Plot: What’s it about?
Set in Brooklyn during the early 1970’s, Blood Ties tells the story of two brothers who are on opposite sides of the law. Chris (Clive Owen) has been recently released from prison. His brother Frank (Billy Crudup) is a police office. Both brothers have their share of problems, including having to do with their ill father Leon (James Caan) who recently had a lung removed. The brothers don’t always see eye to eye either. There are more subplots than I care to count, but one includes Chris getting involved with an old friend trying to start their own business. We also get a small story-arc involving Chris and is relationship with Natalie (Mila Kunis, sporting an unconvincing and inconsistent accent). Chris is given a job as a janitor at an auto shop and meets her there. He spots her some money after her register comes up short, and the two of them develop a doomed relationship over the film. I haven’t even gotten into the subplot involving Frank and the Zoe Saldana character, Vanessa. Frank arrested her husband, but he seems to think she’s interested in him.
I had modest expectations going into this film, and it begins promising enough, but it just lost me after a while. Some of the best moments are the ones that aren’t taken far enough. The basic premise of two brothers reuniting after one returns from prison (while not wholly original) is good enough. I also enjoyed a scene where Chris is approached by his boss at the auto shop and is told to return to work. There’s a small amount of tension in this scene. I wasn’t sure how Chris was going to react or what he was going to do. Still, that’s only a small moment in a long, slow film that plods along from various story threads, but never finds anything that really makes an impression. It’s no wonder the film didn’t get a wide release. Despite a talented cast, there’s just little here of interest. I wouldn’t bother with this one. There are far better action films from the 70’s that you should check out before this dud.
Video: How’s it look?
The transfer isn’t one of the better ones I’ve seen lately, but it gets the job done. There’s nothing really wrong with it, but it’s not overly exceptional either. Since this takes place in the 70’s, expect to see a lot of tacky furniture and clunky cars. Details remained strong, but the colors were never as bold as I hoped. There’s a bit of a washed out look to the whole transfer, but this could’ve been intentional. There were a few instances of grain. Ultimately, the transfer is a mixed bag, but the pros outweigh the cons. The image is AVC encoded with a 2.40:1 ratio.
Audio: How’s it sound?
The DTS HD track serves the film well. The 70’s music comes through strongly. Vocals were clear sounding and free of any issues. The few action sequences in the film have a nice kick to them. The film’s setting also shines here with the busy city background adding some nice surround effects throughout the film. I feel more pleased with the track here than I did with the transfer. No worries.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Behind the scenes – This is in French (with English subtitles) and offers a fairly basic look at the making of the film.
- Previews
- Digital Copy
