Man" (to be released sometime in 2014) script for Marvel (Wright is also a producer for "Attack the Block"); both have performances from Nick Frost. But that's where the comparisons between the two end. Oh, except for "Attack the Block" also being really, really good. Cornish quickly sets up our band of hoodlums and associated block dwellers: Sam (Jodie Whittaker) is a young nurse, recently moved to the area and one night when on her way home she is accosted and mugged by the hooded and bandana clad gang. It's at this point something crashes down from the sky; the kids investigate and eventually chase and kill it. The gang is led by the badass Moses (John Boyega) and though we're introduced to the rest of this motley crew (none really as tough as they project) Moses is the heart and soul of the film. Sam is also a presence throughout the film and the relationship that unfolds between her and these kids is central to the film and the underlying themes; yes, this is a genre film that has something more to say. It's an interesting, potentially off-putting, decision by Cornish to have a gang of kids rather than the typical sweet faced moppets (see "Super 8" 2011)) fronting up to the alien invasion. But then, "Attack the Block" is not your typical film. But Cornish gets the audience involved with these kids, who they are and what they're about. They might be little hooded shits, but they aren't without sympathy. As such, when things eventually get vicious and characters start dropping left, right and centre you actually give a damn about it - these aren't just disposable bodies there for the cheap thrills. Cornish has an excellent handle on pace and storytelling. He effortlessly sets up moments in the beginning that will payoff later and economically providing background and motivation to the various characters. Each character gets at least one moment, one moment where Cornish provides some reason for us to care about them. The script is incredibly tight, again reminiscent of "Shaun of the Dead" as there isn't a wasted moment of screen time. The action sequences, as things intensify, are well planned and executed. They are tense, exciting and always have a payoff; they are about as far from "cool shit thrown at the screen to see what sticks" filmmaking as it is possible to get. The design of the aliens, however, is indeed some cool shit. These aliens are true beasts; like hybrid dog/gorillas with fur blacker than shadows in the night, no eyes and luminescent razor sharp teeth. They are a phenomenal design and the fact that, for the most part, they seem to be very physical presences rather than CGI creations makes them even scarier and downright badass. No ridiculous skin-bags around here, thankyouverymuch Mr. Abrams. "Attack the Block" is yet more proof that the indie sci-fi is in good health (better health, in fact than it's loud, brash big brother the Hollywood sci-fi). The script is tight as a drum, the tone switching from comedy to horror to action to gritty and dark and back round to comedy again. While not an out-and-out comedy like "Shaun of the Dead", it's still a damned funny film.
Video
Presented in 2.40:1 widescreen in 1080p 24/fps high definition and mastered in AVC MPEG-4 compression. Sony have delivered a pleasing image that looks terrific. The film, while mostly set at night handles darkness very well with hardly a pinch of noise, the black levels are truly beautiful, deep and inky. The best part about this transfer is that detail and textures are not sacrificed. The balance is handled well, with equally nice and natural skin tones, colors (while not too bright, they are a bit on the muted side but this goes with the overall aesthetic of the film) and depth. The picture is crisp and sharp. There's nothing I could find to complain about, it's perfectly suited for the film and looks good on a large HD TV, watch this one with lots of friends on a big screen in a nice dark room.
Audio
Two audio tracks are presented in English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround mixed at 48kHz/24-bit and a French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround also mixed at 48kHz/24-bit. Lots of space, that's the best way to describe this track, you really feel like you're transported to a tenement block, with it's concrete simplicity and echo. Dialogue is clear and distortion free, directional effects are well presented feel natural. Action scenes pop, there's an aggressiveness when required and in the quieter moments the film's audio still sounds rich with wonderfully mixed ambience and environmental surrounds, finally the music adds a further layer of depth that enhances the package. Optional subtitles are included in English, English for the hearing impaired and French.
Extras
Sony has a released this largely cult film with an impressive collection of extras normally relegated to a big-budget hollywood release (although now that I say that... most recent big releases seem to have stripped down extras), included are not one, not two but three (!) audio commentaries, a documentary, four featurettes, two theatrical trailers, a series of bonus trailers and BD-Live access. Below is a closer look at these supplements. First up is the "Junior" audio commentary with director Joe Cornish and the younger cast members John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Franz Drameh, Simon Howard, and Leeon Jones. This is a fun and energetic, but sometimes unfocused track. I suppose it's hard to keep all those kids on track but director Cornish does a semi-decent job of steeling them back from tangents. It's a decent track but if you're looking for anything technical with deep insights into the filming then it's not found here. The second track is the "Senior" audio commentary with director Joe Cornish and the older cast members Jodie Whittaker, Luke Treadaway, and Nick Frost. I love listening to Nick Frost, he's such a cool dude and you get the sense that he'd be a great guy to hang out with, talk trash and cult movies, it's nice to have him play off Cornish, Treadaway and Whittaker, whom all have good input to this track and make it something fans would want to listen to, almost directly after watching the film for the umpteenth time. The third track is the "Executive Producer" audio commentary with director Joe Cornish and Edgar Wright, this is the more technical track, if you could call it that. The two examine the genesis, making-of production and more detailed production trivia. Next up is the comprehensive "Behind the Block" (1080p) documentary that runs for 61 minutes 23 seconds, this clip, I absolutely LOVE these types of features, the days of the comprehensive, intimate and lengthy making-of seems long gone and then you get a disc like this and BAM, there's a hour-ling clip that takes fan right into the guts of the production. We get a look at development, casting the film, shooting the film, and shows how much fun they had making this movie. It's so much more than you're usual promotional clip and makes a welcomed addition to this disc's features. "Creature Feature" (1080p) is a featurette that runs for 20 minutes 9 seconds. This takes a look at the special effects employed for the film in the creation of the alien creatures. It's a perfect length and covers the basics of the visual effects, it's worth checking out if you're interested in the "movie magic" element of filmmaking with CG tools. "Meet the Gang" (1080p) is the next featurette which runs for 4 minutes 8 seconds, this is an introduction clip to the cast of the film, it's a decent clip but if it wasn't included I don't think I'd miss it. "Unfilmed Action" (1080p) is the third featurette that runs for 4 minutes 59 seconds, budgetary constraints meant that some action set pieces had to be cut, this clip takes a look at that. It's fascinating to think how much better this film could be had the producers had the money to shoot those scenes. Next up is the final featurette "That's a Rap" (1080p) which runs for 2 minutes 23 seconds, in this clip the cast of the film perform a rap. It's mildly amusing. The disc also includes the film's original U.K. theatrical trailer (1080p) which runs for 2 minutes 6 seconds and also the U.S. "red-band" theatrical trailer (1080p) which runs for 2 minutes 42 seconds. There's also a collection of bonus trailers (1080p) for the following films: - "Columbiana" - "Retreat" - "A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy" - "Drive" - "Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark" Finally the disc also features BD-Live access for profile 2.0 players only.
Overall
The film review was originally published on the blog Rockets and Robots are Go! by Andy James. The A/V and supplements were reviewed by Noor Razzak.
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