Plot: What’s it about?
Ben (Joshua Jackson) and Jane (Rachael Taylor) are newlyweds, about to celebrate their honeymoon in Japan. As the couple drives to their destination, they become involved in a most tragic situation. A young woman stands in the road and unable to veer in time, the couple’s car strikes the girl. Of course, they panic and stop to see if she is still alive, but when they exit the vehicle, the girl is no longer there. Unable to explain the situation, the couple continues on and soon after, Ben starts to spend time with his camera, snapping all kinds of pictures. But when he looks at the pictures afterwards, he sees all sorts of ghostly images, visuals of an eerie young woman. The couple tries to figure out what is behind the images, but is this a random event or is there a darker force at work in these eerie photographs?
The Asian horror remakes continue to be churned out and this time, Shutter has been revisited. While Shutter was marketed as a horror movie, complete with unrated version here, this is not a scary experience. In truth, this is one of the most boring genre films I’ve ever seen, which is no small feat. The previews promised eerie chills and horrific situations, but Shutter plays more like a drama with some supernatural elements. I never even felt palpable tension, as there is simply no atmosphere and no effort to inject any kind of visceral texture. You can tell the cast was aware of how dull the movie was too, as Joshua Jackson is even lazier than usual and Rachael Taylor isn’t much more interested. This unrated cut doesn’t add much and what is there wouldn’t even bump it to an R, so don’t expect an overhauled presentation. In short, Shutter is a total disappointment and isn’t just an ineffective horror movie, it is a dull, tedious experience.
Video: How does it look?
Shutter is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. This is a solid overall transfer, but the visuals are a little too inconsistent. Some scenes sparkle and show off impressive depth, while others have a softer, rougher look, this seems to be rather random, as opposed to the intended visual design. But when the image looks good, it looks damn good, with great clarity, its just a shame the entire movie doesn’t look this good. I found colors to be bright and natural for the most part, but contrast is on the light side and can waver at times. So not a knockout visual treatment, but a more than solid presentation.
Audio: How does it sound?
This DTS HD 5.1 option is also rather inconsistent. In most scenes, the audio is front channel based and rather reserved, which is fine. But then when the surrounds kick in, they boom and drown out the other elements. So instead of a smooth, well planned audio presentation, we have a hot & cold mixture of quiet and loud. This means you might have to fiddle with the volume in some scenes, to keep the sound at a proper level. Aside from the volume concerns, this is a pretty basic soundtrack that never makes much of an impression. The audio sounds fine, but never much more than that. This disc also includes Spanish and French language tracks, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin, and Korean.
Supplements: What are the extras?
A lot of stuff is included here, but not much in terms of worthwhile content. The audio commentary track is just an excuse for those involved to over praise their own work, oblivious to how poor the picture actually is. I laughed often, but for all the wrong reasons, so this session can be skipped. A host of brief, promotional featurettes are next, none of which offer any kind of insight, while the assorted short interview segments are just as much of a waste. You can also check out some deleted scenes, as well as a video of some “actual” spirit photography.
