The Film
Sam Raimi made a name for himself with offbeat takes on the usual movie genres. With The Quick and the Dead he heads off to the Old West and takes a turn for the truly surreal, where a slew of gunslingers come together for a quick draw contest to the death. There are more plotholes in this one than there are bullet holes in a Clint Eastwood western - making this seem like an odd follow up for Gene Hackman, who had starred a few years earlier with Eastwood in the superior Unforgiven in virtually the same type of role. The problem is that there is much buildup that results in very little payoff at the end, and while there is the usual mix of the good, bad and ugly most of the characters are never fully fleshed out. And unfortunately, it doesn't feel like it can get to the end quickly enough.
The Picture
While this film only dates back to 1995, the transfer to Blu-ray almost seems to be from a much older film. The 1.85:1 1080p presentation appears to be little more than a slightly upscaled DVD, and the picture quality varies greatly from scene to scene. While some is so sharp and clear, where you can even see Sharon Stone's contact lenses (seriously), others are so filled with grain that it is downright distracting. The colors are generally good, although it is hard to really appreciate it given that the film is primarily earth tones, and the black levels are actually impressive in some scenes. But as consistency goes, this one really misses the mark.
The Sound
The audio too sounds like it was basically a minor upgrade from the DVD version. That said, in the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track, effects do a reasonable job of creating an immersive surround experience, and there is decent sound separation and this includes everything from dialog to the more ambient sounds. For a western, one with a fair amount of gunplay, there isn't actually an overwhelming focus on action sequences however, so this hardly is going to be one to show off your surround sound system.
The Extras
The disc is as empty of bonus materials as a hero's six-shooter after he's spent all six rounds. In other words, this disc is lacking in extras, except for Sony's MovieIQ, a real time in-movie feature that supplies basic trivia about the film. It is a BD-Live feature, so it could get updated over time, but the information is so basic and uninteresting that it seems hardly worth revisiting.
Final Thoughts
There is no shortage of forgettable, and just plain bad westerns out there. And despite a stellar cast which includes Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio, along with Stone and Hackman, this one is just one Blu-ray that is equal parts ugly (no bonus features and only marginal quality over DVD) and bad (story), with so little good that it is best dead and buried.
Product Details
- Actors: Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, Leonardo DiCarprio
- Director: Sam Raimi
- Audio Languages: English, French, Dolby TrueHD 5.1
- Subtitles: English SDH, French
- Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
- Number of Discs: 1
- Rating: R
- Studio: Columbia Pictures
- Release Date: September 8, 2009
- Run Time: 107 minutes
- List Price: $28.95
- Extras:
- MovieIQ - Live in-movie information about the cast, crew, music and the production
