Art Of War, The (UK)

I`d heard bad things about this release, mostly things like "Whoaa! bad movie" and "It`s not even an action film". Unfortunately, everything else (at Blockbuster) was either out or something I`d seen before, so I decided to give this a chance.

As soon as the opening titles commenced, I was struck by the alarmingly active 5.1 track. It`s one of the most involving DD soundstages I`ve heard (from Warner anyway) and could easily be mistaken for DTS. This was exactly the kind of head start the movie needed and the opening scenes/plot set-up just seemed like a distraction from my audio-related entertainment!.

Snipes` character is an agent employed by the U.N and he officialy doesn`t exist (like we`ve never heard that one before). He has a team of helpers which you`ll notice is very reminiscent of the first Mission Impossible movie. This team includes Michael Biehn (I wondered what had happened to his career!). After one of their operations backfires, there is an assasination that Snipes is framed for. You can guess the rest and this is a very unoriginal flick all round.

Although I probably shouldn`t admit it, I warmed to the movie in the end. Although it`s quite old-hat and the type of production we were knee-deep in during the early 90`s, It makes a change from the endless teen comedies, romance and gimmicky ideas we always get these days. I`m a nostalgic twentysomething and this film caught me in the right mood!. I couldn`t possibly endorse the film as it really is a "seen it all before" experience and highly unbelievable on occasions. The music and aural effects are always pleasing though and whoever put the soundtrack together deserves a pat on the back.

The disc is bereft of meaningful extras (there`s a trailer) but this has given them the chance to crank up the bit-rate so the picture benefits immensely. It`s fair to say that anyone watching this title on video is REALLY missing out. On one hand the obvious A/V differences are a factor and this is coupled with a very average (and predictable) motion picture. If it wasn`t for the supreme anamorphic image and demo quality sound, this film would be instantly forgotten and probably not even enjoyed.

Basically though, this isn`t a bad film. Think of a fantastic meal that`s been microwaved 3 or 4 times (not quite so fantastic!). If you`re prepared in advance for the chronic lack of freshness, I think you could do worse.

Amusing enough action flick witch martial arts asides, nothing special though. The usual hq transfer which these title really need otherwise they would be much cop. Rent it...

A pretty good movie. Solid, is the word that springs to mind. It's nothing terribly special, but at the same time is an enjoyable action thriller. The disc itself is pretty good technically, but (as with so many others) suffers because of a lack of extras. This being a fairly recent film, it's hard to believe that they could not find anything to put on this disc in the way of special features. Well, ok - there is a trailer, but still… not really anything to shout about.

Overall - Wesley hits, kicks, shoots, and sometimes even thinks, his way through a film that offers nothing terribly new… not that there is anything wrong with that!